In my line of work people often assume that a Management Consultant has all the answers at the outset to the problems faced by a client. This is not necessarily true although having some subject matter expertise or industry experience is often useful. One of the real tools that a Consultant uses which I am going to share with you here in this article is the ability to ask quality questions from their clients which result in a meaningful dialogue and discovery process that in turn lead to the root cause or underlying issue being identified which then can be resolved by other means. The questions listed below I believe are helpful in discerning how to help a Mentee improve and by design are very general. If you find them useful, please feel free to adapt them to your purposes.
How can I be of greatest help to you in our relationship?
What was the best mentoring or coaching experience you have ever had? Why was it so effective for you?
What are your most important goals right now?
What questions can I help you answer?
What is your time frame for achieving these goals?
What are the most important obstacles you are facing?
What have you tried so far? How has it worked?
What are your greatest abilities or strengths?
What has been most helpful for you in this conversation?
This is a guide on how to use the meeting website agenda as the Chair of Goodyear Toastmasters.
Step #1: Select Meeting Agenda
The very first thing you want to do is log in as a member. After that, select "Meeting Agendas" from the side column on the left of the page.
Step #2: Edit Meeting Agenda
You will see a set of buttons on the Meeting Agenda page. As Chair, the two you want to pay attention to are "edit this meeting agenda" and "email this meeting agenda". I have circled them in red in the above screenshot.
Click on "Edit This Meeting Agenda".
A new screen will open up. You don't need to worry about any of the stuff under "Meeting Agenda Items" unless you need to manually change who is selected for a specific role or edit any of the text. Members can manually add and remove themselves from roles so this should be up to them. However it's good to know you can do this too. For now, click on "Meeting Agenda Setup" which I have circled in red.
Step 3: Enter your Theme
Scroll down on the next window until you see this box. Type the theme of the meeting in the area I have circled in red as well as any other details that you would like to be sent out in all of the following emails. Whatever you type in here will be sent out in every email for this specific meeting agenda. Click Save and Close.
The theme of the week and whatever else you typed in there will also be displayed in the area I have circled on the meeting agenda on the website for everyone to see.
Step #4: Email Meeting Agenda
Now that you are satisfied with the meeting agenda, click "Email this meeting agenda" to send it out to members. Clicking on this button will not automatically send it out. You still have one more step.
This is the final step. You can type in a custom message here that will only go out with this email if you so desire. For instance, this would be a good place to announce that you are still looking for people to fill in for missing roles. What you type here will not be displayed on the meeting agenda description.
It is also VERY important to make sure that the "Send to all club members" box is checked or else nobody will receive your email.
Do you want to learn how to talk on camera? There is an advanced manual called Communicating On Video. Now that I’m a Competent Communicator, that’s one of the two manuals I’m completing to become an Advanced Communicator Bronze.
I haven’t started but have been on camera several times. This time, I was interviewed by Toastmaster Jason Heath on the Objective Financial Hour. He’s one of the rare true fee-only financial planners. There’s more background in a “financial doctor” interviews an “insurance doctor”.
The Experience
The experience was quite pleasant. I met Jason once before and we had lunch just before the interview. That familiarity helped me feel comfortable.
Also, the studio was inviting and quiet (like a real room). The background was genuine. I’m not a fan of using a green screen to insert a fake background. How does fooling the audience build trust?
Because the program was almost an hour, we had plenty of time to talk. However, there was no editing. The recording was live.
I’m getting more comfortable with studios and interviews. As Toastmasters, we know that practice helps.
The Surprise
Jason didn't use any notes but was prepared. Perhaps his technique leads to a more conversational style than using pre-planned questions. He's very good at impromptu speaking.
I would not be comfortable without notes. I'd probably use a mind map on my iPad. Maybe that's a crutch. I see it as a form of preparation.
Overall
Overall, we both spoke clearly, with some crutch words (“ah”, “so”, “and so”). I didn’t make eye contact throughout. Sometimes my eyes darted to the left on occasion. There are a couple of times when I didn’t feel coherent. Unfortunately there was no editing. That’s a consequence of a life recording.
The Interview
Here is the full interview (no editing).
Here is the podcast. I edited with Audacity, primarily to remove some crutchwords. some duplicated words and the commercial breaks.
TEDx events are an opportunity to see great local speakers.
TEDxToronto took place this week. Over 1,000 attended. Imagine speaking to an audience that size. This polished event provided lessons for Toastmasters and other speakers. We’ll look at the importance of mentors, timing and delivery.
Get A Mentor
Speakers vary in skill. They have different issues in their heads. To help them and maintain the standards of TEDxToronto, each speaker got coaching.
The bigger issue may be honing the content. Speakers know much more than they have time to tell. If they’re used to presenting for an hour, trimming down to 18 minutes (or less) may be daunting. How can any of your golden words be omitted?
A mentor gives a valuable outside perspective and a reminder that the speaker is there for the audience. The problem is that a mentor is still one person and opinions vary.
“Only say what you think is funny. Only keep what they think is funny.” — BJ Kovak, Crafting a Joke: The Arc of an Act (Wired, May 2010)
Another approach is to field test content in front of live audiences to gauge reactions. You want to get feedback from the right group. A Toastmasters club is ideal since members know how to give useful feedback. I sometimes use a printed form (preserves anonymity) or have a group discussion (for interaction and elaboration).
Nail The Timing
In Toastmasters, we learn the importance of every second. We also learn that a second varies in length. A typical speech is 5-7 minutes. We may aim for six minutes during practice only to find that when we're live we speak faster, speak slower or add impromptu segments.
To keep on track, we use lights at Toastmasters
green at 5 minutes: you met the minimum requirements
amber at 6 minutes: start winding down, even if you're behind
red at 7 minutes: you've gone too long (you never want to see red)
TEDx might have a countdown timer or other system.
If you’re speaking somewhere on your own, looking at your watch isn’t a good idea. An organizer can signal you. There are also timing apps for smartphones and tablets. Some clickers have timers and buzzers.
Be Flexible During The Delivery
“There’s a point where we must just open our mouths and let our voice come out. We let it mix in the air and accept that we can’t put it back.” — Steven Page
You can practice and practice but the live experience is unpredictable.
At TEDxToronto, the speeches were generally delivered well. A child spoke but was hard to hear (was her headset microphone too far away?). When the hosts (MCs) started speaking between talks, they were sometimes hard to hear (seemed that their handheld mics were off or not amplified enough). Luckily audiences are forgiving and compensate for us.
There are bound to be TEDx events near you. If not, you can watch the videos on TED.com or a TEDx site like TEDxToronto.
