Division H Humorous Speech and Evaluation Contests

Failure is a bitter medicine hard to swallow after a huge investment of time and money! When the contest master announced the result, I felt a taste of bitter sweetness. What would I do if I were given the second chance to deliver myself at Division H Humorous Speech and Evaluation Contests? Would I do otherwise? The answer is, without a shadow of doubt, a big yes, because I want to win!

What I could have done and should have done was find a Toastmasters club or two to rehearse my humorous speech, listen to feedback of the audience and evaluators, fine tune my speech draft, reorganize my delivery. A humorous speech at the District level is a grand piece of performing art, it requires a group effect from all angles of perspectives.

I failed the humorous contest 2012, because I did it on my own single-handed in my ivory tower, without seeking for scrutiny and advice in a real situation. My humorous speech turned out to be a dress rehearsal with me juggling the props and gadgets in my hands prematurely. The audience couldn't remember what I said in my speech, they were overwhelmed with a busy contestant loss of memory and loss of sight.

Like all Toastmasters, I want to deliver my speech to the best of my ability to entertain and to inspire the audience. However, I failed to connect to the audience from the third act of my speech, the climax of my speech about the Grandriders in Taiwan. Because I misplaced my kazoo, I couldn't find it, I looked angst and frustrated on stage, the momentum of the audience dropped, the energy of the audience plumped, I lost the audience for all. Even in the end, I put on the beautiful Miss Beauty of Age sash, I couldn't win the hearts of the judges back before the curtain came down!

Nevertheless, being the double first runner-ups at Division H humorous speech and evaluation contests 2012, I had many reasons to be happy. I made the best use the stage as a runway to present my Autumn fashion 2013. I tried out my humorous speech with the lyrical for the first time. I learned a painful lesson and I gained a valuable experience!

Now I'm eager to get ready for the tabletopics and international speech in April 2013. Till I claim the championship, I shall come back again and again and again on stage to become a better communicator and leader in Toastmasters! Now you know my taste of the bitter sweetness of being the first runner-ups, there is a goal at the far end for me to reach, to reach, to reach...