Break a leg and break the Ice!

The toughest speech you will ever give in your entire toastmaster journey is - the - icebreaker speech! 

You are probably extremely nervous doing your first speech - and for some - like me - that could be your first ever public speech. You probably do not know what to expect as you might have just joined toastmasters. Dramatic experienced toastmasters with huge body movements enough to cause an earth quake and vocal variety to put the sopranos and altos to shame - totally freak you out. Worst part - you have no idea what exactly you should speak about. 

Do not worry -  all of us have been in the same boat as you. And hundreds of toastmasters around the world are probably going through the same as they embark on their toastmaster journey. Here are some words of advise to alleviate your fears.

Nervousness

Remember - this is the whole reason why you joined toastmasters. Be a warrior - combat it. Unless you give it a shot you are never going to over come it. No matter how good or bad you think your speech is - stop yourself from telling your VPE that you cannot speak as you are not prepared enough. Just go for your meeting and go on to stage and simply do it!

What helps is if you get your script ready early and practice it with a friend or fellow toastmaster. It is best to practice with another toastmaster who is in the same project as you so that you can motivate each other not to drop out!

What to expect

Expect everything good. You are about to alleviate your fear of public speaking and get some very valuable feedback from experienced toastmasters! The only rule here is : your speech needs to be within 4 - 6 minutes. You can speak about anything. Do not speak to impress anyone. Always remind yourself - this is your journey - you are in it for yourself - impressing people is not on your agenda.

Try not to prepare an extremely long speech that is difficult to manage - timewise and memorywise. Stick to a small speech and speak slowly allowing yourself to remember your content. If you cannot memorise your speech yet - just get it printed and have it for reference. It is not a requirement for you to have no script with you.

Jim Carrey or Toastmaster

It can be quite overwhelming when you meet toastmasters who are a little dramatic. You might even think it is expected of you. But do not worry - these are skills you will pick up along the way. And dramatizing can happen at your own comfort and pace.

To an extent, these are useful skills but noone would expect you to do it right away! Just speak naturally. Ice breaker is for you to understand your existing strengths and areas where you may need to improve.

Topic Phobic

I totally face this till today. Sometimes I am just not sure what to talk about. I either have too many topics to choose from or none at all! However, keep it simple for the ice breaker speech.

Once, my mentee told me that he was a boring person and he really had nothing to talk about himself for his ice breaker speech. Distracting him a little, since I was meeting him for the first time I asked a little about his career. And out came stories one after another from where he worked to how he had to travel and then about how he was stuck in the Airport for bizarre reasons! Eureka! He had his speech right then and there!

So the tip here is - think about the one story from your life you would tell someone if you met them for the first time. Surely, something interesting, annoying or mind boggling would have taken place that is worth the mention. Stories are a good way of drawing the attention of the audience. 

If you are not ready to share a story yet - think about the one thing that makes you different from others. It could be your nationality, your upbringing, your school or your wierd interests!

Embark your journey with pride and confidence. You will never regret your ice breaker speech no matter how nerve wrecking it had been!