Table topics - "Sweet dreams" or "Nightmare" ??

Dear Toastmasters 

Many of you might have attended the educational session handled by Toastmaster Arna Chugani on "How to ace table topics". It happened on 7th February 2013. I'm here to add a few more tips out of the little experience I have and also out of the lessons I took from people like Murali and Sushant. Hope it would help members while facing table topics. 

First let us have a recap on what was told at the educational session by TM Arna. 

Table topics can be broadly classified into three types. 

1. Quote based topics. Example: You don't have to be great to start, but you have to start to be great.
2. Fact based topics. Example: Cost of living in increasing in India. 
3. Scenario based topics. Example: If you are jumping from a helicopter, and your parachute doesn't open. What will you do. (Well I  took this example from Diwakar :-P . He gave this topic in one of the meetings when he was the Table Topics master)

While you are given a topic, you can follow one out of the following technique. With presence of mind, choose one of the following techniques that would do best justice to the topic given. You can also use a combination of these techniques.

1.         His View point – My view point technique : In this technique, you can talk about the topic from the perspective of two people. Yourself and someone else. For example if the topic is “Social networking”, you can say what you think about it and what your friend/mom/dad/someone else thinks about the same.

2.         Past-Present-Future technique: In this technique, you can talk about the topic saying how it was in the past, how it is now and how it will be in future. Say for example the topic is about “Telephone conversations”. You can say how telephone conversations used to be in the past, how they are now with the advent of Smartphones and how they will be in future.

3.       Cause – effect technique: Here you can talk about the cause of an event and the effects of it. For example if you are asked to talk about the Uttarkhand floods, you can talk about what caused it and what were the effects.

4.       Problem – solution technique: In this technique, organize the topic in a problem-solution manner.  If you are asked to talk about human rights for example, you can say what are the problems faced by people today and you can also provide solutions to them.

5.          Random connection – In this technique you can randomly connect the topic to various ideas and finally as a conclusion get back to the crux of the topic.

I know I have missed 1-2 techniques of what Arna had taught us. Long since the educational session happened. Poor memory of mine doesn’t remember everything. If you remember other techniques please post them in comments.

Now apart from all these techniques let me give you some points that I learnt in my Toastmasters journey.

Mistakes that we do in club meetings during table topics session:

1.         Asking the TT Master to repeat the topic: We ask the table topics master to repeat the topic at times. This won’t be allowed in the contest.  It’s better to speak with whatever we understood out of the topic.

2.         Using the topic as a buffer:  We start speaking by repeating the topic once again which gives us a few seconds to think. This can be used as a last option when we don’t have anything else to speak. But it is better to always not start the speech by repeating the topic as it would give an impression that we are using the topic itself as a buffer and thereby taking time to think.  But it is good to repeat the topic in the middle or end of the speech as it would give an impression that we are remembering the topic well.

3.         Delayed start: We often start with “The topic given to me is...”. Or we conclude by saying “I would like to conclude my speech by saying that....”.Or at times we say something that delays the actual start of the speech.  Both of these are not advisable. Remember  CC#3 – “Get to the point”.

4.         Admitting our weakness:  At times we start saying that, “I actually don’t know what to speak on this topic, but let me talk whatever I know”. Or, we start with a sentence like, “I am actually a little nervous. Am not very clear with the topic, but let me try”. Kindly do not admit on stage that you do not know or you did not understand. Just speak whatever you know.

5.         Concluding soon: This is a mistake that I do. The moment I see the green card, I feel glad that I am qualified for voting and I conclude my speech. Most often I receive feedback saying that my speech was too short. So kindly try talking at least till the yellow card and then start concluding.

6.         Explaining the topic: If the topic is “Life is beautiful”. How much ever you try to explain the topic, you will again end up in repeating the same point in different ways. Eventually you will be beating around the same bush. Never do that.

What can we do to give a better table topics speech:

1.         Read short stories and jokes: This will help you to easily say a story and connect it with the topic. Anything can become a matter for you to talk about. Remember, what helped me in winning the club level Table topics contest, was a small story that I received as a forward sms the previous day. Stories, jokes, anecdotes will always help.

2.         Make the topic personal:  This is a very effective technique. Try relating the topic with your life. Try talking about stories or events from your life that fits into the topic. This technique is easy because it helps you to remember things. You won’t struggle to talk because its your life and you know what had happened. You will be comfortable to talk.

3.         Never hesitate to say lies: No one is going to inspect if what you spoke was truth or not. What matters in table topics is your ability to talk about something for 2 minutes. It can be a lie as well. You can always cook up some stories and deliver them as a speech, as long as you are able to connect with the topic. I have seen people cooking up stories and presenting them beautifully. Yet, they are champion table topics speakers !! 

4.         No matter what.. Talk !! – At times, you may be a given a  topic that makes no sense. Or you may not have understood the topic at all. But, keep talking with whatever you understood out of it. Say you get a topic  “Heart has its own reasons which reasons know nothing of”. I know the topic is horrible. But there are topics masters who give such topics. In this case, rather than trembling with fear on stage just talk something. From this topic we can clearly understand two keywords – “Heart, reasons”. Talk about these two elements and conclude.

5.         You still have time to think: Every topics master repeats the topic twice, slowly. So if you have listened to the topic carefully for the first time, you can start framing a speech before he reads it for the second time. In that way, you still get a few seconds to think.

6.         It is yet another speech: Remember that Table topics speech is yet another speech and organization is important. Try delivering a speech with proper opening body and conclusion. 

Be relaxed, don’t panic, Speak from heart !!!!!