From Tim Slapak BRIEFLY ABOUT MASS SPEAKERS CLUB MEETINGS
I brought this training from Britain, where I had gone to Speakers Club meetings for 10 years. I got
a lot out of them, and in the 1990s when local Central European managers challenged me to organise something similar here I got stuck into it.
The spring and autumn sessions of the registered First Czech Speakers Club have taken place since 1996 at our MASS offices in the Trója district of Prague. The training is divided up into 8 meetings from 4:30pm to 8:30pm with intervals of two weeks. Interesting people take part, often they already have experience in presenting, some are managers, owners of companies, coaches, trainers, politicians, and businesspeople. We had a Czech national government minister at this training too.
It's called a "club" because there are specific rules for running this course. Participants (we limit it to
a maximum of 9 people) elect their president, and a chairperson is chosen for each meeting.
In the first part, selected speakers present prepared speeches (5-7 min.). Their presentations are recorded, they can then be watched and analyzed and a determination is be made about what can be improved and how. An assessor is chosen for each of them. The assessor analyses the person's speech for 2 minutes in order to help the speaker improve. Trainers actively help in the process and coach so that participants make real advancement in their self-confidence, skills and attitudes.
In the second part, relevant theory customised for a given topic is analysed, and there are exercises and games, also focused on the substance of the training. Then at the end the entire meeting is assessed by a chosen general assessor.
Each meeting, even though it's founded on the same fundamentals, is specific.
All of the participants confirm how the training helped them to substantially improve the quality of their communication with the world around them and to strengthen their self-confidence and charismatic authority in their professional and private lives.
And, of course I'm happy that I can contribute towards it with my experience along with my colleague, lecturer Dimitrij Halkov.
Thank you, and I'm looking forward to meeting you at the Speakers Club.
Tim
Tim Šlapák
Director
MASS Training & Media, s.r.o.
Nad Kazankou 649/46
171 00 Praha 7
Czech Republic
Email: tim.slapak@mass.cz
Phone: +420 602 624 173
Internet: www.mass.cz
EMCC accredited coach
Senior Practitioner