Situated in the Hornsby and Waitara areas, Waitara Windbags Toastmasters Club is your chance to join a new club with like-minded people who also want to improve their public speaking, communication and leadership skills. You will be learning practical skills, guided by a small number of experienced Toastmasters.
Here are the answers to some Frequently Asked Questions about Toastmasters.
How Toastmasters Works
At Toastmasters, 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 usually twice a month for approximately two hours. Each meeting gives everyone an opportunity to practice:
- Conducting meetings. Members learn how to plan and conduct meetings.
- Giving impromptu speeches. Members present one-to-two minute, impromptu speeches on assigned topics.
- Presenting prepared speeches. Members present speeches based on projects from manuals in Toastmasters’ proven communication and/or leadership programs. Projects cover topics such as speaking, organization, vocal variety, language, gestures and persuasion.
- Offering constructive evaluation (feedback). Every prepared speaker is assigned an evaluator who identifies speech strengths and offers suggestions for improvement.
The Tools Toastmasters Use
PATHWAYS LEARNING EXPERIENCE
Embark on a journey of personal and professional development through Pathways, Toastmasters’ new education program! Pathways is designed to help you build the skills you need to communicate and lead. It is comprised of 10 paths that teach more than 300 unique competencies:
As you progress through Pathways, you will:
- Practice and improve your communication and leadership skills.
- Give speeches in your club based on assignments in Pathways.
- Challenge yourself to build and refine certain competencies and skills.
- Complete a range of projects that include persuasive speaking, motivating others, creating a podcast and leading a group in a difficult situation.
Develop real-world, transferable skills in many different areas through Pathways—communication, leadership, management, strategic planning, service to others, public speaking and more.
To learn more about Pathways, click here.
Toastmasters and Leadership
Leadership cannot be learned in a day. It takes practice. In Toastmasters, members learn leadership skills by organizing and conducting meetings and by completing projects in the leadership manuals. Projects address skills such as listening, planning, motivation and team building and give members the opportunity to practice them. Just as Toastmasters members learn to speak by speaking, they learn leadership by leading.
How long has Toastmasters been around?
Toastmasters International was founded in 1924 and now has more than 352,000 memberships. Members improve their speaking and leadership skills by attending one of the 16,400 clubs in 141 countries that make up our global network of meeting locations.
Why do people join Toastmasters?
People join Toastmasters in order to:
- Develop the public speaking skills to persuade and convince others
- Learn to put their ideas across clearly and with conviction
- Improve their self-confidence before a group of people
- Learn to think quickly and clearly under pressure
- Learn to listen effectively and critically
- Learn to supportively evaluate someone else’s presentation
- Train to become a good leader
Company Benefits
A company’s success 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 connect and share their ideas with customers, clients and co-workers can determine whether a company grows into an industry leader or joins thousands of other businesses mired in mediocrity. Toastmasters provide the tools that enable employees to become effective presenters and leaders – all at a very low-cost averaging $90 every six months. 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 feedback more objectively
Visit a local Toastmasters Club
Each group has a different personality – you may wish to visit more than one. Use the ‘Find a Club’ tool on the Toastmasters Web site to find meetings near you. Call or e-mail in advance (if possible) to confirm meeting time and location.
Is it expensive?
No. In fact in comparison to various courses, seminars, programs, CD and DVD kits offered through the media, Toastmasters is the least expensive and in our opinion the most effective way to learn public speaking and to develop confidence and self-esteem. There is a joining fee to pay and meal costs at meetings. Otherwise the ongoing membership fee is less than $2 per week, payable either 6 monthly or 12 monthly with a discount.
Who can join Toastmasters?
Anyone aged 18 years or older may join Toastmasters.