#ai uses

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Do’s and Don’ts of Using AI in Speechwriting

Key rules for using artificial intelligence in speech prep.

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Using AI for Speaker Notes

How to prompt AI to write speaker notes.

This article provides a practical blueprint for using AI as a "world-class speaking coach" to transform your slide decks into structured, engaging speaker notes. By mastering specific prompts for transitions, analogies, and rhetorical questions, you’ll learn how to significantly speed up your preparation while ensuring your unique human perspective remains at the heart of every presentation.

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How I Turn a Toastmasters Meeting into a Newsletter in Minutes

Using Google Meet, Gemini, and ChatGPT

If you’ve ever been responsible for writing a Toastmasters newsletter recap, you know the challenge.

You’re trying to remember who spoke… What their speech was about… Who evaluated whom… And what announcements were made.

By the time I sit down to write it, the details are already fading.

So recently, I tried a different approach at Southern Dutchess Toastmasters—and the results were surprisingly powerful.

Step 1: I Record the Meeting (Google Meet)

I run our hybrid meetings using Google Meet, which makes this simple:

I start the meeting as usual

I click Record

I let the entire meeting run

When the meeting ends, the recording is automatically saved to my Google Drive.

Even better—it’s organized for me. You can typically find it here:

Google Drive → My Drive → Meet Recordings

(If you’re using a Workspace account, it may also appear in a “Meet Recordings” folder or inside the meeting organizer’s Drive.)

Instead of relying on memory, I now have a complete, accurate record of everything that happened.

Step 2: I Use Gemini to Generate the Recap

Next, I take the recording or transcript and feed it into Google Gemini with a structured prompt.

Here’s what I’ve learned:

👉 Just asking AI to “summarize the meeting” doesn’t work well. 👉 The quality comes from giving it a clear structure.

Using a prompt I created with ChatGPT, I ask Gemini to:

Extract real names, roles, and speeches

Organize everything into clear sections

Write in a newsletter style

Avoid guessing or inventing details

Step 3: I Use ChatGPT to Build the Prompt

This is the step that made the biggest difference.

Instead of guessing what to ask Gemini, I used ChatGPT to design a reusable, high-quality prompt.

Here’s the exact prompt I used:

__________

Please review this Southern Dutchess Toastmasters meeting recording and create a polished meeting recap in newsletter style.

I want the writing to feel warm, readable, and specific to the actual meeting—not generic. Base everything only on what is clearly stated in the recording or transcript. Do not guess at names, roles, speech titles, achievements, or dates. If something is uncertain, include it in a short “Facts to Verify” section at the end instead of guessing.

Please structure the output like this:

Southern Dutchess Toastmasters Recap [Meeting date] | Theme: [theme if stated]

Opening paragraph: Write one short engaging paragraph capturing the tone, theme, and spirit of the meeting.

Club Highlights: Summarize important announcements, club achievements, contest results, dues reminders, membership updates, guest welcomes, and Distinguished Club progress.

Prepared Speeches: For each speech, include:

Speaker name

Speech title if stated

Project or pathway objective if stated

1–3 sentence summary of the speech topic and main takeaway

Table Topics: Summarize the Table Topics session in one paragraph, including the Table Topics Master, the general topic, and a few memorable responses if clearly identifiable.

Evaluations and Closing: Briefly summarize evaluator pairings, general evaluator comments, and any closing announcements.

Next Meeting: Include the next meeting date and Toastmaster if mentioned.

Writing requirements:

Newsletter style

Clear headings

Concise but informative

Positive and professional tone

Correct obvious transcript mistakes only when the intended meaning is reasonably clear

Keep names accurate

Do not make the recap overly long

Avoid generic praise and clichés

Then also provide:

A shorter website version in 2–4 short paragraphs

A very short email teaser in 2–3 sentences

A “Facts to Verify” section listing any uncertain details

What Gemini Produced

Here’s an example of the output Gemini generated from that prompt:

__________

Southern Dutchess Toastmasters Recap – March 16, 2026 Theme: Celebrate Curiosity

The meeting was centered around the theme "Celebrate Curiosity," exploring how asking "why" serves as a powerful force for learning, creativity, and discovery. Despite some initial technical hurdles with a new laptop, the spirit of the meeting remained high, marked by an atmosphere of mutual support and a record-breaking number of prepared speeches.

Club Highlights

Membership Growth: The club welcomed its newest member, Miriam, and celebrated the addition of 12 new members this year, making it the fastest-growing club among 98 in the district.

Contest Success: Long-time member Janice won the Division speech contest for humorous speaking and will represent the club at the district conference in Waterbury, Connecticut, on April 24th.

