53rd meeting, 29 May 2009

Friday, 29th of May 2009, we had our 53rd meeting.

CC Deborah, gave a welcoming speech to the members, evaluators and some guests we had.

CC Kimmy as the Toastmaster of the Evening (TME) told us about the meeting details. As our previous meeting we had another marathon of speeches without any Table Topics session. But this time the word of the day was "today". There were another 7 speeches including 5 CC Projects and 2 AC Projects.

Project Speeches:
1. CC Project #5 - 'Hypocrisy' by TM RAS Hadi
2. AC Project #2 - 'My Mother' by CC Deborah
3. CC Project #7 - 'The Hardon Collider' by TM Rishi Ganesh
4. CC Project #2 - 'Social Networking' by TM Hadi
5. CC Project #4 - 'Culture' by TM Siew Peng
6. CC Project #10 - 'I found it' by TM Nyuk Jet
7. AC Project #1 - 'The Launch of Turbojet' by CC Kimmy

Nyuk Jet has finished her 10th project speech and now she is CC Nyuk Jet. Congratulations!

Some of the evaluators were external evaluators including Dr Devi Menon, our UM TMC advisor. CTM CL N.J Singam was one of the external evaluators from Tamil Toastmasters Club. ACB, CL Christine Khoo from MAICSA Toastmasters Club and also DTM Vincent Hor from this club.

General Evaluator: DTM Vincent Hor
TME: CC Kimmy
Ah Counter: TM Ras Hadi
Grammarian: TM Beng Kuan
Time Keeper: TM Siew Peng

Giving the closing speech by CC Deborah we have done the last meeting for May 2009.

Hadi Saboohi,
VP Public Relations,
UM TMC,
2009/2010.

The Final Post from the Desk of VPPR Session 2008/2009

Dear All,

This would be my final post to the UM TMC blog. I will be leaving my post as the Vice President of Public Relations (VPPR) for the Session 2008/2009.

Being a VPPR for the whole session has taught me a lot on how to communicate with other people and make them feel easy when you are with them. I have met a lot of new guests and members who have attended our meetings. Some guests may come for only one or two meetings and then they will be missing. But that’s not the point. I will always feel glad whenever I see a new guest in every meeting. At least they took an effort to attend our meetings - something has made them to try it out.

There could be other factors that may affect their attendance to Toastmasters, such as, the timing, poor English, not suitable for them or they still feel frightened to go ahead with public speaking. Whatever the reason could be, we, UM Toastmasters, will always be there to help you. You can always try out our table topics session that is provided in every of our meetings without the need of being a member, till you feel whether UM TMC really suits your needs or not.

Being a VPPR of UM TMC, I have received a few personal invitations to the major events of other University of Malaya registered clubs and some advertisements of stationery related things. Thank you, guys - if you are reading this post. I really appreciate your invitations and advertisements given to me via handphone and e-mail.

I would say that this blog have made some changes in my life personally. You could see that I’m a better writer now, don’t you think so? Before I started this blog, I don’t quite know anything about blogging. It was total zero. But later, the President started to emphasize me on this, and I learned about blogging one-by-one…till now...with number of viewers reaching 6500 times. Yes, I am a blogger now (but yet to have my own blog…haha…).

Thank you to all the viewers (UM TMC members, external Toastmasters club members and guests) who had given support to me so that I’m encouraged to updated the blog very often. This goes to the members of TICUM session 2007/2008 and the external Toastmasters student club members too. Without you guys, I wouldn’t have brought the blog this far. Your support is my inspiration.

Finally, I would like to say a special thank you to all the UM TMC excos of the session 2008/2009 :

Kimmy Foo (President)
Teo Bee Guan (VPE)
Deborah Chow (VPM)
Fun Mun Wah (Secretary)
Grace Rebekah (Treasurer) and
Grace Kang (SAA)

UM TMC would not have come this far without you guys. Great job!!! I will never forget all the moments that we had in UM TMC session 2008/2009.

Now, it’s time for me to hand over this blog to the new VPPR session 2009/2010 – TM Hadi Saboohi. The UM TMC blog is now fully under your hands to continue its meaningful journey.

Signing off from the session 2008/2009,

Rishi Ganesh,
Vice President of Public Relations (VPPR),
University of Malaya Toastmasters Club (UM TMC),
Session 2008/2009.

