Sunday, March 27, 2011

Table Topics - Theme "Christmas"

If you are the Table Topics master for the Christmas special toastmasters meeting, you can get benefited by the questions listed here. This blog post has table topics questions that you can ask in your toastmasters meeting with the theme as "Christmas".

Also read: Table Topics - Theme "New Year"

1) What is your most memorable Christmas celebration?

2) Even today, I believe in Santa Claus because ...

3) I love getting gifts, but I hate buying it for others.

4) Why do you think we should not have a holiday for Christmas?

5) If you have an option to change the costume of Santa Claus, what would you do?

6) I'm jealous of Santa Clause because ...

7) Christmas reminds me the state of our economy, every year

8) I don't believe in buying things during Christmas Sale because ...

9) 5 things that you like to do during Christmas holidays.

10) Why do you think Christmas should be celebrated by everyone in this world?

11) Why do you like Christmas so much?

12) 5 reasons why we should not give gifts to others on Christmas.

13) Christmas holidays should be a month long

14) If you have unlimited money, what is one electronic gadget that you would buy for yourself? Why?

15) You get a phone call from Christ on the day of the Christmas. What would you ask him?

Also read: Table Topics - Theme "New Year"

Table Topics - Theme "New Year"

This blog post has table topics questions that you can ask in your toastmasters meeting with the theme as "New Year".  If you are the Table Topics master for the New Year special toastmasters meeting, you can get benefited by the questions listed here.

Also read: Table Topics - Theme "Christmas"

1) What is your most memorable new year celebration?

2) I love new year ! But, I hate the celebrations.

3) I hate taking new year resolutions because ...

4) What are the changes that you want to see in our country in the new year?

5) What are your new year resolutions?

6) What is the ONE new year resolution that you take every year?

7) 5 things that you would like to stop doing, starting this year?

8) New year resolutions are meant to be broken.

9) What if you got promoted to be the CEO of your company, this year? What would you do?

10) I love new year celebrations. I hate new year.

11) The BIG THING that is going to happen in your family in the new year.

12) If you are given the power to change the new years day (i.e., from January 1st to some other day), which day in the year would you choose?

13) I'm already perfect. I don't take new year resolutions.

14) Why do you think the world is going to come to an end, this year?

15) Every day is a new years day to me.

Table Topics - Theme "Independence Day"

This blog post has table topics questions that you can ask in your toastmasters meeting with the theme as "Independence Day".  If you are the Table Topics master for the Independence Day special toastmasters meeting, you can get benefited by the questions listed here.

Table Topics - Theme Independence Day 

1) What is your most memorable Independence day celebration?

2) What do you normally do during Independence day holidays?

3) Which is the most memorable trip that you took during the Independence day long weekend?

4) I wish we had not got Independence

5) The modern generation does not understand the power and value of Independence

6) What if our country has not received Independence?

7) If you were a leader who fought for Independence, what would you have done differently?

8) 5 mistakes that our country did post Independence

9) I love the movie "Independence day" much more than the actual "Independence day"

10) Who is your favorite national leader? Why?

11) Why would you not join politics?

12) Why should our youth take an active part in our country's politics?

13) Why should the country not declare holiday for Independence day?

14) Independence day celebrations should be month long. Not just a day or a couple of days.

15) I love to be a slave, than being independent?

16) We are slaves even post Independence.

17) If we are going to be slaves again, which country would you think will capture/control us?

18) Assuming that we are not a Independent country today, how do you think the modern Independence

day struggle would be?

19) Today, we are Independently Interdependent.

20) Women has not still received Independence from the male dominated society. You can talk for or

against this topic.

21) Why do you think Independence day celebrations are not environment friendly.

Saturday, March 26, 2011

Table Topics - Theme "Memorial Day" or "Flag Day" or "Defender of the Fatherland Day"

"Memorial Day" or "Flag Day" or "Defender of the Fatherland Day" - The day may have many names. But, the purpose is the same. To thank the heroes who protect us, protected us and are protecting us. 

The following are some table topics that can be used in toastmasters meetings with the theme as "Memorial Day" (USA) or "Flag Day" (India) or "Defender of the Fatherland Day" (Russia)

1) If you have unlimited sum of money, which job would you like to do?

2) What do you normally do for Labor Day weekend?

3) If you are given an option to join our army, will you take the offer? Why or Why not?

4) I'm proud of my army men, because ...

5) If your son/daughter wants to join the army, will you allow them? Why or Why not?

6) Should we spend more money on the army? Why or Why not?

7) Quote: War does not determine who is right - only who is left. - Bertrand Russell 

8) Quote: If we don't end war, war will end us.  - H. G. Wells 

9) Quote: In peace, sons bury their fathers. In war, fathers bury their sons. - Herodotus 

10) Quote: The best weapon against an enemy is another enemy.  - Friedrich Nietzsche 

11) Quote: Mankind must put an end to war before war puts an end to mankind.  - John F. Kennedy 

12) Quote: Only the dead have seen the end of the war. - George Santayana 

13) You don't have to be really part of the army to serve the nation.

