5 presentation lessons from Toastmasters’ top speaker

Deliver your story with emotion and humor, actively involving the audience, and conclude with a meaningful point.

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The top finishers in this year’s Toastmasters global competition offer takeaways for all speakers.

With some 30,000 people delivering five- to seven-minute speeches, the competition is fierce.

In “An Unbelievable Story,” first-place winner Aaron Beverly gracefully combines humor and seriousness, commands the stage and delivers the speech fluidly and energetically.

I also like the effort of the third-place finisher, Kwong Yue Yang, and his “Less and More.” Luisa Montalvo’s second-place speech is a delightful plea for tolerance and looking beyond clichés and first impressions.

What can speakers in general learn from this annual rite, particularly from Beverly’s speech?

Here are five takeaways:

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