Newlands Toastmasters Club is celebrating it’s achievements this year and its members are planning a membership drive to celebrate this occasion. Many people have heard of the organisation and have been curious about the Toastmasters programme. However, once the words “Public Speaking” are uttered, a lot of people decide, “Oh, I cannot do that” and quickly lose interest, or do not pursue their enquiry further.
Sadly, they do themselves a dis-service, as Toastmasters is not about pushing a person up onto a stage in front of a large room of strangers and making them speak on some obscure subject with no preparation.
What Toastmasters is about is helping people gain confidence in their everyday lives whether that is at work, in the home, or dealing with others - like getting their car serviced. And along the way, they get to meet other people who have the same goals and aspirations as themselves. This is all achieved in a warm, friendly, and supportive atmosphere. After all, if a club meeting did not have those attributes, it would not be a fun place to be, members would not enjoy themselves and drift away. And everybody loses!!
Some of the benefits of being a member of Newlands Toastmasters Club include:
• Increased Self-Confidence
• Greater Self-Esteem
• New Speaking Skills
• Better Communication Ability
• Friendship
• Social Skills
• Reduced Nervousness
• Stimulating Relaxed Company
• A Diverse Range of Topics
• Educational Sessions
• Helping Each Other Succeed
• Professional Communication & Meeting Skills
• Personal Growth
• Fun and Enjoyment
Each Club’s mission is to provide a mutually supportive and positive learning environment in which every member has the opportunity to develop communication and leadership skills, which in turn foster self-confidence and personal growth.
So how does a Toastmasters club achieve those lofty goals for it’s members? By using a proven self-paced educational programme which is designed to build a persons confidence and speechmaking abilities and also their organisational & motivational skills. All Toastmasters activities are evaluated - this can be described as the very crux of the programme. Criticism is not allowed, all feedback is given in a positive manner. Constructive suggestions help the new speaker improve their performance and also make them feel good about themselves and their Toastmasters experience.
A typical meeting consists of all members and guests being welcomed to the meeting, a short business section, a “Table Topics” section of two minute impromptu talks - these really help to develop your ability to ‘think on your feet’, formal speeches, evaluations, and possibly an “Educational” section, where the audience is given pointers on various topics such as writing speeches, beginning your speech, selecting topics, giving effective evaluations etc. Generally, clubs have between 15 and 35 members - all at various stages in the Toastmasters programme. Once the initial speech manual is completed, members can move onto more advanced, specialised speeches - there are 15 different advanced manuals to choose from. Each one has a different “theme” and is designed to build on the skills acquired by members when completing previous speeches - thus the skills learned are cumulative.
Members also receive the monthly “Toastmaster” magazine which is full of interesting and helpful articles & advice from members world-wide. The information in this magazine is worth the membership fee alone.
Toastmasters is a “learning by doing” programme and new members are assigned a ‘mentor’. The mentors task is to assist the new member with preparing their first few speeches. And they are there to act as a sounding-board for ideas, and to offer help to the new member. All the club is committed to ensuring that new members succeed. Milestones in a persons speaking ‘career’ are recognised, and members receive positive encouragement at all times.
Wellington is fortunate in having a big variety of Toastmasters Clubs. We have clubs that meet in the early morning, during the day, & most evenings, and a dinner club which breaks half-way through for a buffet meal. Often, various theme nights are organised such as Fancy Dress, or a Black and White evening, and members enjoy getting into the atmosphere of these occasions.
All people are welcome at a Toastmasters Club, and we recommend that prospective members attend meetings at different clubs so they find a club which best suits their needs. There is no high pressure sales pitch with Toastmasters - you are welcome to attend as a guest as many times as you like. However, you will quickly see that becoming a member will set you on the path to gaining the full benefits of the Toastmasters programme.
Make that positive move you have been thinking about - contact one of the people listed below to enquire about a Toastmasters Club that meets near you. Toastmasters is your gateway to Confidence, Self-Esteem, and some very good stories.
Newlands Toastmasters