Distinguished Club Progress: The club has already achieved six of its ten goals, placing it in the top 96% of the district.

Dues Reminder: Members are reminded to pay their six-month dues by the end of March to keep the club in good standing. Self-pay is available online through the Toastmasters website.

Guest Welcome: James was welcomed as a guest and invited to participate in the Table Topics session.

Meeting Roles and Theme

Toastmaster & President: Kevin introduced the theme, "Ask Why: Celebrate Curiosity," noting that while children naturally ask "why," adults often lose that vital spark of inquiry.

Timer: Joe kept the meeting on track, timing speeches, Table Topics, and evaluations.

Word Master / Ah-Counter: In her first official role, Miriam introduced "Resilient" as the Word of the Day, highlighting the courage required to stand before an audience.

Joke Master: Darren shared a humorous story about a young girl’s endless curiosity while her father attempted to fix a sink.

Prepared Speeches

Deviki: "Renewal" Working on Motivational Strategies Level 1, Deviki delivered an evocative speech about the signs of spring, from singing birds to emerging tulips. She emphasized that spring serves as a reminder that renewal and better days always follow difficult times.

Janice: "Fun, Fun, Fun, Fun" Reflecting on her completion of the Engaging Humor pathway, Janice shared practical advice on record-keeping and maintaining a "story file" for future speeches. Her speech underscored the importance of simply having fun to overcome the fear of public speaking.

Melissa: "Which Direction Are You Facing?" Melissa explored the idea that successful people are intentional about the directions they choose to face. Using the sunflower as a metaphor, she illustrated how we grow toward the influences and environments we focus on.

Wanda: "My Toastmaster Journey" Wanda shared her long-term journey starting from "Toast Mistress" clubs to her current role. She described how public speaking served as a "lightning rod" for her career and encouraged others to find comfort in being uncomfortable.

Table Topics

The Table Topics session, led by Kevin, featured "silly" questions that all began with "why," challenging participants to think on their feet. Memorable responses included Khalil’s analysis of grocery store lines, Joe’s theory that washing machines were invented solely to steal socks, and Miriam’s reflection on the inner child that compels us to press elevator buttons repeatedly.

Evaluations and Closing

The evaluation session was led by General Evaluator Khalil. Janice evaluated Deviki, Ruth evaluated Janice, Matt evaluated Melissa, and Darren evaluated Wanda. The evaluators focused on vocal variety, body language, and the importance of connecting with the audience. In his closing remarks, Kevin shared a personal story about a missing sock found stuck to a pair of pants, reinforcing the meeting's theme of everyday mysteries.

Next Meeting

The next meeting will be held on Monday, April 6, 2026, at 7:00 PM. Khalil will serve as Toastmaster, with Matt and Kevin currently signed up as speakers. Two speaking slots remain available for those looking to reach their goals.

SHORT WEBSITE VERSION

Recap: Southern Dutchess Toastmasters Explores the Power of Curiosity

Our March 16th meeting, themed "Celebrate Curiosity," was a vibrant session that highlighted the growth and achievements of our club members. President Kevin opened the meeting by emphasizing how curiosity drives innovation and learning, setting a perfect tone for the four prepared speeches that followed. We also celebrated Janice's recent win at the Division humorous speech contest and welcomed several new faces to our rapidly expanding club.

The evening featured a diverse range of speeches, from Deviki’s reflections on the renewal of spring to Wanda’s inspiring look back at her lifelong Toastmasters journey. Melissa spoke on the power of intentional living, while Janice shared humorous but practical lessons on the importance of keeping a story file. The "Ask Why" theme continued into an entertaining Table Topics session, where members tackled life's minor mysteries, such as disappearing laundry and the urge to press elevator buttons. Join us for our next meeting on April 6th at 7:00 PM as we continue to build our communication and leadership skills together.

ULTRA-SHORT EMAIL TEASER

Why do socks disappear in the laundry? Find out the latest theories and catch up on all the highlights from our "Celebrate Curiosity" meeting, including Janice's big contest win and four inspiring member speeches!

__________

Why This Works So Well

This simple workflow solves several problems I’ve run into over the years:

✔ Accuracy

I’m working from a recording—not memory.

✔ Consistency

Every recap follows the same structure.

✔ Time Savings

What used to take me 30–60 minutes now takes just a few minutes.

✔ Completeness

I don’t miss speakers, roles, or key moments.

Final Thought

For me, the real value isn’t just the tools—it’s the system:

Record → Prompt → Generate → Polish → Publish

Once I set that up, creating content became simple—and sustainable.

If you’re not recording your meetings yet, this might be the easiest upgrade you can make.

