Certainly there are some people who are very competitive, and some who love the spotlight. Why not just let them enter the speech contests. The rest of us can just keep time or count ballots, maybe occasionally run a contest or judge. There's no need to risk a blow to ego or self-esteem or experience public humiliation by failing to seize that first place trophy, right? Why go through all the effort to prepare for so little chance?
I have been in Toastmasters 13 years, and I have competed in over 140 speech contests to date. In my clubs, there have been some members who were afraid to compete against me even though I have lost more than half the time and I have yet to win a District championship. It might make you wonder, who would want to compete against a District champion or an International Speech finalist?
I would. I have! Why not compete? No matter how you perform, you will be applauded. Everyone will be encouraging you. In fact, the worst thing that could happen is that you win!
A few years ago, a new member in one of my clubs was an experienced Toastmaster who had just the year before placed third in the International Speech finals. When the next International Speech contest came up, I was the only one who signed up against him. I was eager to compete on the same stage with him, because I knew with such high calibre competition that I would be motivated to prepare and perform at my best.
Our two speeches could not have been more different. My competitor, quite sharp in his Marine dress uniform, drew first and he gave a solid speech about honor and perseverance from his bootcamp experience. For my speech, I was moving about and standing on chairs emoting about my divorce and what Toastmasters had done for me.
When I finished, I felt really good. I had performed my speech as I had planned and practiced, and the audience reaction had been very strong. During the break before the winners were announced, several of the club members told me they believed my speech had been just as good as the first speech and a couple thought that I had a chance at winning outright.
At that moment, I had already achieved my goal: I had given a speech that was important to me, and I had given it at a level that put me on par with an elite competitor.
As luck would have it, demographics were against me. The judges that evening were mostly men that appeared to be retired, and they all saluted during the Pledge of Allegiance indicating they were ex-military. I was not at all surprised that my competitor came in first. Quite simply, his speech connected with the judges far better than mine ever could.
I have learned that as a whole judges are neither perfect nor predictable. Yes, Toastmasters speech judges are supposed to be objective, but there is no way to enforce or even recognize objectivity. Even if a judge is making every effort to be objective, a speech that happens to resonate with the judge's own experiences, beliefs, or personality will subconsciously appear to be better organized with better use of voice and gestures and a stronger audience reaction. I have both witnessed and experienced contest results skewed due to a variety of factors related to judges including age, gender, personal bias, nationality, race, failure to fill out ballots correctly, ballots missed by ballot counters, tiebreakers applied improperly, a contest master or chief judge ignorant of the rules, and even an incorrect announcment of winners that ballot counters and timers failed to correct immediately.
What does all this mean? It means that winning a contest is completely out of my control! Therefore, winning a contest is not my goal. My goal is to perform at my peak and to make an impact on the audience.
A couple years ago, I finally had won my way to the District International Speech contest. When I took the stage, my goal was not to win; after all, I could not control what the judges would do. All that mattered to me was that I give my best performance. I spoke next to last. I got laughs and gasps, and the entire ballroom of 350 or more Toastmasters hung in rapt silence as I finished. I walked off that stage giddy and very satisfied.
I do not remember the speaker after me very well since I was still running on an adrenaline high. After the speeches completed, I made my way to the bathroom. (Nine 5-7 minute speeches and 10 minutes of silence was asking a lot of my body!) A gentleman there proferred me some advice that I had heard before: I ended my speech with an emotional downer, and I should have made it more positive instead. I had long since passed on that advice because the speech was designed specifically to leave the audience doing a deep and intense introspection.
On the way back to the ballroom, a woman in tears accosted me. She thanked me prolifically for my speech. I had reminded her of her son who had committed suicide, and for her my speech became a tribute to him.
I had made an impact! I accomplished my goal. I had already won.
When the results were announced, I placed second, the only time I have placed at the District level. I now have a speech that I know shocks, touches, and evokes great emotion. I would never have put the effort to put it all together if I had not been competing!
Do you have a story to tell? Do you want to make an impact on people? Do you have a passion you feel driven to share? Do you have a wound that needs help to heal?
Write that speech. Practice it. Get feedback. Rewrite it. Retell it. Then take that speech to the stage in competition and give your best such that you can walk away proud of yourself. I will meet you there, and I will be doing the exact same thing! We will both be in it to win it.
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