Grab Bag meetings

In December 2006, Betsy expressed concern about a grab bag meeting - as she explained:
This is when all the roles are drawn from a hat at the beginning of the meeting; everyone theoretically comes prepared with a speech

The collective wisdom of alt.org.toastmasters came up with these modifications:

Wordkyle reported:
We assign the speakers in advance so they have time to prepare. The rest of the roles are then randomly assigned.

Joy added:
I put the assignments into two envelopes. Envelope A is for speakers, Table Topics Master and Toastmaster. Envelope B is for the easier roles.
Experienced Toastmasters draw from Envelope A, while newbies and guests (if they wish) draw from Envelope B. We have a list of duties and what is involved, so taking an unfamiliar role shouldn't be much of a problem.
For speakers and Table Topics, I list a few suggestions for topics. I also provide blank agendas to be filled in as the roles are determined.

Tracy said:
We have a couple of "opt out" rules, though, that members can use. If you haven't given 3 speeches, you can draw again if you get a Speaker or Evaluator job. We use cheap poker chips with the jobs written on them.

Eric offered:

We allow participants a few minutes to trade their roles with someone who agrees to a trade.
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