| Dan Weedin has never seen the TV program “Survivor.” But when the local independent insurance consultant recently represented the Little Norway Toastmasters Club of Poulsbo in the District 32 Table Topics competition, he had to convince the judges not to vote him “off the island.”
The Table Topics competition tests the ability of participants to speak extemporaneously for up to 2-1/2 minutes on a random question, unknown in advance. The speakers are then evaluated for vocal and visual performance, as well as overall content. The challenge for Weedin? To make an argument against voting him out of a fantasy “Survivor” competition. Weedin relied on the negotiating skills he has honed through participation in Toastmasters to make his case – and took the first place gold medal.
Five other participants from around the district, which spans from Kent to Port Angeles and south to Olympia, competed in the Table Topics event, which was held at the Tacoma Dome Hotel on October 28. Ruth Marcus, a Toastmaster from Port Angeles, took the 2nd place award.
Weedin can be reached at (360) 697-1058. For more information about Toastmasters and the clubs in the area, visit www.toastmasters.org. |
