Teamwork can be beneficial to all

Teamwork

A key to success

When you hear the word, “teamwork,” what comes to mind? Do you see a positive image of everyone collaborating and working together? Or maybe you remember a not-so-positive experience when a team project fell on your shoulders because you were the only one who cared if it succeeded? Whatever the case may be, teamwork can be beneficial to all involved, especially if every “team player” respects the other players’ roles. Whether you are the project owner, contributor, collaborator or assistant – as a player, you’re an integral part of the puzzle.

American industrialist, Henry Ford, said, “Coming together is a beginning. Keeping together is progress. Working together is success.”

Whether constructing the Eiffel Tower, the Taj Mahal or the Golden Gate Bridge, history proves the importance of working together. Now, whether it’s running a presidential campaign, keeping a business afloat, or building and maintaining a thriving Toastmasters club – teamwork is still the key component for success.

Benefits of Teamwork 
You’ll find many benefits to joining a team. Your team might create a thriving home, community or professional environment. Or they might build a flourishing Toastmasters group. These advantages include:

• Families can take pleasure in a harmonious environment by working together to complete daunting tasks such as housework and chores.
• Community fundraisers or programs flourish when they capitalize on everyone’s individual strengths, knowledge, personal contacts and individual contributions.
• Professional teams thrive by collaborating on assignments, contributing ideas and using the “divide and conquer” strategy to finish large projects.
• In Toastmasters, new club officers enjoy a smooth transition into office when they can work with their predecessors as a team to ensure all duties are covered, questions are answered and best practices are maintained.

In so many ways, a team mentality will enhance your personal and professional life, as well as make your goals and projects more fulfilling and successful. Most importantly, team members enjoy:

• Making the most of individual strengths
• Producing diverse ideas
• Reaping the benefits of collaborative decision-making
• Encouraging involvement
• Improving workload distribution

Sometimes a little extra effort is required to enjoy all these benefits. Is your team experiencing issues with conflict? There are a few ways that personalities might clash in a team, but experienced leaders know how to correct such situations and steer a new course for success. You canTurn Team Conflict into Team Harmony.

Incorporate Teamwork into Your Environment Here are some items from Toastmasters International to aid in your team efforts:

• Competent Leadership
• Working in the Team Environment
• The Leadership Excellence Series Set

How to produce a video

Stand Out With Video

By Barbara Seymour Giordano

An exciting and unique way to make your club’s website stand out is to produce a club video. You can share your club's story and visually welcome potential members to your meetings.

While club members are initially excited about the prospect of creating a video, many find the thought of the production process daunting. Dan Cossack of the Latin Leaders club in Santa Ana, California, experienced that feeling. But with some encouragement and creative input from fellow club member Cesar Vargas, they created a brief video of the club’s Table Topics™ session. “The entire shoot took us about 20 minutes ... and our video is getting positive reviews from club visitors,” Cossack says.

As a former TV journalist and corporate video and film producer, I'm thrilled to share with you some simple secrets of creating a winning video. Here’s the process in three phases: preproduction, production and postproduction.

Pre Production
Before shooting, designate two key positions: producer/videographer and writer/director. For the first video, it's best to keep the team lean so the process will be simple and fast.

Brainstorm the Key Message To help you pinpoint the message, here are a few questions to consider before writing: What problem are you solving for the viewers? How is your club uniquely positioned to help the potential new member? What action do you want the viewers to take after they've watched the video?

Story / Script / Idea Your script should reflect a short promotional video; either 30 seconds (approximately 65 words) or 60 seconds (100 words).

Open with a "hook" by asking a question or stating a problem. Dedicate the body of the script to the answer: your club. Then, leave the audience with a memorable tagline, a catchy phrase that should be no more than seven words in length.

Club Talent Once you've decided on which story to tell, recruit a couple of club members to fill the starring roles.