52nd meeting, 22 May 2009

Last Friday, 22nd of May 2009, we had our 52nd meeting. This meeting was mostly conducted by our new excos.

Our new president, CC Deborah, gave a welcoming speech to the members, evaluators and some guests we had.

Rishi who was the Toastmaster of the Evening (TME) took control and he explained about the details of the meeting. Due to the special meeting because of being in the break time of the semester, he explained that the meeting would be a marathon of speeches without any Table Topics session and WOD. Yes, it was a marathon of speeches with 7 speakers including 5 CC Projects and 2 AC Projects.

1. CC Project #2 - 'Cut the Clutter, Get Organized' by TM Hui Xin
2. CC Project #3 - 'Care More about Your Weight Now, Worry Less Health Risk Later' by TM Siew Peng
3. CC Project #4 - 'Failed State' by TM Ras Hadi
4. CC Project #4 - 'A Dinner' by TM Fun
5. CC Project #9 - 'Act Now' by TM Nyuk Jet

6. AC Project #2 - 'Speaking in Praise' by CC Deborah
7. AC Project #5 - 'Echo and Narcissist' by CC Kimmy

All have done great speeches especially TM Nyuk Jet who taught us to eat Dragon Fruit instead of Apple (Because the first one is a local fruit and the second is an imported one)!

In this meeting we strangly had 7 external evaluators from other clubs which was a record in the life of UM TMC. Thanks Ras Hadi for inviting them all. We had 1- ACB, CL Christine Khoo as General Evaluator from MAICSA Toastmasters Club. 2- ACS CL Lai Lain from Delloitte Toastmasters Club. 3- Dr Devi Menon, our UM TMC advisor. 4- Our daddy DTM Vincent Hor from MAICSA Toastmasters Club. 5-DTM Francis Ng from Money Mastery Toastmasters Club. 6- DTM Jessica Liew from MAICSA Toastmasters Club. 7- ACS CL Meyyappa Manickam, the Area B1 Governor.

The role players were:
TM Hadi as Ah Counter
TM Ras Hadi as Grammarian
TM Hui Xin as Time Keeper

After general evaluation being done, CC Deborah gave us the closing speech and then we had a great great birthday cake for both CC Bee Guan and CC Kimmy. Happy Birthday to both of you.

Hadi Saboohi,

VP Public Relations,

UM TMC,

2009/2010.

Workshop Conducted by UNITAR Toastmasters Club

Dear Members!

Don't miss the opportunity to grab a seat for the Advance Evaluation Workshop conducted by the UNITAR Toastmasters Club. The details are as the following :

Date: 6th June 2009 (Saturday)

Time: 2.00-4.30 p.m

Venue: Universiti Tun Abdul Razak, Kelana Jaya (Student Lounge, Block B)

Ticket: RM10(Hurry, book now! Limited to 40 lucky participants only!)

Yes, the ticket is just RM10 (special - student price). It's very cheap compared to other non-Toastmasters workshop. So book fast!!

Please e-mail to lukreiza@gmail.com for booking.


UM TMC.

Statistics & Summary of UM TMC Blog for the End of Session 2008/2009

Statistics:

The blog was first introduced on 5th June 2008.

No of posts for till end of Dec 2008 = 76 posts

No of posts till end of May 2009 (approx.) = 70 posts

(a) Total no. of posts for the session 2008/2009 = 146 posts.


Total number of visitiors till end of May 2009 (approx.) = 6500 hits

Total no. of days from 5th June 2008 till 31st May 2009 = 360 days


(b)The Average Number of Views Per Day for the session 2008/2009

= 6500 hits / 360 days= 18.03 views per day (approx. 18)



Summary:

In October 2008, the average number of views per day was approximately 15 and it has increased towards the end of May 2009 to 18 views per day.

The days with most number of views are usually Thursday, Friday and Saturday - this may be caused by the posts and views on each meeting reports mostly done on these days by the members and visitors.

Wednesday stated the least number of views as we conduct our meetings on Wednesday evenings.

We have the column of open opinions and comments for members and guests after each posts. However, the interaction is not very encouraging.

There have been problems on spam in the chatbox, but it has been brought down to a controllable level.

Most of the meeting reports were included with photos, except for the contest report (photos is in the Facebook section) and 3 meeting reports.

The highest number of viewers reported at a time is 3 (online at one time).