14) Who is your hero in life? Why?

15) If you would want to be a real hero? Who would that be?

Sunday, March 20, 2011

Table Topics - Theme "Quotes"

  • Small things make perfection, but perfection isn’t a small thing.
-              Anonymous
  • Dreams of the future are better than the history of the past
-              Thomas Jefferson
  • It is better to have loved and lost.. than never to have loved at all
-              Alfred Lord Tennyson
  • I love everything that’s old: old friends, old times, old manners, old books, old wines
-              Oliver Goldsmith
  • It is better to be envied than pitied
-              Anonymous
  • He travels fastest, who travels alone
-              Rudyard Kipling
  • Everything is funny as long as it happens to somebody else.
-              Anonymous
  • Work a lifetime to pay off a house. You finally own it and there’s no one to live in it.
-              Arthur Miller
  • Love is as strong as death. Jealousy is as cruel as the grave
-              Bible
  • What’s in a name? That which we call a rose … by any other name would smell as sweet
-              Shakespeare
  • Throw a lucky man in the sea, and he will come up with a perl in his mouth
-              Arab Proverb
  • Two roads diverged in a wood, and I took the one less traveled by, and that has made all the difference
-              Robert Frost
  • The butterfly counts not months, but moments … and has enough time
-               Rabindranath Tagore
  • The time to repair the roof is when the sun is shining
-              John F. Kennedy
  • The more we elaborate our means of communication, the less we communicate
-               J.B. Priestley
  • Loose lips, sink ships
                Anonymous, World War II Poster

Table Topics - Theme "Back to school"


This article has Table Topics with the theme "Back to school"

Terry - "Back to school" promotions - Are they a boon or a bane (persistent annoyance)?

John Love - Most of the teachers, establish rules on the first day of school. If Ray Downen is the teacher of 1st grade students, what are some of the rules he would establish?  (John Love)

Don - When you were a kid, "Why did you like going back to school"?

Min - How would you motivate your son to get the best grade in school, this year? 

Warren - You are the head master of a school. This is the first day of the school. You had promised everyone that you'll give a speech about "punctuality". You are late by 15 minutes. How would you start your speech?

Cliff - Imagine that Hillary becomes the President of USA. She selects you as the Vice President. You should persuade Hillary to sign a bill that forces all the employers (not just schools) to announce a mandatory 3 months summer break.

Chris - Why do you think the summer break should be just 1 week instead of 3 months?

Maren - Which is the most memorable summer break that you had during child hood?

Erica - What are some of the things that you would do to impress your teacher on the first day? 

Ray - We are your students. Talk to us on the subject "Plagiarism is the short cut to success".

Blanca - You are the head mistress of a school. You notice that the newly hired teachers aren't dressed 'appropriately' to the school. You called them all for a meeting. What would your pep talk to them, be?

Hana -You are the owner of a local stationary store. Why do you think we should buy "back-to-school" items from your store than from Walmart?

Carmalita - Did you ever got night-mares about going "back to school"? Why or Why not?

Mark - What was the most costly 'back to school' item that you ever got?

Karen - Kids give a lot of excuses for not going to school. What was your most creative excuse for not going to school?

Ron - If you are the President of United States for just one day, what are some of the changes that you would bring in our education system?

Gil - When you were a kid, what did you think, you would become in life? Did your dream come true?

Marty - You are the teacher of 10-th grade students. How will you explain them that participating in sports is important than academics?

Wada - Does spirituality help in getting good grades, even if you don't do your homework?

Sam - Do you think the gas price & current inflation have any impact on the "back to school" spending?

Michele (?) - Which one do you like the most - "summer break" or "winter break"




Table Topics - Theme "Voicemails"


Voicemails

It was a Saturday evening ... you are at home, lying on the couch, watching your favorite TV channel. You receive a call from your boss. You are wondering "Why is this guy calling me over a weekend?" You let the phone to ring for a while and it goes to your voice mail.

You are in an important meeting... You receive a phone call on your mobile from your spouse. Boom... press a "cancel" button and it goes to your voice mail.

You are a lazy person. You rarely charge your mobile phone. Any call that you receive... Zoom... it goes straight to your voice mailbox.

It is easy to avoid a problem or person, by letting a call to go to your voice mail box. What if you were the person who is making the call? How'll you handle situations requiring you to leave an effective voice mail? Well, in our table topics today, we are going to rehearse just that.

1) What if you were that boss, who have to leave a voice mail to ask your employee to come to work over a weekend? What will be the content of your voice mail?

2) You were dating someone and you met another person who is more interesting and exciting. You want to break-up with your old girl/boy friend. You call them to let them know that it is not working out. The call goes to voice mailbox. What will be the content of your voice mail?

