Inspire Your Audience | Toastmasters NZ

INSPIRE YOUR

AUDIENCE

LEVEL 3 PROJECT

TOASTMASTERS INTERNATIONAL

www.toastmasters.org

Toastmasters International, the Toastmasters International logo, and all other

Toastmasters International trademarks and copyrights are the sole property

of Toastmasters International and may be used only with permission.

Rev. 11/2016 Item 8305

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Introduction

Your Assignment

Assess Your Skills

Competencies

Why We Inspire

Inspire With Your Content

Connect With Your Audience

Review and Apply

Complete Your Assignment

Resources

INTRODUCTION

Inspiring an audience is an important skill to develop. It takes a combination of

expertise, self-conﬁdence, and a clear message that can motivate an audience. To

inﬂuence and inspire, your audience needs to understand why they should feel

motivated. Then, they can learn how to take those ﬁrst steps to change.

In this project, you will learn how to present a speech in an enthusiastic and

inspiring fashion in order to establish a strong rapport with your audience.

Page 2 INSPIRE YOUR AUDIENCE

YOUR ASSIGNMENT

Purpose: The purpose of this project is to practice writing and delivering a speech

that inspires others.

Overview: Select a topic with the intent of inspiring your audience and prepare a

5- to 7-minute speech for your club.

Note: If you receive prior approval from the vice president education, you may

speak to a non-Toastmasters group. If you speak to a non-Toastmasters group,

remember to invite your evaluator.

For all

assignment

details and

requirements,

review the

Project Checklist

on page 11.

Throughout this project you will see icons in the margins next to the text.

These icons indicate additional resources available online.

Interactive Activity: Sign in to Base Camp to complete an

interactive activity.

Resource: Sign in to Base Camp to view this resource

online.

Video: Sign in to Base Camp to watch a video that supports

this project.

INSPIRE YOUR AUDIENCE Page 3

Pre-Project Statement Post-Project

5 4 3 2 1

I am conﬁdent that I can identify the needs of an

audience.

5 4 3 2 1

I am conﬁdent in my ability to move or inspire an

audience.

5 4 3 2 1

I can engage an audience using language, style, and

creativity.

5 4 3 2 1

I am comfortable building a rapport with an audience.

5 4 3 2 1

I recognize how this project applies to my life outside

of Toastmasters.

5 4 3 2 1

ASSESS YOUR SKILLS

EXEMPLARY

ACCOMPLISHED

EXCEL

EMERGING

DEVELOPING

Evaluate your current skill level by rating each statement.

Select the appropriate number based on your skills today:

Page 4 INSPIRE YOUR AUDIENCE

COMPETENCIES

The following is a list of competencies that you will

learn and practice in this project.

■ Present a speech in an enthusiastic and inspiring fashion.

■ Demonstrate an understanding of the value of gaining audience trust.

■ Present a speech that inspires an audience to adopt a new perspective or goals.

■ Design a speech with the potential to motivate audience members to improve

themselves personally, emotionally, professionally, or spiritually.

■ Use body language to maintain audience engagement.

WHY WE INSPIRE

Inspiring, vivid stories help us understand the world and our place in it. They help

us connect to a person, group, or cause. By encouraging the best in others and

focusing on their abilities and strengths, you can inspire growth and action in the

people around you.

PURPOSE OF INSPIRATION

The purpose of an inspirational speech is to motivate audience members to

improve themselves personally, emotionally, professionally, or spiritually. It can

encourage listeners to reﬂect on their lives and see them in a new way. This type

of speech relies more heavily on emotional appeal than on the logic found in

other types of persuasive speeches.

INSPIRE YOUR AUDIENCE Page 5

INSPIRE WITH YOUR CONTENT

Inspiring content can be found in many areas, including your own life.

■ Decide what you will share with an audience. For example, think of three events

in your life that inspired you to make important changes, and choose one of

them to write about.

■ Include personal anecdotes to make your speech topic more immediate and

relatable.

■ Find inspirational content in common experiences that many people share.