Shot List "Know what you want. Planning is everything," emphasizes Cesar Vargas, who wrote, directed, filmed and edited the Latin Leaders’ video. "By knowing what you want to shoot and mapping it out in advance, you save a lot of time and effort." Create a shot list – a planned chronological series of video scenes that will correspond to the script or idea. Writing down each scene to be filmed will save time on the day of the shoot and during editing.

Camera If you’re using a Flip camera, you’ll need to use a tripod to avoid shaky-looking scenes. This means your camera will have to remain stationary. Your sound will be recorded by the camera, and so you won’t be able to record someone speaking clearly from a distance.

Production With the location set and the production crew and talent in place, it's time to get filming!

Writer/Director The shot list will be the director's guide to help keep the videographer and production on track and running on time. Vargas advises making sure to film reaction shots: "If you're filming a club meeting like we did, remember to film audience reactions, such as clapping and facial reactions.”

Videographer / Camera / Sound When filming, consider the background. Does a flagpole appear to be sticking out of the talent's head? Don’t forget to do sound checks and make sure your equipment can record what the script describes.

Postproduction All of the video has been shot and now it's time to upload the footage, do the editing and add the finishing touches!

Editing If you don't have the latest version of FlipShare, you'll need to download it. Once it's installed, you can import the footage you've shot and begin editing and arranging your video in the sequence you desire. A great Web tutorial is available on FlipShare Editing Software Training.

Music
When adding music, choose tunes without lyrics or heavy drumbeats so that they won’t compete with your speakers.

Uploading for Maximum Exposure
A club video is a phenomenal marketing tool that works for your club 24 hours a day. Search engines offer video as a part of integrated search results, which can then drive traffic directly to your website and in turn get the word out about your club.

This is a condensed version of an article appearing in the January 2011 issue of the Toastmaster magazine. You can see this article and much more at www.toastmasters.org.    

Barbara Seymour Giordano, ATM-B, CL, is an executive communications coach with a background in television, having worked for CNN and E! Entertainment. She is a member of Irvine Toastmasters in Irvine, California.

New Officers

NEW OFFICERS

Congratulations to all our new officers:

President: Rene Roy
Vice President Education: Vielka Jones
Vice President Membership: Tina L. Burns
Vice President Public Relations: Susan L. Sudhalter
Secretary: Karen Peters 
Treasurer: Barbara J. Nutting
Sgt. At Arms: Raymond A. Trainque
Past President: Peter Souders

Our new officers begin their positions on July 1, 2013. Good luck to all of them!

What to do when you are on the air

What to do when you are on the air
10 Tips for Talking Heads


By Dave Yewman

Andy Warhol once said that everyone will be world famous for 15 minutes. So when that time comes, don’t mess it up. Follow these 10 tips for broadcast success, whether you’re talking to Matt and Katie via satellite uplink or your employees via a Webcast.

1. Eye contact is king. If you’re on-set, focus on your interviewer and never, ever look at the camera. However, if you’re on a satellite hookup you need to maintain eye contact with the camera lens at all times. When pausing to think, look down – not up – so viewers don’t think you’re rolling your eyes.

2. Dress for success. Dress conservatively, wear solid colors – blues, browns, no white shirts, no plaid, no checkered patterns. It’s a good idea to have a backup outfit on hand in case of coffee spills or rising levels of perspiration (TV lights can be extremely hot). Don’t wear a hat or anything that would cast a shadow on your face. Men: hair combed neatly, clean shaven. Women: hair pulled back off face (if it’s long), light make-up. If possible wear contacts, not glasses (TV lights can reflect off the glass, even if you wear nonreflective lenses).

3. Strike a pose. Posture matters; if you’re on-set, you’ll want to lean forward around 20 degrees when you talk – it’ll open up your diaphragm, which increases your air supply. It also prevents you from slumping, plus you’ll look engaged in the discussion. A good rule of thumb is to not let your back touch the back of your chair. Sit with your feet flat on the floor, shoulders square and your rear planted firmly in your chair.

