Toastmasters World Tour
Welcome to my Toastmasters World Tour Podcast. I’m your host, Brendan O’Sullivan. Come with me as I embark on a virtual tour of the world chatting to Toastmasters. My tour starts at home chatting to potential Toastmasters at the very start of their journey, contemplating their first Toastmasters club visit. It then takes off to explore the globe on a quest to seek out Toastmasters from all walks of life, from every continent, and from all levels of experience, from novices to the best in the world. Let’s learn from and be inspired by their journeys!
Toastmasters World Tour
World Championship Public Speaking Preparation | Kimberly Harpur, Auckland, New Zealand, Ep 30
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Want to know how a Toastmasters District Champion prepares for the International Speech contest at the World Championship of Public Speaking? Today’s guest, Kimberly Harpur, recently won the New Zealand North District 112 [District 72 since July 1st] International Speech Contest and the video of that speech was also successful at the Quarterfinals, and thus she has progressed to the Semifinals at the World Championship of Public Speaking, Vancouver, August 19-22
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Oh my goodness. I do joke. It's a variety of people around all different fields and parks. When I'm looking the dog, he thinks it's this crazy lady stands on the hilltops talking to herself. Because that's literally what I do. I'll walk the dog and I'll stop at the top of the hill and I'll suddenly break into the chin.
SPEAKER_04I'd love to see that now. Sounds entertaining.
SPEAKER_05Welcome to my Toastmasters World Tour podcast. Please join me as I travel virtually around the world and chat to Toastmasters from different countries and all the five. Kimberly is about to represent Region 12 on the world stage in the World Championship of Public Speaking in Vancouver this August. Tenakoe Kimberly, welcome to the show.
SPEAKER_02Thank you for having me.
SPEAKER_05You recently won the New Zealand North District 112 International Speech Contest. Congratulations.
SPEAKER_02Thank you. Very excited.
SPEAKER_05Did you get in early and already have cheaper flights and accommodation booked in for Vancouver, thinking district will be a walk in the park?
SPEAKER_03No, actually. So the order of competitions goes club area division district. And then you don't go to Vancouver from the district, you go into the world quarterfinals. And the world quarterfinals is via video. They submit a professional video from the disc competition. And then in June, the judges judge the quarterfinalists and choose 24 quarterfinals to attend Vancouver.
SPEAKER_05Right. So when did you find that result out?
SPEAKER_03Last week.
SPEAKER_05Which is what, about a month before the world championships in Vancouver.
SPEAKER_03Yes, it was actually two weeks ago tomorrow. So it would be six weeks before Vancouver. So you don't have much time.
SPEAKER_05So yeah, I'll get back to my original question because that doesn't give you a lot of time. As you're heading into districts where you're thinking, I might as well book the flights now, it's gonna be a walk in the park.
SPEAKER_02Absolutely not.
SPEAKER_03It's very interesting because I'm sure most of us get to conferences for other work over the course of the years. And the one thing that struck me at the district conference in New Zealand for District 112 was the fact that not only the speakers were amazed, but every single person that presented on stage was such an eloquent speaker. When you're at the club level, you have a lot of different levels of speakers speaking every night. There'll be people that do what's called an icebreaker speech, which is your very first speech ever. And it's a very different level to an experienced toastmaster speaker who's at the street level. And in fact, I've made a decision that when I go to the world, I'm not going to listen to the other speeches because it damages your confidence.
SPEAKER_05How long have you been a Toastmaster for, Kimmelie?
SPEAKER_03I have only been with Toastmasters for a year and a half, actually.
SPEAKER_05Oh my goodness, and already you're going off to the world championship.
SPEAKER_03I think I was always a person that enjoyed public speaking. And was by no means professional, but had over the course of my career I had opportunities to speak. I also in my twenties, I did two years of what's called the Meisner technique, which is an acting technique. So that was a really good segue into Postmasters. I didn't start Postmasters without any knowledge of the stage or performance or speaking. I used Postmasters to become more professional and to rush after on my skills. That was my goal.
