,
you are on your way to improving your speaking effectiveness,
your listening skills, your leadership acumen and, equally important,
your self-confidence. Here
in District 84 we encourage you to visit one
of our nearly 200 clubs.  Will you become a better speaker? That's
a given. Will
you learn about leadership and have an opportunity to lead? That
is what Toastmasters is all about. Will you have fun? If you aren't
having fun, you're doing it wrong! Along with with our regular
meetings, Toastmasters offers Conferences and Conventions, at glamorous
locations. These events may involve speech contests (humorous included),
the occasional costume ball, as well as opportunities for the men
to deck out in tuxedo and the ladies to glow in their gorgeous
evening gowns. You will hear and have the opportunity to give speeches
that can have you roaring with laughter or bring you to tears.
Best of all, you'll have the opportunity to forge new and lasting
friendships as you become part of the Toastmasters family! To find
a club near you, simply click on Find
a Club and enter your zip code or city.
How Toastmasters works:
, members learn by speaking to groups and working
with others in a supportive environment. A typical Toastmasters
club is made up of 20 to 30 people who meet once a week for about
an hour. Each meeting gives everyone an opportunity to practice:
-
Conducting meetings. Meetings usually begin with a short business
session which helps members learn basic meeting procedures.
-
Giving impromptu speeches. Members present one-to two-minute
impromptu speeches on assigned topics.
-
Presenting prepared speeches. Three or more members present
speeches based on projects from the Toastmasters International
Communication and Leadership Program manuals. Projects cover
such topics as speech organization, voice, language, gestures,
and persuasion.
-
Offering constructive evaluation. Every prepared speaker is
assigned an evaluator who points out speech strengths and offers
suggestions for improvement.
The Tools You Use:
Upon joining a Toastmasters club, each new member receives a variety
of manuals and resources on speaking. Members also have access
to other books as well as audio and video cassettes on speaking
and leading. They also receive the award-winning The Toastmaster,
a monthly magazine that offers the latest insights on speaking
and leadership techniques.
Toastmasters and Leadership:
Leadership cannot be learned in a day. It takes practice. In Toastmasters
members build leadership skills by organizing and conducting meetings
and motivating others to help them. Club leadership roles and a
leadership development program also offer opportunities to learn
and practice. Just as Toastmasters members learn to speak simply
by speaking, they learn leadership by leading.
Company Benefits:
A company's success also depends on communication. Employees face
an endless exchange of ideas, messages, and information as they
deal with one another and with customers day after day. How well
they communicate can determine whether a company quickly grows
into an industry leader or joins thousands of other businesses
mired in mediocrity.
Toastmasters provides the tools that enable employees to become effective communicators
and leaders all at a very low cost. Toastmasters training helps employees:
- give better sales presentations
- hone their management skills
- work better with fellow employees
- effectively develop and present ideas
- offer constructive criticism
- accept criticism more objectively
Toastmasters produces results. Around the world more than three
million men and women of all ages and occupations have benefited
from Toastmasters training, and more than one thousand corporations,
community groups, universities, associations, and government agencies
now use Toastmasters training.
Community Benefits:
Toastmasters has helped many members in their community service
activities. Using the speaking and leadership skills developed
in Toastmasters, people have become more active in business, churches,
and service and charity organizations. Toastmasters members are
able to organize activities, conduct meetings, and speak in public
as their organization's representative. Some even become active
in local, state or national government.
Toastmasters International is a non-profit organization governed
by a Board of Directors elected by the membership. The first Toastmasters
club was established on October 22, 1924, in Santa Ana, California,
by Dr. Ralph C. Smedley, who conceived and developed the idea of
helping others to speak more effectively. More clubs were formed,
and Toastmasters International was incorporated under California
law on December 19, 1932.
Toastmasters International's business and services are administered by its
World Headquarters, located in Rancho Santa Margarita, California. It employs
no paid promoters or instructors. It has no salaried staff except the Executive
Director and World Headquarters staff, who provide services to the clubs and
Districts.
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