4. House of Pancake. No one wants to look like Nixon in the 1960 debates – a layer of pancake makeup will prevent the glistening that hot TV lights can produce. Guys usually cringe at the thought of makeup but hey, if it’s good enough for the leader of the free world, it’s good enough for them.

5. Acknowledge and bridge. You have “must air” points or key messages prepared – use them. Attention spans are short. Your on-air time is also short. Acknowledge and answer any questions you’re asked but always try to bridge back to those key messages during your interview. Also, reiterate those messages if you’re asked to provide a sound check or give a summation or closing thought.

6. Practice makes perfect. Being on TV under lights, wearing makeup and looking into a camera is an artificial environment and can be extremely stressful. You literally have seconds to sell your story. Practice in front of your bathroom mirror with a stopwatch – or, if you can stand it, use a video camera and have a trusted friend, family member or colleague critique your delivery. This sort of preparation will enable you to exude cool confidence during the actual interview. It also prevents a case of the “ums” – a disease that causes a lack of future TV appearances.

7. Remove distractions. Turn cellphones and pagers off, lose the gum, remove coins from pockets, don’t hold a pen unless you’re Bob Dole or disciplined enough not to play with it on camera. If you’re on a satellite hookup, ask the technician to turn off the TV set by the camera so you’re not tempted to look down and see how you look during the interview. Request that you be outfitted with an earpiece and a lavalier microphone before going on-air to make sure it fits, works and is comfortable. Also, avoid chairs that swivel and rock – they’re simply too tempting, especially when you get nervous.

8. Energy matters. Everything counts on TV – posture, energy and facial expression included. For proof, just watch the delivery of TV news anchors. Smile, you’re not under deposition! This can be fun. If possible, exercise before going on camera so your blood is flowing and you’re fully awake (a little caffeine might also help). This will help avoid what one CEO called “Dead Man Talking” syndrome.

9. Tell stories. Media outlets tell stories for a living – help them do their job and it will benefit you and your company. Examples, anecdotes and graphics can all help communicate your message – use them! Telling stories also helps break your conversation into soundbites – the lingua franca of TV.

10. Expect the unexpected. TV news is dynamic – an in-studio interview can quickly change to a satellite hookup; what was to be taped can suddenly be carried live; reporters will sometimes try to ambush you. Remain calm, be prepared and try to accommodate any unexpected changes.

Finally, someone once asked Dan Rather what he’d learned in 30 plus years of broadcasting. He replied, “Don’t eat spinach before you go on the air.” Good advice. No one wants to be remembered from those 15 minutes of fame as the person with a green glob on his teeth.

David Yewman is a member of the Vancouver Club in Vancouver, Washington, and is a media trainer and presentation coach.

You can find this article and many more resources free at www.toastmasters.com

The Art of Mingling and Networking

The Art of Mingling and Networking

Don't fall flat when it's time to chat.

How you communicate informally at events is every bit as important, if not more so, than how you come across when you’re in the spotlight giving a speech. In fact, knowing how to mingle and network may be more important to your overall success in life than anything else - which is why a Toastmasters club offers many opportunities for informal gatherings.

• Do you avoid occasions where you think you may not know many – or any –of the attendees?

• Do you tend to speak only to those you already know or do you wait for an introduction?

If this describes you, you may be missing many interesting and beneficial opportunities.

It can help to know that others appreciate someone who takes the initiative to approach them. Here are some networking tips from an article in the Toastmaster magazine by Katherine Meeks: Start by saying “Hi, my name is….” to a person standing alone.


• Talk about the food when you are standing in the buffet line or seated at the table.

• Approach a small group by reading the body language of participants to see if they are open for newcomers. Do they smile at you? Or do they lean toward each other in deep conversation?

• Ask about the person’s connection to the individual or organization hosting the event.

• Try to find something in common.

• Be pleasant and curious. Ask questions!

• Avoid controversial or negative comments or topics with people you don’t know well.

• Bring your business cards!

