What is Toastmasters?

ToastmastersLogo Toastmasters International is a world-wide non-profit organization that has been helping its members improve their public speaking and communication skills since 1924. The organization now has more than 260,000 members who are active in over 12,500 clubs in 113 countries. Toastmasters is about “becoming the leader and speaker you want to be“, providing a well-proved method for its members to increase their public speaking and leadership skills through practice and active participation.

How does it work?

Most Toastmasters meetings are comprised of approximately 20 people who meet weekly for an hour or two. Participants practice and learn skills by filling a meeting role, ranging from giving a speech (either prepared or impromptu), or serving as toastmaster, timer, evaluator or grammarian. So, there is no instructor; instead, each speech and meeting is evaluated by other members in a positive manner, focusing on what was done right and what could be improved.

You will however receive a membership kit, with valuable manuals to guide you along on either your communication or your leadership track, or both, since in the all the years of its existance Toastmasters has developed a very well planned out system of progressing people through the program and lifting their skills. The communication track offers speech assignments that will help you develop your speaking skills one step at a time, while the leadership track provide you with assignments for organizational roles within your Toastmasters club. Whether or not you wish to follow these tracks however is entirely up to you, nothing is obligatory! Apart from the regular meetings, you will also be able to test your skills in competition with Toastmasters from other clubs, on district, national and even international levels, providing ample opportunity for social networking as well!

What will it do for you?

In short, Toastmasters will help you to communicate more effectively, improve your leadership skills and increase your confidence. And all of this in an enjoyable way and without the need to pay high fees for seminars or professional trainings, since Toasmasters is an organization that is entirely run by volunteers. What this means is that besides practicing public speaking, you will also have a chance to develop your leadership and management skills by being active in the organization. Of course for your for your own club, but if you want you could also be active on higher levels in the organization, such like regional or national management.

Finally, Toastmasters is . . .