■ Be conﬁdent in your ability to inspire an audience. This conﬁdence comes from

your personal knowledge of the speech topic and knowing how your own

history contributes to it.

Page 6 INSPIRE YOUR AUDIENCE

CONNECT WITH YOUR AUDIENCE

Developing a strong relationship with the audience is a key element of

inspirational speaking. People who feel a connection with you are more likely to

be receptive to what you have to say. Share your enthusiasm to begin forming the

connection and building audience trust.

POINT OF VIEW

Your audience may see things diﬀerently than you do. To create a message that

inspires, it’s important to understand your audience’s point of view.

DEMOGRAPHICS

Research the demographics of your audience. Some examples of demographics

are age, gender, cultural background, political or religious aﬃliation, ethnicity,

ability, economic status, and employment status. Focus on the people in your

audience and tailor your message to appeal to them.

GOALS

Consider why your audience is listening to your message. They may want to learn

about new software, discover the basics of eﬀective time management, or simply

be entertained. Your message should answer a question, meet a need, or present

information your audience will ﬁnd of value.

RELEVANCE

Determine which elements of your message are most important to your

audience. Taking the time to understand what audience members want to learn

or accomplish will help you draw connections between your message and their

issues of greatest concern. Once you make that connection, your speech is more

likely to resonate with every audience member.

DIFFERENCES

Your choice of words, inﬂection, and body language all convey a message.

Understanding audience members’ point of view will help you adjust not only

your message, but your delivery as well. When you make a connection that

touches audience members on diﬀerent levels, both intellectual and emotional,

you are more likely to inspire and convince.

INSPIRE YOUR AUDIENCE Page 7

We tend to remember the moments when we felt emotion—either positive or

negative. You have the opportunity to create positive emotional moments for

your audience.

Another way to connect with an audience is to share your point of view in a

way that is relevant to them. Share stories people can relate to by using humor,

metaphors, and personal stories.

Focus on the talents and abilities of others. A strong connection with an audience

is built when you remain modest, appreciative, and grateful for the opportunity to

share your story.

Page 8 INSPIRE YOUR AUDIENCE

REVIEW AND APPLY

Before you complete the assignment, take a moment to read through the

questions you see here. If you are not able to answer them comfortably, review

the project.

■ How can recognizing the needs of your audience help you inspire them?

■ Why is audience trust important when you are trying to inspire?

■ What part does body language play when you are working to inspire an

audience?

INSPIRE YOUR AUDIENCE Page 9

COMPLETE YOUR ASSIGNMENT

Now that you have read through the project, plan and prepare your speech

or report.

Review: Return to page 3 to review your assignment.

Organize: Use the Project Checklist on page 11 to review the steps and add your

own. This will help you organize and prepare your assignment.

Schedule: Work with the vice president education to schedule your speech.

Prepare: Prepare for your evaluation. Review the evaluation resources on pages

12–14 and share all resources with your evaluator before your speech. You may

choose to share your evaluation resources online.

Page 10 INSPIRE YOUR AUDIENCE

INSPIRE YOUR AUDIENCE Page 11

PROJECT CHECKLIST

Inspire Your Audience

Page 1 of 1

Select a topic for your inspiration speech. Remember to consider your audience and what would

inspire them along with your own vision for the speech.

______________________________________________________________________

Schedule your speech with the vice president education.

______________________________________________________________________

Write your speech.

______________________________________________________________________

Rehearse your speech.

______________________________________________________________________

After you have completed all components of the assignment, including your speech, return to

page 4 to rate your skills in the post-project section.

______________________________________________________________________

Purpose: The purpose of this project is to practice writing and delivering a speech that inspires others.

Overview:

Select a topic with the intent of inspiring your audience and prepare a 5- to 7-minute speech for your club.

This project includes:

■ A 5- to 7-minute speech

Below are tasks you will need to complete for this project. Please remember, your project is unique to you. You may

alter the following list to incorporate any other tasks necessary for your project.

Page 12 INSPIRE YOUR AUDIENCE

Page 1 of 3

EVALUATION FORM

Inspire Your Audience

Speech Title

Evaluator

Member Name Date

Speech Length: 5 – 7 minutes

Purpose Statements

■

The purpose of this project is for the member to practice writing and delivering a speech that inspires others.