Mingling creates new connections and possibilities. Professional networking is about meeting people and letting them meet you. This is what communication is all about. Like anything else, it takes practice. That is why Toastmasters International has created multiple online social networks for its members: So they can practice the art of mingling and networking with other members from around the world.

Be sure to check out our complete listing of official Toastmasters social networking group, find more interesting articles and free resources at www.toastmasters.org

Link by Link, and Tweet by Tweet

Link by Link, and Tweet by Tweet

Use the Web to expand your Toastmasters journey.

By John Zimmer

During a 1996 speech on the Internet, then-U.S. President Bill Clinton famously remarked, “When I took office, only high-energy physicists had ever heard of … the Worldwide Web. … Now even my cat has its own page.”
Now the Internet is an omnipresent and indispensable feature in the lives of millions. Used wisely, it can enhance our public-speaking skills and our Toastmasters experience.

Breaking Down Borders
I’m a member of the International Geneva Toastmasters in Switzerland. My District, No. 59, comprises clubs from 18 countries in continental Europe. I have met many Toastmasters friends at district conferences. We live all over Europe, and getting together for a regular cup of coffee is not feasible. Enter the Internet.
Tim May, a former engineer and chief scientist at Intel, once noted that national borders are not even speed bumps on the Internet. I can stay in touch with my friends and exchange advice on different public-speaking matters.
For example, through Google Documents – a platform that allows people to collaborate on a single document – I and other District 59 members were able to help the district’s 2009 International Speech Contest winner, Peter Zinn. When Peter worked on drafts of his speech in preparation for last year’s Inter-District contest at the International Convention, we were able to give him valuable feedback.

You Too Can YouTube
While there’s no substitute for practice, watching videos of other speakers is a great way to pick up techniques and ideas. In this regard, YouTube.com is a goldmine. Search “Toastmasters” or “speech” and you’ll have enough viewing material for weeks. You can also post your own videos. I put a few of my district contest speeches on YouTube and received great feedback. Another excellent site for speakers is TED.com, where you can watch some fascinating speeches on a variety of topics.

Of Links and Tweets
The Internet is very much a two-way street. People no longer go online just to get information; they want to contribute. Two sites help with this.
LinkedIn.com has hundreds of public-speaking groups, including one run by Toastmasters International (with, at last count, just under 10,000 members). As a member, you can participate in online discussions about speaking issues, ask questions or seek advice, post notices of public-speaking events, look for work or a speaking engagement and much more.
With Twitter.com, you can follow (and be followed by) thousands of people around the world. Messages are exchanged in “tweets” – real time, 140-character bursts. You can group the people you follow any way you like. Thus, I have a group for people who tweet about public speaking. Through Twitter, I share and receive public-speaking tips and links to interesting articles.

Blah, Blah, Blog
A year ago, I decided to try blogging and created mannerofspeaking.org – a blog devoted to public-speaking issues. The experience has been rewarding. I have readers from around the world and believe that through my blog – a mix of serious and light articles on public speaking – I’m able to give something back to others. My blog is linked to my LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook accounts, so my posts appear there as well.
It has been said that a blog is like a shark – it has to keep moving or it will die. For those considering starting a blog (on any topic), you must be committed to (1) posting quality content that people will want to read and (2) posting regularly.

Pay It Forward
I have two pieces of advice for anyone about to embark on a social networking foray of their own. First, do not spread yourself thin. There are thousands of social networking sites and new ones appear every day. It is virtually – pun partially intended – impossible to join them all and maintain a meaningful presence. There are not enough hours in the day and who wants to be anchored to a computer? Be selective and focus on a few sites.
Second, pay it forward. There is nothing wrong with using the Internet to improve yourself, personally or professionally. But look for ways in which to help others by, for example, responding to questions that they post. What goes around comes around.
Discover how social networking can enhance your Toastmasters experience. All this and much more is only a click away!

John Zimmer, a member of the International Geneva Toastmasters in Geneva, Switzerland, is a four-time District 59 champion in Toastmasters speech contests. He can be reached at john.s.zimmer@gmail.com.