Reported by,

Rishi,
VP Public Relations,
UM TMC,
2008/2009.

Table Topics of the Week

TASTY FOOD IS NOT HEALTHY,

HEALTHY FOOD IS NOT TASTY.

Question by DTM Vincent Hor.

Please write briefly on the topic given above by using the comment section right below this post. It's time for you to talk to us!!!

UM TMC.

Completing Your CC

Do you want to Finish Up your Competent Communication? Here are some guidelines.

A Practical Guide to Getting it Done

For many new Toastmasters, the first compelling goal of the educational program is the Competent Communicator award. It’s clearly defined in the Competent Communication manual that’s included in the New Member Kit, and it’s a requirement for most of the advanced awards that Toastmasters offers. But what’s the best way to earn your CC? How can you harness your initial enthusiasm and complete those ten speech projects with a minimum of hassle and procrastination?

Schedule It

One very important step is to give yourself a set of deadlines—one for the completion of the entire manual, and one for each of the 10 projects. Without deadlines, tasks of this scope usually move to the bottom of the priority list, where they have a tendency to stay for a long time.
Strict deadlines aren’t for everyone. As Douglas Adams, author of the Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy series, puts it: “I love deadlines. I like the whooshing noise they make as they fly by.” But the important lesson here is to decide how much time you want to give yourself to complete the manual, and monitor your progress as you go.

Break it Down

Feel like you’re too busy to work on your speech projects? It may help to think of each project as a series of small, discrete tasks, and devote whatever time you have to completing those tasks whenever you can. You don’t have to complete all of the preparation for a speech in one sitting; often, five or ten minutes are enough to make significant progress on an upcoming speech.

• Taking a break at work? Jot down a few ideas and then send them to your home e-mail.
• Practice your speech in the car on the way to work.
• As soon as you finish a speech, immediately begin writing down ideas for the next one.

Ask for Help

Ask your mentor for advice. Seek out other club members who have completed several Toastmasters awards, and find out how they got the job done. Also, the club’s vice president education will be particularly interested in helping you complete your educational goals. Other club officers also have a stake in your success, so be sure to ask them for help if you need it, too.

Have Fun!

Membership in Toastmasters reaps many rewards, not the least of which is the pure enjoyment of sharing your ideas, making connections and improving your speaking skills. So remember to have a good time planning and delivering your speeches, and before you know it you’ll have that CC award you’ve been dreaming about, and be well on your way to the next goal.

UM TMC.

Advanced Evaluation Workshop in UNITAR

Dear UM Toastmasters!

Would you like to meet our friends in Unitar Toastmasters??!! Here's the opportunity!!

A wise Toastmaster once said that if you give a speech without getting an evaluation, you might as well have given it to you car.

Getting a bad evaluation can be even worse. That is why evaluation is the heart of the Toastmasters educational program.

Are you interested in improving your evaluation skills?

Would you like to learn more on techniques for giving helpful and motivating evaluations?


UNITAR Toastmasters Club is organizing an Advanced Evaluation Workshop which will be conducted by Dennis Wee, ACS, CL.

Grab this chance to learn advanced evaluation techniques!!

You are invited to participate in the workshop that will held as below:

Date: 6th June 2009
Time: 2.00-4.30 p.m
Venue: Universiti Tun Abdul Razak, Kelana Jaya (Student Lounge, Block B)
Ticket: RM10

(Hurry, book now! Limited to 40 lucky participants only!)

Please e-mail us at umtoastmaster@gmail.com for assistance of booking.

Please click on the attachments below for more information and to view the location map.

UM TMC.

Varsities Urged to Compete in Asian Rankings

PETALING JAYA: More public universities should take part in the newly-introduced Asian University Rankings.

Higher Education Minister Datuk Seri Mohamed Khaled Nordin said he had asked the Higher Education Department to get feedback from the institutions on the time frame on when they could do so.

“Although we don’t want our universities to be ‘addicted’ to such rankings, we can use them as an evaluation process of their strengths,” he said.

He said the public universities should make preparations to be involved, adding that private institutions should also be bold enough to be ranked.

Mohamed Khaled was commenting on the five Malaysian public universities which are in the top 100 Asian universities list by QS Quacquarelli Symonds Ltd.

