In our last couple of posts, we’ve been talking about our Development Pathway and so today, we’re going to look at the second limb of that Pathway: Become a Better Presenter.
A quick recap
We designed our Development Pathway so that you are at the centre. That means you can pick and choose how to engage with our Pathway in a way that suits you, rather than having to fit into a predesigned “one size fits all” process. That’s because we believe “one size” rarely does fit all particularly when it comes to public speaking and leadership.
We also wanted to make sure that we kept our Development Pathway really straightforward, so there are just three limbs; Become a Better Speaker, Become a Better Presenter and Become a Better Leader.
Become a Better Presenter
The Become a better Speaker element of our pathway provides you with the foundations of good public speaking and giving feedback. But developing your skills as a public speaker does not stop there. Your public speaking skills will continue to develop, improve and evolve through practice, experience, and taking part in different types of public speaking events and activities. And that’s what this part of our Development Pathway is all about.
Our pathway provides a number of ways for you to take part in new public speaking experiences which you can choose to suit you and here are just a few examples of what’s on offer:
National contests
Each year, the ASC hosts three national public speaking contests which our members can take part in: speech, evaluation (giving feedback) and topics (impromptu). Contestants need to take part and win at club, area and regional level in order to qualify as a finalist at the national contest held as part of our annual National Conference.
Competition speaking can be a game-changer as you learn from other speakers from across the country and speak in front of an ever larger and more prestigious audience. Whether or not you win at national level, you are inevitably a much better and more experienced speaker at the end of the process. Our National Conference is a really special event and the kudos of taking part as a speaker is a significant achievement and experience in itself.
World Speech Day
Over the last few years, the ASC has formed a close relationship with the international Word Speech Day team and event that takes place in March every year. This is a unique opportunity for our members to deliver their message to a new and international audience.
Online Speaking
Online presenting is likely to remain an important part of our lives for many years to come and involves different skills than when presenting in person. When the lockdown of 2020 forced our clubs to close, the ASC embraced online presenting and we now have a number of virtual clubs as well as a wealth of online presenting experience and expertise.
Debating
There’s a world of difference between presenting a well-prepared speech and taking part in the cut and thrust of a debate and this is where you can really start to develop your skills as an impromptu speaker in a safe and supportive environment.
Team Speaking
Again, when you present on your own, it’s a world away from having to present as part of a team but this is also just the sort of skill that you may need in the workplace. We encourage team speaking contests between our clubs which provides the experience of preparing as a team and then competing as one.
Storytelling
Anyone in the corporate world will probably be familiar with the importance of using storytelling as part of your presenting. Done well, storytelling can make your speeches more compelling and engaging, as well as more memorable. With this in mind, we provide a number of different ways for you to develop these skills which even include a Raconteur contest.
Seminars and other activities
The ASC wholeheartedly believes in the sharing of knowledge and we have developed a signature approach to delivering seminars that includes interaction, playfulness, and curiosity. There are opportunities for you to develop these skills at club level all the way up to National Conference.
It doesn’t stop there
We hope it’s clear that what our Development Pathway offers is a multitude of different ways for you to build and improve on what you’ve learnt and achieved so far. If you need to deliver seminars as part of your work, then clearly you may wish to focus on that aspect of our programme. If you have to pitch in a competitive environment, then our annual contest will help sharpen your skills and if you want to develop as a leader then you’ll find our storytelling element beneficial.
But it doesn’t stop there, and we have a number of other ways for you to develop as a leader which we haven’t listed.
If you’d like to know more, please get in touch or better still, come to one of our meetings.
Leave a Reply