SPEAKER_05I see. And was this your first time in a district competition?
SPEAKER_03Yes, it was.
SPEAKER_05Wow, that's amazing. How long had you been working on this particular speech that you did at district?
SPEAKER_03Like I mentioned, when you go with district, you have to win several other competitions. And so I started at the club competition with a speech. And after that for area. And after that you go to division. So by the time I got district, I had competed with that particular speech all time. And I had worked on it quite a lot. I I'm not the kind of person that goes into anything without preparation.
SPEAKER_05So how often would you rehearse?
SPEAKER_03Oh my goodness, I'll do joke. It's a variety of people around all different fields and parks. When I'm looking the dog, you think there's this crazy lady who stands on the hilltops talking to herself. Because that's literally what I do. I'll walk the dog and I'll stop at the top of the hill and I'll suddenly break into your speech. And then look around and be childly send me.
SPEAKER_04I'd love to see that now. Sounds entertaining.
SPEAKER_05You sound very diligent, so well learned. So you've had the same speech from Club, you'll take that all the way through, and you'll use that same speech in the world championships.
SPEAKER_03I use that speech for semi-finals. That is the speech that has resonated with a lot of people. Well, the finals you have to have a completely new speech. So I've been working on that since I found out that um that I got through.
SPEAKER_05Yeah, I was gonna ask you that. The one you've won at district, is that your strongest speech then? And is that the one you use at semis? Because a lot of people seem to use their strongest at semis so they can get their best chance at finals place.
SPEAKER_03Well, the rules say you find use any speech you've done before in the finals.
SPEAKER_05Yes.
SPEAKER_03So you can't use that speech for the finals if you get to it.
SPEAKER_05Or even if it's been used at district.
SPEAKER_03You can't use your winning speech.
SPEAKER_05Ah, okay. I thought it was only if you'd used it in the semis you couldn't use it in the finals.
SPEAKER_03The way I understand rules, and look, I could be wrong, and I could go and have another read of this. But they say that if you'll if you make it to the finals, you have to have it totally new fresh speech. That was my understanding.
SPEAKER_05Yeah, I could have it wrong as well. I was under the impression it was just that you couldn't use the semi-speech in the finals.
SPEAKER_03No, they say nothing any other years winning speech either, and I don't know whether that means if you've been to the competition before in the past, that you know you're not allowed to use any of those prior speeches.
SPEAKER_05Have you been to the world championships before as a spectator?
SPEAKER_03No.
SPEAKER_05So it'll all be new to you.
SPEAKER_03It will be very new to me, but it's very exciting.
SPEAKER_05Yeah.
SPEAKER_03I am an academic by heart and I have looked at many, many, many winning speeches on YouTube.
SPEAKER_05I was gonna ask you that. Do any of the previous World Championships public speaking winners inspire you?
SPEAKER_03Gosh, unbelievably so. When I wanted into the competition, I went on to YouTube's talk because you don't get it given a title or an idea of what the international team should be like. So I had to go and have a look to see what they were c looking for. You can talk on anything, but I it's generally spoken to be something moving and inspiring that the audience will resonate with and take away something after the topic. Okay, you're not you're not going to win by going up and talking about the versions of the car engine, for example.
SPEAKER_05So do any of the previous winners particularly stick out as having really inspired you?
SPEAKER_03Oh gosh, there are a few, and I don't want to point one out from another, but Darren LaCroix's speech on which was fall forward. It was very good.
SPEAKER_05Which one was that, sir?
SPEAKER_03Darren LaCroix. 2007 or 2004. But his speeches fall forward. I could quote, but I might be ahead of page lesson. A regret too funny and clever.
SPEAKER_05You've touched on something mentioning plagiarism. How au fay are you with all the rules? Because there are quite a few rules, aren't there?
SPEAKER_03I think it makes sense that you don't want to copy anyone else's work, but you have to be fresh and new.
SPEAKER_05Mm-hmm.