Effective Solutions for Team Conflict

Use Your Communication Skills to Solve Workplace Clashes 

By Renée Evenson 

If you are uncomfortable facing conflict, you are not alone. Most people feel uncomfortable when dealing with any conflict, especially when it occurs in the workplace. We often ignore these situations, hoping the problem will go away. The bad news is that ignoring conflict will only allow it to grow, until it often becomes unmanageable. If left unresolved, conflict creates disgruntled employees and, at worst, can cause your customers to quit doing business with you.

But when you arm yourself with the skills to meet conflict head on and work quickly and effectively to resolve problems, you will gain respect as an involved leader who is committed to being part of the solution rather than part of the problem. Here are some tips on how to deal with interpersonal clashes and maintain strong, cohesive and productive relationships with others.

View every conflict as an opportunity. Conflict is a natural component in all relationships and should be welcomed. Good discussion clears up confusion, channels positive energy, boosts confidence, bonds employees and opens the door to resolution. To that end, many universities now have an Ombuds Office (which takes its name from “ombudsman” – one who resolves complaints). Such places enable students, staff and faculty to seek constructive help with interpersonal disputes. The neutral listeners at an Ombuds Office suggest alternative ways to handle the problem, including a possible mediation process.

Tom Sebok, director of the Ombuds Office at the University of Colorado at Boulder, says people will inevitably have misunderstandings, whether on a campus or in a company. “Almost any team is likely to view a situation from different perspectives, which can lead to conflict,” he says. “Recognizing this and encouraging discussion of different points of view can help groups make more thoughtful and informed decisions.”

Anticipate problems and deal with them immediately. In any conflict, someone has to step forward to resolve the issue. If you’re the one, you want to act quickly. You don’t have the luxury of waiting around to see what will happen.

Learn to be on the lookout for problems, and resolve issues while they are still manageable. Ask your team members, co-workers and friends to tell you when a problem is brewing. When co-workers suddenly become negative, quiet or upset, this is often a sign of conflict.

Communication is key to resolving conflict. 
The following steps can be followed to establish effective communication practices and help resolve conflict:

1. Listen and Question. 
Before attempting to draw conclusions or make decisions, listen carefully to all sides. Sebok says, “You don’t have to agree, but it almost always helps to understand someone else’s perspective. Also, listening helps people to feel both safe and understood, and sets the stage for a more constructive dialogue.”

Seek information by using nonjudgmental words and phrases, such as I noticed, I feel that, or I need to talk to you about something that concerns me. Follow up by asking questions to enhance your understanding.

Pay attention to the non-verbal messages you are receiving – and those you are sending. People are going to be emotional when talking about the conflict; observe the message behind the words. Is the person angry, hurt or embarrassed? What is the person really telling you? Be aware, also, of the signals you send out. Show concern in your facial expressions by maintaining eye contact and don’t frown, laugh or send other improper messages.

2. Decide and Plan.
When you have enough details to work toward resolution, take time to think through the situation before deciding how to respond. When you have made a decision, plan what you will say when meeting with the person or the group. Think about how those involved are going to respond to you. Who will be confrontational? Who will refuse to take responsibility? Who will be passive and give in?

3. Respond and Resolve.
The most effective way to resolve conflict is to allow those involved to come to a mutual solution. There will be times, though, when a leader must make the final decision for the team. In either situation, resolution occurs when you can find a win-win solution where all involved feel valued and can accept the decision.

To read the full article, please visit “Effective Solutions for Team Conflict” in the Toastmaster magazine online archives.

Editor’s Note: Want to learn more about conflict resolution? Try Resolving Conflict (Item 321), offered by Toastmasters International atwww.toastmasters.org/shop.

Renée Evenson is a writer specializing in organizational psychology. Her latest books, Customer Service Training 101 and Award-Winning Customer Service, are available in bookstores, online sites or at www.reneeevenson.com.