I learned to time at contests of Toastmasters International in speech contests and I am still making mistakes and learning about different timing devices. I'm going to tell you what to do and what not to do. If your photo taking device and timer are separate it is easy to time an event and take photos.
At Toastmasters International clubs you are given one or both of two types of timing devices. The electronic one above, has traffic light timers. You have to demonstrate to all the speakers and others and the audience how the lights are shown. Usually you turn a knob clockwise to turn the light on. First green, then amber or yellow, lastly red.
Watch out for the red being at the top like real traffic lights, but you start by turning the green at the base. Similarly if the lights are horizontal, before the meeting try turning the lights on and off in succession.
The other things to watch out for:
1 Turn off each light before showing the next one. This means having your fingers on the knob ready to turn off the green then quickly turn on the amber, then the orange off to turn on the red.
2 Turn off the lights at the end so the next speaker starts with no lights, not red.
Often the timer is watched by the toastmasters of the day or the chair person or the SAA (the Sergeant At Arms (an army term used in Toastmasters) in charge of getting out the lights and the logistics and props for the meeting.
3 On a piece of white paper divided vertically into three sections, in the first column write down the name of the first speaker (which may be on the meeting agenda or written on the whiteboard).
Write down the time they took in a column so that all the times can be compared.
Have a third column for the tick or cross in a column headed within time.
If the meeting is running late, you may be merely asked if everybody kept to time.
Some meetings ask you to time everybody and keep the whole meeting to time. Agree in advance if the break time will be shortened.
In the old days we timed eggs by buying little sand hourglass timers. The tiny ones are usually three, or five minutes.
You can buy huge ones designed for schools.
Advantages and Disadvantages
Do you still need egg timers? No. Yes and no. They are attractive and easy for children to understand, can be seen at a distance if you have poor sight and can't find reading glasses. However, the one most of us carry is a mobile phone.
Some of what I say will be new to you. Some of it you may already know but by being reminded you can work out how to teach children, family, friends and colleagues.
Flipcharts With Colours
You can buy colour flipcharts. Or make your own using an old flipover calendar and three pieces of coloured card. Failing all else, colour white paper with paints.
Flipover chart showing the green with red and yellow visible. Photo by Angela Lansbury. Copyright.
Mobile Phones' Timers
The timer and stopwatch on a mobile phone are usually hidden under the symbol for clock. Where is it?
Finding App Symbols
When you first hunt, you have to look over all the symbols. First you need to know how to find missing symbols. If you have installed (downloaded) a lot of apps (applications) you will have lots of symbols on the face of your phone. You can get rid of ones you never use, or which are installed. As you add, the extras go onto a second or third or fourth page.
Alphabetical Order
I like to have mine in alphabetical order. It can take you half an hour to move them all around. Saves time in the long run.
Keeping Clock Symbol Handy & Visible
You can move the symbols around so the ones you use most often are on the front screen or on the top. You usually just slide them.
To find Clock in a hurry before an event you could do the following.
Remembering to Find Clock Quickly
Turn your phone back to start menu. Find clock. Do this three times.
Copy the colour and shape of the clock symbol. If you don't like your clock or want to go digital, you can install all sorts of clock devices with wake up alarms and stop watches.
You can install a different clock symbol. I did this when I lost my alarm on my clock. I installed three and set several alarms when I had to catch a pane. I left them all on and for a week afterwards, on a different time zone in another country, and had alarms going on at intervals day and night from assorted symbols. My family got annoyed and put a stop to that by deleting the extra ones.
Timer Or Stopwatch
To find how long you are speaking you simply start at zero. Tap on the button re-set to go back to zero. tap on start to start the timer. Tap on stop to stop. Have a sheet of pepr ready for timings of defferent speakers or events. You can copy names of speakers off the agenda in advance.
On the top of the paper or on another sheet write down signals.
For example, for a 5-7 minute contest speech, you might be asked to show the green, yellow and red traffic light symbols at 5, 6 and 7 minutes.
English: Black 'n white Service Bell icon, represents: Requests, Services, Assistence or Attention.
Português: Ícone de Sineta de Serviço em preto e branco, serve para indicar Pedidos, Serviços/Assistência ou Atenção.
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31 October 2015
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Own work
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After thirty seconds of grace the bell is rung.
How do you ring the bell? Tap gently on the protruding knob in the middle of the top. You can buy these devices for only two Singapore dollars in Singapore and I presume in branches of the Japanese budget store Daiso worldwide.