Universiti Malaya (UM) was the highest-ranked Malaysian institution at 39; followed by Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM) at 51; Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM) at 69; Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM) at 82 and Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM) at 90.

QS managing director Nunzio Quac­­quarelli said that QS, which compiles the annual Times Higher Education-QS (THE-QS) World University Rankings, had evaluated top Asian universities in the first regional rankings.

On USM, which attained apex (accelerated programme for excellence) status last year, Mohamed Khaled said he hoped to see the institution (which was ranked below UM and UKM) in a better position in future.

“The apex status was launched late last year so we do not expect to see a sudden jump,” he said.

Meanwhile, UM vice-chancellor Prof Datuk Dr Ghauth Jasmon said he was happy with the results.

“We will continue to work hard until we get to within the top 100 in the THE-QS World University Rankings,” he said.

Prof Ghauth had said after his appointment as V-C last year that he had set a top 200 target in the THE-QS World University Rankings in two years’ time and top 100 in five years.

UKM deputy vice-chancellor (Academic and International Relations) Prof Dr Hassan Basri said the university would use the rankings as a benchmark to perform even better.

“The data for the rankings was acquired last year,” he added.

(taken from The Star Online, 13 May 2009)

UM TMC.

Our Next Meeting Details

Dear All,

We are glad to say that we will be having another extra two meeting for this month as the following:

Date : 22nd and 29th May 2009 (Friday)

Time : 6 pm

Venue : BSEC101, First Floor, Block C, Education Faculty, UM

(the same usual place)

Please take note that both meetings will start at 6 pm, and not at 5.15pm as before. All members and guests are cordially invited (especially those who are staying in Klang Valley during this semester break).

UM TMC.

Tell Us Your Experience !!!

Dear All,
(excos, members of UM TMC session 2007/2008, 2008/2009, 2009/2010, external club members, and guests)

Would you like to share your experience in UM TMC, the benefits that you have gained, comments, suggestions, room for improvement, opinions, or anything regarding UM TMC and Toastmasters?

Please send it to us at umtoastmaster@gmail.com before 30th May 2009.


We will post it in the blog accordingly (after some editing, if needed) for all to read.


UM TMC.
In conjunction to get closer to our members and guests.

Five Malaysian Institutions Among Top 100 Asian Universities

KUALA LUMPUR, May 11 (Bernama) -- University of Malaya (UM) led four other Malaysian universities into the Top 100 Asian Universities list, the first regional ranking issued by The Times Higher Education (THE)-Quacquarelli Symonds (QS).

UM clinched 39th spot while four other universities on the list were Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (51st), Universiti Sains Malaysia (69th), Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (82nd) and Universiti Putra Malaysia (90th).

Managing Director of QS Nunzio Quacquarelli said the result of the QS.com Asian University Rankings was based on regionally relevant measures of excellence.

"The top performing universities were distinguished not only by quality, but also by high productivity of research, compared to their regional peers," he said in a statement here, today.

He said Malaysian universities had performed well, with high numbers of international students and faculties, which made Malaysia an attractive option for international students.

Meanwhile, three Hong Kong universities clinched the top five spots with University of Hong Kong taking up the number one spot, followed by Chinese University of Hong Kong (2nd) and Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (4th).

Japan's University of Tokyo and Kyoto University were ranked third and fifth respectively.

QS is the world's leading information specialist in higher education sector and operates globally from offices in London, Paris, Singapore, Tokyo, Shanghai, Sydney, Johannesburg, Boston and Washington.

--BERNAMA

(taken from BERNAMA Online - 11th May 2009)

UM TMC.

YWCA Speechcraft Workshop

Dear Members,

There will be the YWCA Speechcraft Workshop. The details are as the following:

Date : 16 and 17 May 2009
Time : 8.30 am to 5.00 pm
Venue : Young Women Christian Association(YWCA)
12, Jln Hang Jebat, 50150 Kuala Lumpur.

Please join in to share the toastmasters benefit to the group of teenagers. All are welcome to serve.

Please confirm your attendance for planning by sending an e-mail to umtoastmaster@gmail.com

UM TMC.

The Great Debate on 27 May 2009

Dear Members,

Rumble in the Klang Valley. The ultimate Battle of the Sexes. Its going to be a truly a Battle of Wits. The title :

In The 21st Century , Men Are Less Reliable Than Women As Leaders!


