Interview: Debbie Liebenberg
“Reinvent new combinations of what you already own. Improvise. Become more creative. Not because you have to, but because you want to. Evolution is the secret for the next step.”
Karl Lagerfeld
At the end of February, just before all hell broke loose with the pandemic issues I participated in Prague at Residential Weekend. A Toastmasters event dedicated to education started as a small step for leaders in the Czech Republic and become a standard of events if you ask me. I felt like I was at a team-building with people from all over Europe - that we had one thing in common: the passion for public speaking. Cătălin (my division director) told me so much about it that my curiosity was sky-high. I was lucky enough to be invited as one of the facilitators with my Flipchart Design workshop.
During two days you get to choose from 3 workshops in parallel - so many things to learn, so little time. I loved it! :) At one of the workshop sessions on the art of improvisation, I met Debbie. She is so, so, so full of life, so enthusiastic and with amazing energy. She gave us many easy tips and tricks on the topic that I found myself wondering if I should ask her for an interview. So, I did just that! She was wonderful and took on the challenge so here it is :)
The pictures are provided by Debbie, the photograph is Tomas Foldyna who did an amazing job at Residential Weekend.
1. Debbie, we met in Prague at a Toastmasters Event and you were very nice and accepted my invitation for an interview. Tell my readers some things about you:
Ana I have to mention again how much I enjoyed your FlipchART workshop. It was fun, informative and it made me as giddy as a billy goat because it featured two of my favourite things: Creativity & Stationery! Other than being a compulsive note taker for most of my life, I've also been known to spend hours trying out different pens and sniffing paper in stationery stores. Your workshop was like catnip for me. Thank you.
So what can I tell your readers about me? Well, I was born and raised in South Africa but I have been living in Prague for almost 8 years. Back in 2012 (when I left Africa for the first time), my plan was to explore Prague and it's surroundings for 6 months and then go back home. Now I've been here for 8 years! Trust me, I'm just as surprised as you might be. In South Africa I worked as a journalist and desktop publisher but since I moved to Prague, I have been teaching English to adults. Two years ago I also started teaching the basics of Public Speaking. The passion that drives my work is the love of stories: telling stories, hearing stories, writing stories, reading stories...I love it!
2. You are the founder and an active member of Scribbles & Giggles Creative Writing Group in Prague (www.scribblesandgiggles.cz) tell us a little bit about it.
Writing has always been a great love of mine. I remember when I was around 11 years old there was this South African TV show (called KTV) which had a writing competition - kids were encouraged to write and illustrate their own story, send it to KTV and then your story could be published as a book. I was so excited by the idea of writing and illustrating my own book that I decided to enter the competition. I wrote a story about the planet dying and every time a pine cone hit the ground it symbolised the death of a fairy. Not surprisingly, my story wasn't selected but this definitely ignited a love of writing. I've been writing in many forms for as long as I can remember: I've kept a diary since I was 8 years old, I wrote short stories and shared them with my friends in primary school, I wrote for a school newspaper in high school, I went on to study Journalism and Media Studies at Rhodes University where I wrote for various newspapers and my first job, after I graduated, was as a journalist. When I came to Prague I started Teaching English, and while I enjoyed this work, I felt that I really missed writing. I tried to find a critique-free creative writing group in Prague but none existed at the time so I created one. In 2015, Scribbles & Giggles was born and the format of the sessions has been the same since then: All writers are welcome to attend the two hour meeting. I give all participants a prompt (e.g. picture, word combination, object etc.), we each write a story based on our relevant prompts in 40 minutes, we then read the story to the other members, the other members provide positive feedback and suggestions. Basically, you walk in with nothing but the desire to write a story and you walk out with the first draft of that 2 hours later. We've built a great community over the last 5 years and I'm certainly proud of what Scribbles & Giggles has become.
3. What is your story with Toastmasters?
I first heard of Toastmasters when I was around 10 years old. A family friend would stay with us once a year when she participated in a Toastmaster's contest in my hometown. I was already interested in public speaking at that point and I enjoyed discussing speeches and public speaking with this family friend. It was only when I came to Prague that I joined Toastmasters for the first time. It was similar to the writing situation. I practised public speaking and debating throughout my school and university years and then when I came to Prague I missed it. I started researching Toastmasters clubs in Prague and in 2016 I ended up going to a Bohemian Toastmasters meeting. I found my tribe! I've been a member ever since. I've formed valuable friendships over the years and I was fortunate enough to have a great mentor (Lenka Dvorakova) who encouraged me to enter some Toastmaster's contests. Being a member of Toastmasters has given me so much joy and I've learnt so much over the years. It's also allowed me to kickstart my career as a public speaking teacher and coach.
4. You are also a stand-up comedian, is Toastmasters experience of any help when you write your sketches? Or is it the other way around?