Some devices ring louder if you bang hard. Others ring quieter if you bang hard. Another system is to pick up the bell and shake it, or waggle the loose part underneath with your finger. (Making sure it is not sharp.) Practise this in advance.
Check with the organiser whether you should repeat the bell if the speaker ignores the stop sound, or whether the VIP should instead by given silent waves or you should tap your watch and hold up a finger for each minute he or she has gone over time. Some speakers will turn to the chair person and ask them or the audience, "The bell has rung, may I continues - how long, I'll only a be minute, I can go on for five minutes, or ten, or talk to you privately afterwards, or send on my slides, if you give me your phone number, or ask the chairperson?"
Note where you go next.
Finding Help
If in doubt, look on the phone's help page, or go to google on the phone and look up help for your phone.
Finding Your Phone Brand and Model
How do you know what brand and model of phone you have, especially if you have a cover on the phone? When you switch the phone on and off. Wait a minute. I used to be afraid to turn my phone on and off.
Turning On, Off, and Restarting
Use restart instead of off if you are afraid you forget your password, or the thing, the device, the phone, mysteriously jams off and you don't know how to re-start.
How to Re-start
Often the phone turns itself off. Either it is out of power. You plugs it into a power source. Carry the lead with you, somewhere accessible. Label your lead with a coloured sticker, ideally one with your name printed or hand written. Failing all else, just a ribbon will remind you that the item plugged into the wall is not somebody else's or the budildin'ts but yours.
If no socket or building is nearby, power up your phone with a portable charger, quite small and cheap, and you can buy them with multiple ends for plugging into different phones if you have more than one type, such as an Apple and the popular rival Android.
Now you have a clock symbol and a phone charged so it won't turn off in the middle of the event you are timing.
What else can you do with your timer?
Timing Your Own Speech
You may be given two minutes to introduce yourself at an event. Practise the one minute opening, the classic elevator speech. Imagine you are in the elevator, or waiting for one, and royalty, or the CEO of the event or company, or just a random stranger is standing there. You can ask an opening question, such which floor are you going to, or does this lift go all the way to the top, or any other topic which is neutral, or are you going to the conference, or are you going to Andy and Sandy's wedding? Then comes your own sentence: such as, 'I am Professor x and giving the keynote speech about how to increase sales.' Followed by whatever you want or offer. This week I sat next to somebody who was addressed in Chinese (Mandarin) and I asked her the meaning. She told me and offered, "I can teach you mandarin - for free."
Photos and Timing
One conflict I recently resolved was how to take a photo of an event when you are timing. You can go back to the main menu and take a photo and return to timer. The slow way is to tap on the symbol which shows all open apps. (Triple vertical line on Samson Galaxy phone). Return by closing all apps and opening the one you want, which would be timer.
A quicker way is to slide the open aps sideways to return to stopwatch. However, it may have ceased counting whilst you were taking the photo.
You could practise doing this at home and know how long it takes. Or write down the time from youwatch. Then note the time when you resume timing. On my watch's clockface, the hours and minutes are big in the centre. In a contest you would need to note the seconds are smaller underneath.
In a contest I like to have a second person. Or you can keep one phone for taking photos and another for timing. With two of you, you can choose whose phone to keep for timing. Or elist a third friend with an instruction such as take a photo of each person.
MultiTasking Timing, Speaking and Photography
Another multi-tasking role is when you are called to speak or volunteer and you have to hand over to another person. This is less stressful if you ask in advance for the timer beside you, or the ah counter, or the friend or family member to have their phone to set to picture taking mode and to take photos of you when you speak, or to take over the timing role when you speak.
If you want to see timers in action, go to a Toastmasters International meeting. THey are held all over the world and in Singapore you will be bound to find one near you as there are several hundred clubs and some community centres have more than one club.
Timers are in demand, especially at contests. Many area contests are held at weekends, or in the evenings. Those club contest held by business clubs which meet at lunch time when other people are also at work.
Useful Websites
https://www.online-stopwatch.com/timer/7minute/
https://www.toastmasters.org/Membership/Club-Meeting-Roles/Mobile-App
About The Author
Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer, author and speaker. In Toastmasters International, ALB, ACG, Area Director S3. member of Harrovians Speakers,Toastmasters International, London, UK; President of Braddell Heights Toastmasters Club, Singapore, Singapore online Toastmasters.
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