Notes:
1.Each team will comprise of four Toastmasters in good standing.
2.The first three speakers will be allocated 7 minutes each and the fourth and final speaker 10 minutes.

Date : 27 May 2009.
Venue: Wisma WIM, 7 , Jalan Abang Haji Openg,Taman Tun Dr Ismail , KL.
Time: 6.30pm registration / Dinner.


Each ticket costs RM40.

For more information, please e-mail us at umtoastmaster@gmail.com


UM TMC.

Have You Seen This Girl Somewhere??

She looks like our President!!! It is our President - in the paper!!!

Trends: Sari allure, kebaya chic

By : R. ZEENEESHRI

KIMMY Foo Kit Leng opens her wardrobe and reaches for her favourite blue baju kebaya.It is presentation day in her English Proficiency class at University of Malaya (UM) and she needs to look her best.“The kebaya is the most comfortable yet feminine outfit I have,” says the 23-year-old undergraduate.“It accentuates curves but is not revealing at all. You can also accessorise it to suit any occasion.”

Foo, unlike other Chinese girls her age, opts for the Malay traditional outfit for formal functions at her university.“I have four kebaya — two in blue, one in orange and another in green. “My friends usually scowl at me (for dressing in a kebaya) but I enjoy wearing it anyway.

It’s simple to put on and easy to match with jewellery.“Also, it is very light on a hot day, unlike other traditional costumes that are usually heavily brocaded or embroidered,” she adds.“I wear (Chinese traditional costumes) only during Chinese New Year. Even then it is usually a mandarin-collared top with pants, instead of a cheongsam.”

Foo, the president of UM’s Toastmasters Club, finds the kebaya a suitable outift for making formal speeches.“When I have to speak at functions, my attire reflects the speech content, the audience and amount of movement required. More often than not, I end up wearing a baju kurung or kebaya as it looks professional and allows me to move freely.

“My lecturer once told me that if you look good and feel food in what you wear, you will instantly feel confident.“She used to criticise my dressing, telling me to stop wearing sneakers and jeans because of my height. And like she said, when I put on a kebaya, my confidence level rose as I felt really pretty and comfortable in it.”

(taken from The New Straits Times, 2 May 2009, You Section)

UM TMC.

KL Semi Annual Convention 2009

DISTRICT 51 2009 SEMI ANNUAL CONVENTION - OCTOBER 23rd, 24th & 25th, 2009

Kuala Lumpur will be hosting the District semi annual convention for the year 2009 after Jakarta decided not to host it citing economic uncertainty. And it has been handed back to the district.

Lots of running around KL looking for a venue to hold our District event! At last........

Look no further........We will host it up high at 6000 feet above sea level.....is a haven of fresh, crisp mountain air, abundant natural greenery and breathtaking vistas.

A mere 45 minutes drive from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia's thriving capital city, Genting City of Entertainment is the country's premiere holiday destination, attracting millions of local and foreign tourists alike every year.

For many visitors, the excitement begins even before they step into the Resort; as an alternative route, visitors can opt to ride Genting Skyway, the world's fastest and South-East Asia's longest cable car system, to the peak. Onboard this engineering marvel, passengers can enjoy a dazzling view of one a thousand-year-old rainforest as well as incredible natural panoramas.

Malaysia Airlines Toastmasters clubs has been given and taken the unenviable task of hosting this District 2009 semi annual convention at the GENTING INTERNATIONAL CONVENTION CENTRE.....and they have just managed to tailor an Early Bird Package rate to be introduced to the members of District 51. ( limited time only till end of Apr 09 )

Mark Your Calendar October 23rd-25th 2009 -(Fri-Sun)

The new package will be as follows:

Package A – RM430.00 Nett per person without accommodation.....

PACKAGES B1, B2, B3 & B4 :- First World Resort Hotel http://mice.genting.com.my/venue_convention.htm

B1) RM650.00.00 NETT P/PERSON
TWIN SHARING DELUXE ROOM

B2) RM730.00 NETT P/PERSON
TWIN SHARING SUPERIOR DELUXE

B3) RM800.00 NETT P/PERSON
SINGLE OCCUPANT DELUXE ROOM

B4) RM990.00 NETT P/PERSON
SINGLE OCCUPANT SUPERIOR DELUXE

Please contact us at umtoastmaster@gmail.com for more information or enquiries.

UM TMC.