Toastmasters Archives - Toastmasters 101

Toastmasters Debate

Why You Should Look at Toastmasters Debate Clubs

We’ve all been there. That discussion that you want to have, that we need to have. Whether it’s politics, society norms, or the intrinsic value of moosetracks ice cream – you want to discuss it. You want to explore it with friends, family, or the person in front of you at the ice cream stand. You want a debate – an honest-to-goodness discussion with facts, explanations of why these facts are important and the impact of the topic on the world – ok, your ice cream choice. You want a debate.

Debate often has a bad smell to it. In the US, we have these abominations called “presidential debates” which are nothing more than people slinging sound bites at each other for the media. Then we have the current “social media” debate, which appears to focus on insults and accusations.

Whatever happened to civil discussions? Have we lost the ability to have them?

Today on Toastmasters 101, we’re going to talk about an increasing need for the ability to communicate with discussions where people don’t agree, and a terrific rise in the Toastmasters grassroots community to discover the power of debate. Continue reading “Toastmasters Debate”

Thanks Giving in Toastmasters “Thank You, Toastmasters”

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Should you say “thank you, Toastmasters” at the end of your speech?

We are celebrating Thanksgiving here in the United States this week. It’s a time to think about the things we’re grateful for and express our gratitude to those who have blessed us.

I am extremely grateful to many Toastmasters I have met over the years. My life has been blessed by men and women who have demonstrated public speaking skills and leadership skills. And frankly, they’ve made my life a lot more fun. Where else would I have learned about self-priming jiggle pumps?

I should thank my club for teaching me about painting with diamonds or why your arteries are like pumpkin roll pastries – neither of which I knew before tonight.

Yes, an audience should thank the speaker. But what about the speaker thanking the audience?

It’s a Toastmasters controversy.

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Do you want to learn to be a great public speaker? Do you develop your leadership skills? Then Toastmasters is for you. We will give you the opportunities to learn and grow in an hour a week! This is Toastmasters 101 and I’m your host, Kim Krajci. Continue reading “Thanks Giving in Toastmasters “Thank You, Toastmasters””

Toastmasters Speech Contest: Are You In?

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Sometime in the next few months, your Toastmasters club is going to hold a contest. For new members, a Toastmasters speech contest sounds maybe a bit… childish? unnecessarily competitive? waste of time?

I suspect that you’ve never seen a Toastmasters speech contest.

On today’s podcast, let’s take a look at one of the biggest events in Toastmasters around the world, and the benefits to you and your club when you hold a contest.

INTRO

Do you need to be able to speak to groups of people? Do you have ideas that can help create a better world, if only you could get them out? Then Toastmasters is for you. In an hour a week, we can teach you public speaking and leadership skills and have fun while we do it. This is Toastmasters 101 and I’m your host, Kim Krajci.

Toastmasters Speech Contests

I joined Toastmasters because I was a high school speech and debate judge. My experience with public speaking was already competitive, so a speech contest in Toastmasters didn’t surprise me.

Whether or not you’re competitive in nature, it’s pretty natural for people to compete against each other. My kids used to compete over whose side of the car had the better Christmas decorations on the houses that we passed as we drove around town. Yes, that makes no sense. Don’t try to figure it out.

Competition is built into us. There are certainly those who think we ought to outgrow it when we become adults. We need to be cooperative, not competitive. Continue reading “Toastmasters Speech Contest: Are You In?”

A Professional Presentation at Toastmasters?

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I’ve mentioned my friend Terry in previous episodes. Terry owns a painting company here in Ohio. Because of his successful business, he was asked to give a 45-minute break-out professional presentation session at an international conference about how he built his business.

If you were in his shoes, what would you have done?

Many people join Toastmasters because their jobs require public speaking and presentation skills. But most of those professional presentations aren’t limited to 5 to 7 minutes. How can you use Toastmasters to help you build a longer professional presentation and how can Toastmasters help you practice?

Today on the podcast, let’s chat about your professional presentation.

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Do you need to develop your professional presentation skills? Whether it’s a short impromptu answer to a question at a business meeting or a major project presentation, Toastmasters can help you craft the professional presentation you want to give. This is Toastmasters 101 and I’m your host, Kim Krajci.

“My boss told me to join Toastmasters”

We hear this a lot. I’d bet that at least half of the people who walk through our doors join Toastmasters for professional reasons. Either they’re going to be speaking as a representative of their company, or speaking to other employees, a lot of people walk into a Toastmasters meeting for their job. Continue reading “A Professional Presentation at Toastmasters?”

Area Director Visits

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Get ready for your area director visits now.

Toastmasters International is a worldwide organization. We are seeing massive growth outside of the United States, where Toastmasters is based. Do you ever wonder how they manage over 300 thousand members and thousands of clubs? Do they know what’s happening in the clubs? How do they know what’s going on in the clubs – and where there are problems, how can they help?

In today’s episode, we’re talking about area director visits: what the area director is doing, what the visit looks like to the club, and what they can do for you.

Do you want to develop your leadership and public speaking skills? Then Toastmasters is for you. In one hour a week, we’ll teach you the skills and give you the opportunities to practice them. This is Toastmasters 101 and I’m your host, Kim Krajci.

Toastmasters Area Directors

If you’re a member of a Toastmasters club, you might not know how the Toastmasters International organization is run.

