If you or the people around you are falling into any of the categories below, there is certainly no reason for you to leave this page without reading it.
1) If you are searching for ways to hone your communication and leadership skills
2) If you are looking for ways to increase your knowledge and widen your horizon
3) If you are seeking ways to cultivate self confidence
4) If you are ‘hunting’ for potential customers or expanding your network of friends
5) If you are exploring ways to kill your leisure time
6) If you are thinking of magnifying your income
This is the subject I would like to share about – Toastmasters! For those who have already known about this program, you may continue reading and find out whether this is a whiz-bang article to share with your family and friends around. For those who have no idea about Toastmasters at all, it’s time for you to take a proper look at it.
First and foremost, Toastmasters program has nothing to do with drinking or toasting bread. It’s all about a life-changing and priceless educational program which I have involved for almost 8 years. There is no reason for me to ‘embrace’ this superb program without sharing it.
1) Way to Improve Your Communication and Leadership Skills
Feeling hard to convince your friends, colleagues and clients to accept or follow your ideas? Feeling butterflies in the stomach when being asked to speak in front of a group of people? Encountering problem to communicate in a language which is not your mother tongue? If you are facing any of these difficulties, you are one of those in the first category. Toastmasters can surely lend you a helping hand.
8 years ago, my aunt shared with me about this program. Her sharing was timely for me as I was looking for way to improve my English language, which is not my first language. In my opinion, having the ability to communicate fluently in English is a prerequisite for staying in a competitive career world.
I still remember my biggest speaking blooper happened during my college time. I was presiding over a Students’ Representative Council meeting, suddenly someone threw me a question, and I stammered and stuttered, stumbled over words due to my unpolished English speaking skill. I am sure blunder like this will happen again if without Toastmasters. Now, I have improved tremendously in my English speaking skills.
Toastmasters International is a non-profit organization headquartered in Rancho Santa Margarita, California. Its mission is to provide members with tools to improve their communication and leadership skills. There are approximately 270,000 people involved in over 13,000 Toastmasters clubs worldwide, in 116 countries.
What do we do in Toastmasters Club? Speaking? Yes, for sure. There is no way for you to learn swimming without jumping into a swimming pool. But don’t worry, Toastmasters is definitely a friendly environment for you to stay until you improve. Nobody is going to laugh at you when you say something wrong unless you are delivering a humorous speech.
We do have different assigned tasks during the Toastmasters meetings, from planning a meeting schedule, role playing to delivering an impromptu or prepared speech. Everything we perform here is leading us to be better speakers and leaders. There will be some senior members guiding you and providing you with constructive feedback and suggestions that can help you to improve in your future speeches.
2) Way to Increase Your Knowledge and Widen Your Horizon
If you have a strong craving for knowledge with the purpose of personal growth, Toastmasters is undeniably your choice. In Toastmasters, you will get to know members from all walks of life who are going to bring you different aspects of insightful and valuable knowledge. You may get to know professionals like doctors, engineers, architects, accountants, financial planners, whom you can consult to acquire the relevant information. Before I proceed, don’t get me wrong. Toastmasters International is not a platform for those professionals only. As long as you are passionate to learn, you are most welcome to join us despite your background.
I have come across various topics shared by members during the club meetings, from household related knowledge (such as making a delicious dish, first-aid tips), financial and property related information (such as insurance, land-banking, choosing a right property), to personal growth and relationship management. I still remember there were members sharing the topic on ‘How to Have a Blissful Marriage’ and ‘How to Deal with Mother-in-law’. The topics were carried out in a rather humorous way. For your information, humorous speaking skill is another useful skill you can learn from Toastmasters.
3) Way to Cultivate Self-Confidence
By practising more in Toastmasters meeting, your self-confidence will be enhanced gradually. Members who always respond appreciatively to your performance are also one of the factors where your confidence is cultivated. In Toastmasters program, we are trained to be leaders, not just followers.
4) Way to Expand Your Network of Friends
If you are venturing yourselves in a business where human network is your main source of income, then Toastmasters is the place you should go. If you feel lonely and plan for an escalation of your friend list, Toastmasters should again be your preference. Besides colleagues, old school/course mates, Toastmasters has become my main source of friends. Most importantly, they are quality, supportive and caring friends. Learn useful tips of getting more friends, do feel free to download this e-book, entitled ’50 Tips to Make People Like You’ for absolutely free. Click here for direct download.
If you are unfamiliar with Toastmasters, you may be wondering how you can know more and more friends within a club. Inviting more members to join your club after you have benefited from it? This is one of the ways. Another way is you go ‘clubbing’ to clubs within your district, or attend the area, division, district or even international events of Toastmasters, such as speech contests, joint installation dinners, outings, etc. FYI, I am a member of Great2B Toastmasters Club in District 51.
There is another benefit which I think it is worth sharing. If you are still ‘single and available’, you may consider finding a suitable partner here. I have personally witnessed a few pairs of ‘Toastmasters’ couples and some of them have already walked into blissful marriage.
5) Way to Spend Your Leisure Time
One of our club members claimed that he joins Toastmasters simply because he has a lot of free time. His intention is to kill time. He always looks invigorated whenever I see him in the meeting. Obviously, Toastmasters has become his natural booster. If you are idling for hours at home, why not spending time to improve yourselves and mingling with new friends at Toastmasters? You have nothing to lose besides gaining. Why not?
6) Way to Magnify Your Income
If you are an employee, your polished communication and leadership skills will become your stepping stone to promotion or salary increment. If you are self-employed or a business owner, the great assets you obtain from Toastmasters can definitely help you to expand your business and subsequently maximize your income possibilities. I truly believe confidence plays a predominant role in building the trust of others on us.
One of my friends who is in the purchasing department has ever compared two suppliers from the ways they spoke. She told me, “When both of them told me how good their product is, I rather trust the first supplier, because the way the second supplier talked to me was not confident enough to gain my trust on him.” This scenario has proved what I have just mentioned – the magic of being confident.
It is never too late to involve yourselves in this priceless educational program – Toastmasters. In term of cost involved, as I mentioned at the outset of this article, Toastmasters is a non-profit organization. So the fee incurred will be very minimal. But one thing I have to emphasize, the price doesn’t reflect its real value. Even though the joining fee is very affordable, but the value of the lessons you are going to gain here is much higher.
For those who are already Toastmasters, share this ‘treasure’ to people around you. For those who are not Toastmasters yet, I have no qualms about recommending this program to you. A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single ‘click’. Click and find out more about Toastmasters at its official website, http://www.toastmasters.org/. You can easily find a Toastmasters Club in the vicinity of your dwelling or working place with meeting time and day stated, from this official website of Toastmasters International. Don’t miss a precious chance to make a difference in your life!