It's been a help and a hindrance: Giving a speech and doing stand-up are two very different disciplines. The most obvious difference is a Toastmaster's speech is very structured while a stand-up comedy set should seem to be more free-flowing and conversational. I find that writing a Toastmaster's speech and writing a stand-up comedy set are two different forms of writing and I still have to be very conscious of this. Being a Toastmaster has helped me elevate my delivery and gain confidence performing on stage. Being a stand-up comedian has helped me add humour to my speeches and not take myself so seriously which makes everything more enjoyable.
5. In 2017 you were the Champion at the Humorous Speech contest of your Division (Czech Republic) and got 2nd place at District Level, which includes 17 countries from Northern, Central and Eastern Europe - so you had SOOOME competitors. The competition started at club level so what are your recommendations for somebody who wants to follow your path?
This was such a great experience and an amazing opportunity for growth. I hadn't done stand-up comedy at this point so I had no experience with being funny on stage. I read many books about how to be funny in a speech and I concluded that I need to make fun of myself (rather than other people) as this would ensure that the topic was personal, playful and powerful. It was suggested that a speaker should talk about the obvious, that is what the audience is thinking based on what they see. When I considered what the audience could all conclude about me, before I even uttered a single word, I came to the conclusion that my topic would be The F word i.e. FAT. I won't lie, writing the content for that speech brought tears to my eyes because I have struggled with my weight for most of my life. It was deeply personal and that's when I realized how powerful it could be. I shared three true stories in that speech that brought me shame in the past. Three stories that many people could relate to. This time, however, I told these stories differently. I knew this had to be a humorous speech so I made a point of reframing these stories in a playful and humorous way. That's when I realized the power in the stories we tell ourselves: these stories were no longer a source of shame, but rather a source of laughter and strength. I also realized the power in the stories we tell others. While the topic of my speech was FAT, the message I aimed to give people was that FAT can be beautiful, healthy, active and most of all, FABULOUS! So many people contacted me after that speech (even at the last Toastmasters event we attended together which is 3 years later) telling me how empowering and unforgettable that message was.
Back to your question, what would I recommend to someone who wants to enter the Humorous Speech contest? Firstly, find a topic you care about that you have personal experience with and then find the funny in it. Secondly, finding the funny is merely about reframing, using rhetorical devices (e.g. metaphors, similies etc) and making it enjoyable for yourself too. Thirdly, practise and edit. I delivered that speech multiple times and asked for feedback. After every delivery I made changes. Your Toastmasters club and community is a great resource when editing your speech - use them!
6. Do you have any habits or a routine that you do when you get ready for a speech?
Oh yes! Ideally, I would do the following before a speech: Get 8 hours of sleep, exercise for an hour (running or intense cardio), avoid people (so that I crave people by the time I make my speech), practise my speech at least 10 times and pump myself up by listening to some heavy metal just before the speech.
7. What gets you into a creative flow?
I like to be alone in a quiet place and surround myself with different pens, highlighters and a favourite notebook. I brainstorm and put my ideas in a mind map (I find this format helps me make connections between things). I then choose one topic and write and write and write until I find something (or don't find something) worth developing.
8. What is the connection between your creative writing group, stand-up and Toastmasters?
All three of these focus on playing with words in different ways. It's also my job to teach English to adults so my work and my hobbies are all about playing with words. I consider myself lucky because my work and my hobbies feed and challenge each other through creative word play.
9. During the Residential Weekend you held a workshop on ”The Magic of improvisation”, it was an amazing experience - what was first for your love of improvisation or of public speaking?
Confession: I haven't done much improv so, to answer your question, love of public speaking definitely came first. I haven't actually done improv outside of Toastmaster's Table Topics or those everyday experiences that we all have to improvise in but I recognize the value in exercising this skill and that's why I created this workshop. One of the best ways for me to learn something is to teach it - by teaching others about the Magic of improvisation (through this workshop) I get to practise and improve this skill with the participants.
10. Something I got from you and reached me during your workshop: you can prepare for impromptu speeches. I know that some people think that impromptu means literally to be unprepared - what do you say to them?
I think life prepares us for things we aren't even aware of. The content of most impromptu speeches is a combination of knowledge and or experience. How well a speaker delivers that content is the result of hours of practise. Where does knowledge, experience and house of practise come from...living our lives!
11. 3 things any future speaker should know?
1) The nervousness before a speech never goes away (at least not in my experience) - but you do learn how to be more comfortable with it.
2) The first 'complete' written version of your speech should never be your last. Force yourself to edit it at least two more times by asking 'how can I make this better?'
3) Learn from the best! There are many good speakers - watch them, analyze and learn from their ways.
12. Give me please some tips and tricks on how to master an impromptu speech?
1) As my great Toastmasters mentor Lenka Dvorakova once told me 'Think of the last thing you want to say first' - a strong ending creates lasting impact and it's easier to figure the rest out when you know where you are going.
2) Practise! Give yourself little exercises as often as possible. For example when you are sitting on a tram look around and create a prompt based on what you see e.g. 'Why are socks and sandals the best footwear option?'