SPEAKER_03And a a new concept, a new idea.
SPEAKER_05Presumably there's other rules. I don't know all the rules myself, but have you sort of swatted up on what all the rules are?
SPEAKER_03Well, it has between five and seven minutes. If you're under five minutes, you're disqualified. If you go over to six and two one, you're disqualified.
SPEAKER_01Mm-hmm.
SPEAKER_03That's that's hard to do, believe it or not, because as the audiences get bigger, your tends to get longer and longer. The pauses become bigger, the laughs become bigger, and you have to wait for the audience, you know. So after six minutes twenty, suddenly become seven minutes ten or something. It's quite interesting.
SPEAKER_05How worried are you about timing?
SPEAKER_03Oh, enough to be concerned because they do have a light with yellow so green, orange, red, or any yellow red. So at six minutes you get the green. At six thirty you get the or is it five and I'll have to but you but they they too switch the light on. So you know when you're at red, you're at seven minutes, you've got thirty seconds to want that.
SPEAKER_05Do you have an abort plan?
SPEAKER_03Like I'm go I'm going over time here, but uh like a way to sort of cut it down and the Um I don't, but it's interesting because at the district apparently my time was 722.
SPEAKER_01Mm, it's cutting it fine.
SPEAKER_03Very much so. And they'd never been over seven minutes and all the other times I'd uh been on the stage.
SPEAKER_05So Now look, I don't know how these things work exactly, and I certainly wouldn't want to jeopardize either of your speeches, but can you share anything about your winning speech at District and also what your plan is for your other speech?
SPEAKER_03Yes, my family has been through a bit of strife over the last three years, both my dad and my sister were diagnosed with automyeloma 18 months apart, which is a form of blood cancer. And my speech doesn't they still alive.
SPEAKER_01Very good, okay.
SPEAKER_03Which allows me to talk about it in a positive way. Sure. Uh but my speech relates that time of my life I live closest to the hospital and how to the financial sector for my father. So anyway, I probably will not say too much more but Sure.
SPEAKER_05No, I understand that. Don't say anything you're not uh comfortable to say. I wouldn't want to jeopardize anything.
SPEAKER_03Yeah, it's a real life story that is true probably to m m most most of our hearts if you had loved one who you you sort of worry about.
SPEAKER_05Sure. Relatable, yeah.
SPEAKER_03Sure.
SPEAKER_05That's the speech you've already used at District.
SPEAKER_03Yeah.
SPEAKER_05Or have you got thoughts on the other speech that you can share?
SPEAKER_02Uh no. Fair enough. Not really can't understand.
SPEAKER_05Fair enough. Okay, good. Well, we all like a surprise. It's like not finding out the sex of the baby before it's born. Yeah, so nice to have a surprise sometimes. That's fair enough.
SPEAKER_03No, you suppose to get curious and final in order for everyone to hear it.
SPEAKER_05Are any of your family gonna accompany you?
SPEAKER_03Unfortunately it's really too far away. It's from New Zealand. And you know, my I've got two daughters. One is 21, she's at 20. The other daughter is seven and she's at school, and it's black slapping in the middle of the school turn.
SPEAKER_01Mm-hmm.
SPEAKER_03So it makes it hard to have anyone come. My parents are a bit old now. My dad's 81. 82. My mom's just heading on to 82.
SPEAKER_05Talking about the distance, there's also time zones to travel. So are you worried about jet lag and how far ahead of the competition do you arrive?
SPEAKER_03I've got a solution for coffee.
SPEAKER_05Oh, coffee, okay. Fair enough. An oldie but a goodie.
SPEAKER_03Yeah. They are 90 hours behind us, so right now it would be six hours ahead today before 10 p.m.
SPEAKER_01Yeah.
SPEAKER_0310 p.m. on Monday.
SPEAKER_01Okay. Do you have a coach?
SPEAKER_03I have a lot of good people in my club. I had a lot of help from Peter Chatterers, who's a local school speaker. He's been very sweet and very lovely. So not formally coached, but certainly helped.