■ The purpose of the speech is for the member to inspire the audience.

Notes for the Evaluator

■

The member needs to present a speech that inspires the audience.

■ The speech content should be engaging and the speaker entertaining or moving.

■ The speaker should be aware of audience response and adapt the speech as needed.

■ If the member appears to be talking “at” the audience instead of interacting with them, he or she is not fulfilling

the goal of the speech.

General Comments

You excelled at:

You may want to work on:

To challenge yourself:

INSPIRE YOUR AUDIENCE Page 13

Page 2 of 3

EVALUATION FORM –

Inspire Your Audience

For the evaluator: In addition to your verbal evaluation, please complete this form.

EXEMPLARY

EXCELS

ACCOMPLISHED

EMERGING

DEVELOPING

Clarity: Spoken language is clear and is easily understood

Comment:

5 4 3 2 1

Vocal Variety: Uses tone, speed, and volume as tools

Comment:

5 4 3 2 1

Eye Contact: Effectively uses eye contact to engage audience

Comment:

5 4 3 2 1

Gestures: Uses physical gestures effectively

Comment:

5 4 3 2 1

Comfort Level: Appears comfortable with the audience

Comment:

5 4 3 2 1

Interest: Engages audience with interesting, well-constructed content

Comment:

5 4 3 2 1

Engagement: Connects well with audience

Comment:

5 4 3 2 1

Topic: Uses topic well to inspire audience

Comment:

5 4 3 2 1

Page 14 INSPIRE YOUR AUDIENCE

Page 3 of 3

EVALUATION CRITERIA

Inspire Your Audience

other Toastmasters International trademarks and copyrights are the sole property of Toastmasters International and may be

used only with permission. Rev. 4/2016 Item 8305E

This criteria lists the specific goals and expectations for the speech. Please review each level to help you complete

the evaluation.

Clarity

5 – Is an exemplary public speaker who is always

understood

4 – Excels at communicating using the spoken word

 – Spoken language is clear and is easily understood

2 – Spoken language is somewhat unclear or

challenging to understand

1 –

Spoken language is unclear or not easily understood

Vocal Variety

5 – Uses the tools of tone, speed, and volume

to perfection

4 – Excels at using tone, speed, and volume as tools

3 – Uses tone, speed, and volume as tools

2 – Use of tone, speed, and volume requires

further practice

1 – Ineffective use of tone, speed, and volume

Eye Contact

5 – Uses eye contact to convey emotion and

elicit response

4 – Uses eye contact to gauge audience reaction

and response

3 – Effectively uses eye contact to engage audience

2 – Eye contact with audience needs improvement

1 – Makes little or no eye contact with audience

Gestures

5 – Fully integrates physical gestures with content to

deliver an exemplary speech

4 – Uses physical gestures as a tool to enhance speech

3 – Uses physical gestures effectively

2 – Uses somewhat distracting or limited gestures

1 – Uses very distracting gestures or no gestures

Comfort Level

5 –

Appears completely self-assured with the audience

4 – Appears fully at ease with the audience

3 – Appears comfortable with the audience

2 – Appears uncomfortable with the audience

1 – Appears highly uncomfortable with the audience

Interest

5 – Fully engages audience with exemplary, well-

constructed content

4 – Engages audience with highly compelling, well-

constructed content

3 – Engages audience with interesting, well-

constructed content

2 – Content is interesting but not well-constructed

or is well-constructed but not interesting

1 –

Content is neither interesting nor well-constructed

Engagement

5 – Audience connection is immediate, sustained,

and overwhelmingly positive

4 – Audience connection is sustained and positive

3 – Connects well with audience

2 – Audience connection needs improvement

1 – Does not connect well with audience

Topic

5 – Topic is highly inspiring to audience

4 – Topic is an excellent choice for inspiring audience

3 – Uses topic well to inspire audience

2 – Topic is only vaguely inspiring to audience

1 – Topic is poorly selected to inspire audience