Conference Education Session Presenters Fall 2017

Conference Education Session Presenters

Power – The Failure of the Leadership Bridge

The (mis)use of power has usurped the art of leadership. Some operationally define leadership as the wielding of power in the name of meeting organizational objectives. The all-too-common overuse of power is counter-productive to effective, meaningful leadership and communication. Content and activities will focus upon dissolving power relationships as a means of achieving greater leadership success through improved organizational relationships, better productivity, and less turnover. Additionally, the session emphasizes that leadership and communication are inextricably linked.

Bio:

Mike Schellen has been a passionate member of the Training and Development community for the past 25 years. For two decades Mike has held various leadership positions in Training and Development, and has facilitated numerous courses in Leadership Development. In addition, Mike has held various positions in ASTD (now ATD), including president of the Dallas Chapter in 2012.

Mike has been involved in Toastmasters for the past 4 years. He is a competent communicator, and has competed numerous times up through the district level. He is a lover of learning, and is nearing completion of a PhD in Learning Technology.

Habit of Highly Effective Managers

How can you achieve extraordinary results as a manager and leader in your business, Toastmaster, and personal lives? Learn essential practices of effective managers including how to break through perceived barriers and creating outcome-focused project. Ada is an expert in training needs assessments, adult learning, project management, and curriculum design. She’s a self-motivated quick learner with a passion for team solutions.

Bio:

Ada has been in the field of Learning and Development for more than 20 years. She is the Training Site Leader for Genpact where she is responsible for developing and delivering leading-edge development programs. Ada holds multiple training certifications including the Management and Leadership program for the Stephen Covey organization.

3 Keys to Mentoring

The act of mentoring can lead to massive benefits for both the mentee and mentor. Too many clubs fail to reach their full potential in mentoring new members. In this session, you will learn the 3 Key practices to create, implement, and benefit from effective mentoring. Your members and you leaders will grow faster than ever – by following these best practices.

Bio:

Our instructor is a certified mentor and co-founder of the University of North Texas mentoring program for high-potential graduates. She is a sought-after speaker for organizations that want to supercharge their performance. Julia her MBA from UNT and has been engaging in performance improvement coaching for more than 20 years.

Tall Tale Tips and Tricks

In this interactive session, you’ll learn the secrets to a winning Tall Tale. This is a nuts and bolts session that covers topics including harnessing your creative juices, steps to create a Tall Tale, and creating a speech ‘skeleton.’ Your session leader is one of the most successful Tall Tale contestants in District 25 history. You won’t want to miss it.

Bio:

David joined Toastmasters in 1988. Since then he has competed in more contests than he would like to remember. He won the District 25 Tall Tale Contest back to back to back (1996, 1997, and 1998). He also won the District 25 Humorous Speech contest in 2009. He got as close as second place in the District 25 International Speech Contest. Though he likes to compete in all contests his favorite is the tall tale contest, since it gives him the excuse to let his creative juices really flow. In 2010 he self-published a collection of tall tales and humorous speeches. Though he still likes to compete his primary goal is to help other Toastmasters achieve their goals, whatever they may be.

The Present of Stage Presence

It’s the little things you do that make a huge impact on your audience. Here you will learn the secret of why stage presence is the present you give your audience without them really knowing it. You will walk away with great tips on how to own the stage and giving a more impactful presentation.

• Learn how to own the room and the stage.
• How to connect your body with your words.
• Why you rehearse a speech and not practice it.

Bio:

Nikki began her journey into public speaking in Toastmasters almost 9 years ago. She has worked in the film/TV industry for over thirty years. Nikki is now a Professional Member of the National Speaker’s Association (NSA) and currently the Dean of NSA-North Texas’ Charbonneau Speakers Academy. Nikki holds an MFA in Acting and brings her theatre and film expertise to the speaking arena with her.

Leading From Behind

How many times have you been driving and heard a passenger say “Slow down!” or “Watch where you’re going!”? If you are someone who truly enjoys driving or are one of “those” passengers who feel you can drive better – then this session is for you. You will learn new insights on three communication characteristics leader should know and practice and will redefine your leadership style to maximize the talents and skills of fellow Toastmasters. You’ll also be challenged to take a backseat without hesitation or complaint.

Bio:

Sandra is Owner/Chief Executive Communicator of WordOut Communications, a public relations consultancy. She is a member of the National Speakers Association (NSA) Academy for Professional Speaking, and a member candidate for the NSA North Texas Chapter. A 10-year veteran of Toastmasters, Sandra is a Distinguished Toastmaster and was a District 50 “Rookie of the Year”, Distinguished Area Governor and four-time district level speech competition winner.

Building Bridges With Your Audience

Not everything has to be PowerPoint driven to be effective. There are ways to get your audience not only mentally engaged in your presentations, but physically engaged as well. How can you better utilize tools like whiteboards, worksheets, fill-in-the-blank questionnaires/surveys, discussion groups, or even splitting the room for agree/disagree dialogue sessions? These are a few of the tricks and tools that will be addressed in this presentation to enhance your audience engagement when speaking.

Bio:

Jeff McKissack has been a professional speaker for 30 years and has personally addressed over 350,000 in live audiences, countless more via radio, television, podcasts and more. Locally Jeff can occasionally be seen providing story commentary on our FOX, ABC, CBS, NBC, and CW news affiliates as well as heard on several local radio stations talk shows in interviews both here and around the country.

Pathways Is Coming! Are You Ready?

Pathways is coming and will be here before you know it.  Our Toastmasters education program has not had a major update in over 40 years.  Pathways will modernize our education program and emphasize leadership and communications as key components in your Toastmasters journey.

This education session provides the latest updates from Toastmasters regarding Pathways, including how it will impact your club and your club members.  We will describe the roles of the Pathways Ambassadors and Guides since they are eager and excited to share this new program with our members.  The session includes time for time for questions.  With a transition this large, there is no question too small so we will also provide an opportunity to write down any questions you may have in the event we run out of time.  Questions and responses will be compiled into an updated Frequently Asked Questions on the District 25 website.  Pathways is coming!  Are you ready?