3) You promised your wife that you'd take her for a movie tonight. Of late, you've been breaking several promises that you made to your wife. Your wife is not very happy about that. When you were about to leave office, your boss stops you and says "XYZ, I've an important business presentation tomorrow. I need to discuss a few things with you. Can you spare a few hours for me this evening?" You call your wife to let her know. It goes to the voice mail. What will be the content of your voice mail?

4) Imagine that you were living with your friend. Your friend was not at home. You took your friend's brand new BMW for shopping - without letting him know. On the way back to home, you bumped your friend's BMW into another vehicle. You are calling your friend to let him know about the accident. However, it goes to his voice mail. What will be the content of your voice mail?

5) Which is the most memorable voice mail that you left?

6) Which is the most memorable voice mail that you got?

Voicemail has now become one of the mediums of communication.  However, when we make phone calls we are normally not prepared to leave voice mail. The result is - we loose business; we strain relationships. So, the next time you make a call, decide what will be the message if it goes to the voice mail box.

Table Topics - Theme "World without Computers"


Table Topics

Good evening fellow toastmasters and dear guests …

I’ll be the table topics master for the day.

Theme & Introduction


The theme for today’s table topic session is “World without Computers & Internet”

Internet has become part of our everyday life. Infact, many of us eat, sleep and get up with a computer. Computers are yet to become water proof. Otherwise, they would be with us even in the bath tub.

Internet has been taken for granted these days. We get access to information from almost all the places. With the advancements in mobile technologies, Internet can now be accessed from anywhere in the world.

In today’s table topic session, we are going to get some of your perspectives about Computers & Internet.

Questions


I have four questions for our discussion, today. The first question is

1)      Tell us five things that the world would miss without computers & internet?


Rajesh's speech last week touched upon an interesting point. A growth in the rate of obese people is due to lack of physical activities. Computers & Internet not only have an impact on our physical health - but also our mental health. They've changed the way in which we do things.

2)      How do you think you are spoilt because of Computers & Internet?

Many of us even sacrifice our personal life and spend hours & hours together with computers & Internet. Internet is a double edged sword.

3)      How would Computers & Internet change your life in another 20 years?

The first time that I saw a computer was during my 10th Grade. The computers were locked in a room with glass walls. We were just given the opportunity to "see" them from a distant location. However, my 7 months old daughter gets to play with my laptop almost everyday.

4) Would you recommend kids to have access to Internet? If so why? If not why?


We read a number of stories/articles regarding personal identity being stolen and security being compromised over the internet.

5) Was there a situation where your personal identity/security was compromised over the internet?

Well, it is hard to imagine a world without Computers & Internet. Computers & Internet have deeply penetrated into everyone's life. While we cannot live in a world without them, we should make sure that we don't miss our personal life. For those who spend hours & hours in front of computers, please remember that there is a beautiful world outside the LCD panels.

With this, let me close today's table topics session.

Table Topics - Theme "If tomorrow never comes"


Purpose of Table Topics


            For the benefit of new comers, the purpose of this session is to give every one of us, an opportunity to speak in Toastmasters meeting. This is an impromptu session where a set of questions about a topic will be asked and audience can share their opinions/thoughts for a minute or so.

Theme & Introduction


The theme for today’s table topic session is “If tomorrow never comes”.

I read a nice poem recently and I would like to quote a few lines from it.

“Tomorrow is not promised to anyone,
young or old alike,
And today may be the last chance
you get to hold your loved one tight..

So if you're waiting for tomorrow,
why not do it today?
For if tomorrow never comes,
you'll surely regret the day”

How many of us spend quality time with friends and family? How many of us eat healthy food and stay fit? Do we regularly work towards achieving our goals & ambitions in life? Many of us keep postponing things to tomorrow – but tomorrow may not come at all. May be today is the last chance that we have.

So that sets the stage for today’s table topic session.

Questions


I have three questions for our discussion, today. The first question is

1)      If you just have one last day in your life, what are the things that you would take care of?


We should be thankful to tomorrow because it is the one that keeps us going. Some of us lead life dreaming that our goals will be achieved someday. While others work hard today for a better tomorrow.

2)      What would you want to become in 5 years from now? Are you doing something towards that today?

Thanks for sharing your thoughts with us XYZ!!

At times, I used to think… wouldn’t it be cool if life is like a video recorder. We can rewind and go back to yester years. We can erase and re-record things whenever and with whatever we want. I think God did not have that technology available when he created mankind.

3)      If you were given a chance to go back in time, what would you do differently?


Manage your time today and have control over your future! At times, we have all said, "Never mind, leave it till tomorrow, there's plenty of time". Unfortunately - "Tomorrow never comes!" These days, we do not have the luxury of waiting till tomorrow as by then things can be even worse. So what should we do? Well, let us take action and look at time as our most precious and valuable resource.