And if you are?

You’re already sitting on a goldmine of content.

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From Frustration to Finished: Building the Toastmaster Tools App with AI

I recently set out to build a custom Toastmaster Tools app for my club — a web-based app that handles timing, filler word counting, transcription, and the Word of the Day, all from a single screen on an iPad or iPhone. What I didn't expect was that the journey would become an accidental comparison of three different AI tools, a masterclass in knowing when to switch, and ultimately a lesson in what it really means to build software with AI as your partner.

The Scriptable Roadblock

I started with ChatGPT, hoping to create a script for Scriptable — a cool iOS app that lets you write and run JavaScript directly on your iPhone or iPad. The experience was a slog. Every version it produced had syntax errors, and the slow typing speed made revisions painful. After an hour, I still didn't have a working timer.

Switching to Gemini: The Turning Point

I decided to give Gemini a shot, and the difference was night and day. The very first version worked perfectly. Gemini then helped me pivot to a Progressive Web App — a smarter approach that meant no app store, no installation, and the app would work on any device with a browser. Gemini orchestrated the entire architecture nearly instantly.

We spent several hours in a "ping-pong" session, moving past basic functionality into specialized features:

High-Contrast Light Mode — ensuring readability in bright meeting rooms

Smart Roster — a local database that saves speaker names so the Timer doesn't have to retype them every week

Integrated Reporting — a clean meeting report with a Share Sheet function for instant results

Word of the Day — AI-powered definitions and usage sentences via ChatGPT, with filler word tracking for the Grammarian role

Gemini then generated a professional user guide integrated directly into the app.

At this point, the verdict seemed clear: Gemini was the winner.

When Gemini Hit a Wall

Then I wanted to push the app further.

The next feature was speech transcription — using OpenAI's Whisper API to automatically record a speaker, transcribe their words, and count filler words without any manual tapping. A natural evolution of the app.

This is where things fell apart. Gemini began making significant mistakes the moment it touched the transcription code. Features that had worked flawlessly for weeks started breaking. Each fix introduced a new regression. The codebase, which had been clean and stable, became fragile. It was the classic problem of an AI losing the thread of a complex system while trying to extend it.

I made the decision to switch to Claude.

A Different Kind of Collaboration

Claude is an AI assistant made by Anthropic, a company founded by former members of OpenAI with a focus on AI safety. Where it stands out is in handling complex, long-running projects where keeping track of many moving parts matters.

The contrast was immediate. Before writing a single line of new code, Claude audited the entire existing codebase and produced a formal technical reference document — a complete contract specifying every function, every storage key, every screen ID, and every CSS class that had to be preserved. This became the foundation for everything that followed.

From that point, Claude added feature after feature across many sessions — and this is where I want to be honest about something. I'm not just a passive recipient of AI output. I have 40 years of experience as a software developer and manager. I know what to ask for. I know when something is wrong. I know how to think about architecture. What changed in retirement is that I wanted to try a different approach — describing what I want in plain English and acting as the product owner and editor rather than the coder. This approach is sometimes called vibe coding, and this project became my real-world test of whether it actually works.

The short answer: it works remarkably well, but your background matters. The AI multiplies what you bring to it.

What Got Built

Here's what the app does today — and none of it existed when I handed the project to Claude:

At the meeting:

Timing — full-screen color cues (green → yellow → red) for every standard Toastmasters role, with custom thresholds and automatic session logging

Filler Word Counting — tap-to-count cards for AH, UH, UM, ER, SO, LIKE, YOU KNOW and the Word of the Day, with automatic filler scoring

Speech Transcription — record a speaker in the app, get an AI transcript via OpenAI Whisper with filler words highlighted in red and the Word of the Day in gold

Cloud Meeting Report — at the end of a meeting, every device's timing and filler results appear in one shared report

Shared across the whole club:

Cloud Sync — the entire club works from a shared roster. The officer generates a sync code once; members enter it on their first visit and the club roster downloads automatically. Every device in the room stays in sync.

Speaker Progress Tracking — a running history of each speaker's filler word rate across meetings, stored in the cloud from week to week, with trend indicators and full session history

Meeting prep:

Meeting Theme Suggester — enter the meeting date, get 5 AI-generated theme ideas tied to holidays, events, and observances near that date

Fun Facts Generator — select a theme and get 6 surprising facts auto-generated for the Toastmaster's script

Table Topics Generator — 8 varied, AI-generated questions tailored to the chosen theme, ready to copy and paste into your agenda

Club management:

PACE Participation Tracker — a leaderboard aligned to the Toastmasters year where members earn points for each role they fill, with embeddable widgets for your club website

DCP Integration — pulls your club's Distinguished Club Program data directly from the Toastmasters website so you can track goals without logging in

My honest estimate is that this took about one tenth of the time it would have taken me to build it the traditional way.