SPEAKER_05Since you won a district, has anyone reached out to you in a coaching offer?
SPEAKER_03Yes, I mean there's a couple of people from overseas who have reached out. Some are paid coaches and others are uh there was one previous placer who said they wanted to join coached by champions, but unfortunately with my commitments to my daughter and still on thought and things like that at that time that time frame didn't work twice. It was like two to four on a Wednesday. So I couldn't join that.
SPEAKER_05If it had worked out logistically wise, would you have taken on a coach?
SPEAKER_03Well, as I said, I I do have help from local local postmasters and speakers.
SPEAKER_05Okay. How much has your speech morphed from when you first delivered it at club level?
SPEAKER_03I had a sit down with the club members and asked them to do what's called sort of a round table feedback before I went to deliver it at division. Which they want the balls do. And they tweaked it a bit where they didn't understand the flow and how it ordered from one concept to another. So it hasn't changed too much, but it's definitely in the time.
SPEAKER_05And do you think there'll be more tweaking to be done in terms of content or is it more going to be focusing on delivery? The the second speech No, this original club speech.
SPEAKER_03The original speech won't change too much. It will be more more delivery and uh how you how I deliver the speech to an audience with the causes and pieces like that, but the overall content of the speech won't change.
SPEAKER_05And what are you expecting the world championships to be like?
SPEAKER_03I have I have Googled a couple of the other speakers in my my semifinals speech, and they are all very good. You know, you can you can tell you can tell that the whole that the caliber of the speaker is not going to be any map there, isn't it? So it'll come down to the criteria of expensive speech on.
SPEAKER_05There's a whole four-day convention around the championships. Are you going to go to all the other sessions?
SPEAKER_03I don't think we'll have much time. There's they've got a quite a few scheduled sessions for us. The only day that we have three would be the Wednesday. Uh the Thursday is our competition. So probably won't go to the Wednesday because I will be practicing.
SPEAKER_05You won't be out partying beforehand thinking I'm in Vancouver. Focused.
SPEAKER_03Well, we've got one chance.
SPEAKER_04Yes, exactly.
SPEAKER_03One shot. Good on you.
SPEAKER_04I think that's great.
SPEAKER_03You know, I'm I'm a very compulsive person.
SPEAKER_05Yes, well, that's great. That's why you've got so part of the reason you got so far.
SPEAKER_03I I'll go with because I'm not going to go all that way at all.
SPEAKER_05Can you go all the way and win the whole competition?
SPEAKER_03Well, that's the dream.
SPEAKER_05Yeah.
unknownGood.
SPEAKER_03We all go with the same dream.
SPEAKER_05Yes. Do you have any other thoughts you'd like to share with us today, Kimberly?
SPEAKER_03I think that it Plus NASA is an amazing opportunity for any person out there. We don't have to be a professional speaker to join. I've seen students in my own club go from very small speakers to gaining confidence within a period of months. And I just think it's an amazing opportunity for anyone at a very small cost to improve your speaking skills or presentation skills, how you communicate. We have speakers in our club who come to the club to learn a new language. So they might be Indian, Chinese, Korean, South American, Brazilian, and they come and speak in front of a crowd in English, which is the second language. Which is, you know, always state that you speak English way better than I speak all languages. So great opportunity people join for a number of different reasons, not purely for competition.
SPEAKER_05Yeah. Well, thank you so much for joining the show today, Kimberly. It's been an absolute pleasure and an honor. And I wish you the very best of luck in Vancouver, and I hope to hear more from you.
SPEAKER_03Thank you. And look, if I ask I turn out to ring, I expect a call from you.
SPEAKER_05Yes. Yes, okay, let's do that. We'll have a follow-up interview. Thanks for listening to today's show. One of the key elements of Toastmasters is evaluation. This is how we grow and improve, both by encouraging comments to things we've got right, and points for improvement. We all learn and benefit from these evaluations. Not just the first being evaluated. Any feedback in the comments is greatly appreciated.