Toddlers and Words

On my way to the office, I happened to ride with a small family who brought along a toddler who was about two years old. She's very cute, chubby, and pretty in pink. I could see two little teeth jutting out from her gums, which made her all the more cute when she made a face; or when she smiled.

She was quite active. At first, she sat on her mom's lap and allowed her to hold her. Then, she got a bit antsy, and decided to get off her mom's lap and lay her head on the vacant stretch of seat beside her mom. She wouldn't allow her mom to hold her. Not even her dress. Her mom was constantly reminding her (in Visayan, our local dialect) that she might fall off the jeepney if no one is going to hold her. But, no. She won't let anyone touch her dress. No way Jose! But, looking at the toddler's face, it seemed she's in a good mood and was enjoying taunting her mom. She liked the attention being given to her.

As I was observing the little family on their way to the mall, the toddler spoke to her mother. I was just amazed at the English vocabulary she had. She had two very useful (and amusing) words. She kept on repeating these two words (probably to make sure mom understands her).

The words -- one's a verb, the other's a common noun.

(So, Jollibee and McDonald's are ruled out.)

Can you guess these two words?

☆ .......... ☆ .......... ☆ .......... ☆ .......... ☆ .......... ☆ .......... ☆ .......... ☆
I hope you could make time to visit our Japanese website or our English website .

Simply Mysterious

It isn't a mystery that life's one big mystery. There are moments when we feel that we've understood every little thing, every little detail, there is to understand. Only to find out moments later, that we've missed something. And so, we strive again to understand the things we've missed. Then, it's back to feeling euphoric (for understanding what we didn't understand). Only to find out again, that... oops! "Gaaah! I missed something again!"

But, I guess we truly can't say, "Back to square one!"

No... Because square one has already been understood, theoretically speaking. Maybe square 1.1, or 2, or 10, needs a little tweaking.

Well, this "vicious cycle" as many might call it, is one of the many things that makes life exciting.

Up-down, up-down, like a wheel going round and round and round.

Have a great day everyone!

Can't get enough of speaking tips....

How to Give a Great Impromptu Speech from wikiHow - The How to Manual That You Can Edit
Oratorical Contests and certain classes will often ask for impromptu speeches to be made. With this guide, even those with the most absolute stage-fright will succeed.

Steps

1. Get used to talking in front of other people. The truth is that even the most calm of speakers still shake when they get up there. Sitcom-Stars still get nervous on live episodes.
2. Remember your audience. Always make eye-contact with them. Not only will this help the audience not fall asleep, but it will also make you more confident. If your eyes fall upon that one teenage boy who's goofing off and totally not listening, ignore him.
3. Try and get the audience involved. If you've ever had to listen to someone who mumbles through the whole thing, doesn't look up, and is just plain boring, you know how horrible that is. Try and get your audience pumped up.
4. Try and twist your topic. If you get a topic about something that you can't relate to, try and morph it into something that's only vaguely related, but still related enough to make sense.
5. Incorporate Humor. Everyone loves to laugh!
6. If you're facing a more serious impromptu speech, you have to be confident about yourself. Chest out, back straight, eyes ahead. It will give you an air of significance and make you a little intimidating, as well.

Tips

• Be passionate about whatever your topic is. You have to embrace what you're talking about with arms wide open.
• Take advantage of an eager audience. Remember, once you have the audience, you have the judges/teachers.
• Try to read lots of books on a wide variety of topics, that way you'll have loads of examples to incorporate into speeches
• Body language speaks volumes. Act as if you are oozing confidence!
• A great way to practice impromptu speech giving is by toasting at parties.

Warnings

• Make sure there's nothing about your appearance that could possibly embarrass you. Have a trusted friend (or better yet, a mirror) tell you if you have anything stuck in your braces/teeth. Make sure there's no toilet paper on your shoe, etc.
• Be careful to not say something offensive. Not only can it harm you standings in competition, it can also make you look like a bad person.
• If you dont know what to say, make sure you dont use a canned speech. If you are being judged the judge wont like it.

Related wikiHows

• How to Mentally Prepare for a Speech
• How to Be Brave In Front of a Group of People
• How to Prepare and Deliver a Speech Effectively
• How to Stop Shaking when Making a Speech

Article provided by wikiHow, a wiki how-to manual. Please edit this article and find author credits at the original wikiHow article on http://www.wikihow.com/Give-a-Great-Impromptu-Speech">How to Give a Great Impromptu Speech. All content on wikiHow can be shared under a http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.5/">Creative Commons license.

Rain or Shine?

Wow! The heat was so intense today... It's about 30 degrees Celsius outside.

Summer is supposed to be over, but, because Philippines has always been (and will always be?) a summer-like country all year round, a temperature like this is normal. Even though we have our bouts of rain, storms, floods, all watery kinds of weather -- except snow (Well, snow is not water... But, it's some sort of frozen water... We just don't have that -- snow), the next day's bound to be ultra-sunny and warm.

Not unless there's a storm, well, that's a different story.

Davao has had its share of torrential rains and great winds, but I haven't heard nor read in the news that Davao was struck by a storm... Please correct me if I'm wrong.

I just hope it won't rain tonight. I'm wearing sandals, and I don't want to get my feet wet.

Photo from: http://uncivilsociety.org

Hmm... What's the weather like in your area?

3rd Principle of Morton Orman, M.D.

Oops.. Sorry to keep you hanging...

Alright, here goes the 3rd principle of conquering public speaking, by Morton C. Orman, M.D.:

Principle #3--All You Need is Two or Three Main Points

You don't have to deliver mountains of facts or details to give your audience what they truly want. Many studies have shown that people remember very few of the facts or information speakers convey. While you may choose to include lots of facts and information, you only need to make two or three main points to have your talk be successful. You can even have your whole talk be about only one key point, if you wish.

When I first began speaking in public during medical school (kicking, screaming, and quivering all the way), I wasn't aware of this simple principle. I wrongly believed that my audience wanted encyclopedic knowledge from me, which of course I didn't have. So I tried to research my topic thoroughly and deliver as much worldly wisdom as possible.

Boy was that exhausting! It was also boring for my audience to suffer through.

Later, when I began giving public seminars on how to cope with stress, I spent hours each week typing a twenty-page script to read from, so I wouldn't forget any important tidbit.

As time went on, I gradually learned that this degree of complexity wasn't needed. As a result, the length of my discussion notes gradually declined. My twenty-page typed manuscript gave way to a five-page detailed outline. Then, I replaced my outline with ten or fifteen index cards. Eventually, I could conduct a full two-hour seminar with only one 3X5 index card (containing my two or three key points) to support me!

As long as I focused on these two or three key points, I was able to speak at length about them by naturally drawing upon my past experiences and knowledge.

Remember, all your audience wants from you is to walk away with one or two key points that will make a difference to them. If you structure your talks to deliver this result, you can avoid lots of complexity that isn't really needed. This also should make your job as a speaker much easier, and more fun too!