Toastmasters International is a big organization – 300 thousand plus members to help to achieve their goals means that there must be some levels of management inserted into the program.

For an organization that teaches leadership – this gives thousands of people the opportunity to build up their skills in a hands-on way, instead of just reading a book or taking a class. As a club officer or a district officer, you’re going to deal with the problems that leaders face – managing an on-going program that’s just updated its basic product and delivery system, personnel turnover, and confused new members who don’t know what’s going on.

That’s in a healthy club. But what if you’re in a club with issues? Continue reading “Area Director Visits”

Your Online Meeting Agenda: The Power Tool You Need

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What does your online meeting agenda look like to a guest of your club?

What? You don’t have one?

Can you imagine trying to cut down a tree with a power saw – without starting it up? Absolutely ludicrous idea, isn’t it? The power tool is designed to be used to solve a problem quickly and more easily than it would by hand.

Have you ever thought about your agenda as a power tool? That maybe it can do a lot more for you than you expect?

Some people think of an agenda just as a check list, nothing more.

What value does an agenda bring to a club? How does it improve the club member and the club guest experience?

Does it need to change for online meetings?

Today on the podcast, let’s chat about your agendas – in person and online meeting agendas. What yours looks like, what you may need to change up, and how to use it out to recruit your club guests to become members.

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Are you looking for an effective way to learn public speaking and leadership skills? We’ve got it at Toastmasters. In one hour a week, you can learn what you need to change the world. This is Toastmasters 101 podcast and I’m your host, Kim Krajci.

On-site meetings vs. online meeting agendas

A few years back, I tried an experiment with my lunchtime Toastmasters club. Instead of printing an agenda, we opted to use the Free Toast Host agenda online, but we copied the information onto a whiteboard in our meeting room.

Saving money, saving paper, saving time – we thought.

What we found was that we were missing a critical part of our marketing to guests when they walked through our doors.

The meeting agenda provides more than just “who’s the Toastmaster and who’s the Table Topics Leader” information to the people in attendance. Continue reading “Your Online Meeting Agenda: The Power Tool You Need”

Come Back to Toastmasters

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Peole leave Toastmasters clubs for many reasons. What reasons do we have for them to come back to Toastmasters?

In today’s podcast, we have interviewed past District 10 Governor Deonna More Taylor. She’s a 7.5 time DTM (Distinguished Toastmaster Award) with the next one just one project away from completion. Continue reading “Come Back to Toastmasters”

Toastmasters Triple Crown and Smedley Awards

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What are your goals this year in Toastmasters? Have you given that much thought? What if you decide to think big and go for a Triple Crown?

What’s a Triple Crown, you ask?

Today on Toastmasters 101, let’s discuss your work and what you can do to win three awards in this Toastmasters year.

Do your goals this year include learning how to speak in public? Are you interested in leadership? Then Toastmasters is for you. We teach public speaking and leadership skills. This is Toastmasters 101 podcast and I’m your host, Kim Krajci.

How many projects can you do in one year?

Continue reading “Toastmasters Triple Crown and Smedley Awards”

Overcome Fear of Public Speaking with Toastmasters

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What’s your biggest challenge in public speaking? Is it overcoming your fear of public speaking?

Do you struggle to tell your stories? Does the stage fright scare you off? Are filler words filling up your speeches? Maybe you’re lost with no idea what to give a speech about?

At one point or another, we all face these challenges in public speaking. Right now is your opportunity to make some decisions that will help you solve those problems later.

Welcome to the new year – the Toastmasters New Year – and all the promise that a new year has.

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Do you want to overcome your fear of public speaking? Then Toastmasters can help you. Our proven plan can teach you the skills and techniques of public speaking so you can share your message with the world. This is Toastmasters 101 and I’m your host, Kim Krajci.

Getting lost in the plan

Have you ever started a project and watch it go wrong? You’re stuck at a place with no idea what to do next or how to finish it?

Maybe you’re lost on a trip. Maybe you’ve got just enough experience to get yourself in a pickle. Or maybe you just need a better plan.

Public speaking challenges people down to the core of their being. Whether they’re afraid of being judged or afraid of making a fool of themselves, or concerned that they can’t effectively communicate their message – those go down into the center of who we are, who I am as a person. Fear might overcome almost every other emotion we feel – even love, passion, or pleasure.

So how does Toastmasters help your fear of public speaking?

Continue reading “Overcome Fear of Public Speaking with Toastmasters”

Toastmasters Area Director: Is this your future?

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Do you want to be a Toastmasters Area Director?

Our District 10 annual meeting is this Saturday morning. While we’re there, we’ll be electing our district leaders for the year – affectionately called the Trio – District Director, Program Quality Director, and Club Growth Director. Then the division directors are elected – in District 10, we have 5 divisions. But the most important member of the leadership team, the area directors, are not elected here. They are appointed by the District Director. Does that sound right to you? The most important members of the district executive committee are appointed?

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Are you interested in developing your leadership skills? Toastmasters is where leaders are made! We provide a fun and safe place for you to develop your public speaking and leadership skills at Toastmasters! This is Toastmasters 101 and I’m your host, Kim Krajci.

What is the role of the Area Director?

Continue reading “Toastmasters Area Director: Is this your future?”