What Made the Difference

Two things stood out about working with Claude.

The first was the technical contract. By establishing upfront exactly what couldn't be touched, Claude treated the codebase the way a professional engineer would — with respect for what already worked. New features were built around the existing architecture, not through it.

The second was transparency about mistakes. When a bug appeared — a stray closing tag inside a template literal that silently broke every function defined after it — Claude diagnosed it precisely, explained exactly why it had happened, and fixed it without drama. No hours of chasing regressions.

And through all of it — not one existing feature broke. The timer still works. The roster still works. The Word of the Day still works. The report still works. Every addition was surgical.

The Real Verdict

Gemini deserves full credit for the original build. It was fast, fluent, and created something genuinely useful from scratch. For greenfield development where you're starting from nothing, it's a remarkable tool.

But building from zero and extending a complex, working system are fundamentally different skills. When the complexity increased, the results diverged sharply. Claude proved to be the right tool for the second half: a careful, methodical collaborator that could hold the full architecture in mind, extend it confidently, and leave everything it didn't touch exactly as it found it.

The finished app is better for having both.

As for vibe coding — I'm a believer. Not because it eliminates the need for technical judgment, but because it dramatically amplifies it. I spent my energy on what the app should do and how it should work, and the AI handled the implementation. That's a division of labor I could have only dreamed of forty years ago.

The Toastmaster Tools app is live at toastmaster-tools.site and is free to use for any Toastmasters club.

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How I Created a Custom "Pathways" Intro Video Using Google’s New AI Stack

As many of us know, the Pathways learning experience is incredibly rewarding, but it can be a little overwhelming for brand-new Toastmasters. I wanted to create a clear, welcoming video overview specifically for our new members at Southern Dutchess Toastmasters to help them get started with Pathways and Base Camp.

The challenge? I wanted it to be professional, accurate, and customized, but I didn't want to spend weeks editing it. Here is the exact workflow I used to build the entire project using Google’s latest AI tools: NotebookLM, Gemini, and Google Vids.

Step 1: Research & Knowledge Base (NotebookLM)

I started by creating a new notebook in NotebookLM. Instead of hunting down links manually, I asked NotebookLM to go out and find as much current information as possible about the Toastmasters Pathways system and Base Camp.

It pulled in numerous sources which I ingested directly into the notebook. This gave me a grounded, factual "brain" containing only the specific information I needed for the project.

Step 2: Drafting the Narrative (Gemini + NotebookLM)

Once the data was ready, I went into Gemini and connected it to that specific notebook. This is a crucial step because it grounds Gemini in the actual source material.

I asked Gemini to write a script for a short presentation geared toward members who knew nothing about the program. It produced a solid overview, which we went back and forth on to adjust the tone until it was perfect.

Step 3: Generating the Visuals (The Prompt Handoff)

Here is where the magic happened. Instead of designing slides from scratch, I asked Gemini to write a specific prompt for NotebookLM’s slide creation tool. I asked it to analyze our finalized script and describe a slide deck that would match it perfectly.

I took that customized prompt, went back into NotebookLM, opened the slide deck tool, and pasted it in. The result? The first draft of slides was essentially perfect. It saved me hours of formatting time.

Step 4: The Voiceover Script

To get the audio right, I needed a script that matched the visuals exactly. I exported the slides as a PDF and uploaded that PDF into Gemini.

I asked Gemini to write a voiceover script specifically for those slides. Because it could "see" the visual context of the PDF, the first version of the script was excellent and required only minor tweaks.

Step 5: Assembly and Production (Google Vids)

For the final build, I used the new Google Vids in Google Drive. My process was simple:

I exported each page of the PDF slide deck as an individual image.

I imported them one by one into Google Vids.

I used the tool to generate a professional voiceover for each slide using the script from Step 4.

To add some life to the video, I also generated some AI video clips of "people at a Toastmasters meeting" to intersperse with the slides.

The Result

After exporting to Drive and uploading to YouTube, the feedback has been fantastic. We now have a decent, modern overview of the Pathways system that is customized specifically for Southern Dutchess Toastmasters.

The best part? It didn't require a film crew or a graphic designer—just the right combination of AI tools working together.

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Top Use Cases of AI in Marketing

Overview Understanding customers as humans, not data points, allows brands to deliver the right message at the right time, improving engagem

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More new feature are on the way.

3 upcoming features I can't wait to use in NotebookLM

Counting down the days till these features drop.