I love moderation. Moderation is a great way to put your public speaking skills into practice and raise your personal bar of spontaneity.
On May 10 2013, I seized another opportunity to moderate an event. For me as a passionate Toastmaster it wasn’t any event. It was one of the semi finals of our International Speech Contest of Toastmasters International’s District 59 (Continental Europe).
Seven contestants from seven European regions had made it all the way through their clubs, areas and divisions. In Antwerp, Belgium, they’d follow up on their dream to win the District and move on to the World Championship of Public Speaking in Cincinnati, Ohio, in August.
In this post I want to focus on one important aspect of moderation: the moderation cards.
For the Antwerp event I produced one single card. For other events like the one at F.C. Barcelona’s Camp Nou I’d created a series of cards. The process is always the same.
I produce my moderation cards in a four-step-process:
- Design cards (content) in Powerpoint or Keynote (see moderation card below).
- Print out pages in a DIN A5 format.
- Print out the same number of pages in a DIN A5 format showing the logo of your company or the event (see Toastmasters logo above).
- Combine content (front side) and logo (flipside) pages and plastify them in a copy shop.
The fourth step, the plastification of the moderation cards, gives them a professional look – TV-style. Given that it’s a low cost process, I’d always plastify my cards. Apart from the professional look, the cards don’t get spoiled so easily.
And the winner is…
If you are a Toastmaster and you face the challenge to chair a speech contest in the future, please feel free to use my template as a starting point. I’m looking forward to your feedback!
DOWNLOAD the Toastmasters Contest Chair Moderation Card Template
John Zimmer
Simple and effective. It is attention to details like this that set people apart from others. Congratulations on a job well done.
John
florian mueck
Thx, John!!
Tulia Lopes
Excellent Florian.
Sharing with my Toasmasters friends in Zurich.
Hugs
T