Updates & Posts

We will be adding more articles to this page. To start: here are articles on speaking and articles giving personal views on the on the power of Toastmasters and an exciting joint meeting between London and Namibia.

Imagine this

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A keen individual, let’s call her Carmen, has heard about Toastmasters from a friend and tries to contact her local club via the internet. A few days go by and she hasn’t heard back, so she then picks up the phone to call. Because Carmen is super keen, she manages to get through to a previous committee member who gives her the information required for your next club meeting.

David, on the other hand, has worked up the courage to explore Toastmasters, after hearing about it from his elder brother for years. He hears nothing back and does not pursue things further. Does any of this sound familiar? Every year, between May to July, we go through a leadership transition period in our club’s and Districts. Sometimes it takes a while to for handovers to complete. Toastmasters International remains one of the primary search tools for people looking for their local club. Are the contact details in club central current? How long does it take for your club to respond to an enquiry?

Over the last few months, we’ve all experienced a new member experience to anything ever before. With most of our clubs adopting virtual meetings, our ‘network break’ may not feel the same. In some cases, it’s been a lifeline for long-standing members to get involved as it may be easier for them to dial in and not have to worry about childcare or a commute. Some may wish to stay connected to the club but opt for shorter meetings due to the other screen time they have.

As you plan as far as you can for your club’s success this year, I’d invite you to engage all your members in feedback. This could be by running a survey or facilitating one meeting just to ‘Moments of Truth’ – a way where all members can get involved in quite literally doing an MOT of the club.

Finally, we have a number of clubs in our midst this year that could genuinely do with some additional support. To that end, I have appointed a Club Retention Committee charged with finding and matching appropriate ‘Club Coaches’ to such clubs. Could this be you? More information can be found here: You are invited to get in touch to support the members of these clubs get back on track

I wish you a fantastic start to the 2020-2021 Toastmasters year and every success with your personal educational goals this term.

High Impact Online

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How to look and sound professional in an online world

Online communication is now a way of life, even when we return to what was considered “normal”. The world has changed and there will be some sharp changes in the workplace. Every interaction is a moment of truth, and leaves an impression, whether in person or on-line.

This webinar will be focusing on looking professional on camera and communicating with impact and authority, so that your first, second and last impressions is a positive experience.

We will look at three essential elements of online communication to develop an online presence to maximise the impact:

Being professional and developing an impactful online presence will help you stand out positively, increase visibility and demonstrate professionalism to your manager, your customers and your peers

It could be the difference between:

  • Winning or losing business
  • Being promoted or being passed over
  • Keeping a job or being made redundant

There are two scheduled dates to choose from

Friday 19th June at 8 pm – Register now

Sunday 21st June at 6 pm – Register now

Ending an extraordinary year

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Time flies and it’s hard to believe that we’re already in the middle of June with the end of the 2019-20 Toastmasters year just a fortnight away. The least I can say is that this year was a very interesting year for the District and a very successful one on so many levels.

You still have time

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As we head towards the end of the Toastmasters year, we have one key message for our clubs. You still have time to bring your clubs back to a strong membership position.

We are currently in the middle of a membership drive called Beat The Clock for clubs to increase your membership by 5 and we are encouraging everybody to engage with these efforts. The mantra 30 is the new 20, still stands.

Ensuring your club hits the 20 member mark, will enable some clubs to achieve DCP level. For members requiring the opportunity to complete educational awards, there’s still time to organise mega meetings and events to assist them to achieve their educational goals. Plus, this provides you with an opportunity to invite non-renewed members and guests to attend.

Here’s how you can help.

1. Members and renewals – during March and April, some of our members did not renew, but are now starting to come back. If you have members that decided not to renew earlier, now is the time to contact them to invite them to renew.

2. Increase your membership – clubs can host their own Open House Meetings to invite guests and non-renewed members too. To support this, there’s £100 available from the District for marketing the event, e.g. Facebook ads, Meet Up registration etc.. Keep the receipts to claim the expenses back. To benefit in this Toastmasters year, the event must take place between now and the 30 June 2020.

3. Club Finances – review the club’s budget for the year ahead. The slower than usual renewal payments have affected some clubs more than others. When we come out of the lockdown, clubs may struggle to hire the same venues, for a variety of reasons. An option is to switch to annual renewals from September (rather than 6 monthly) as this will greatly assist with budgeting. Discuss with your members now as this change impacts them.

We acknowledge that these have been challenging times over the last couple of months. Throughout this time, for members facing uncertainly, their Toastmaster meetings have been a constant. Many clubs have stood up to support their members. We are not alone. It is particularly heartening to look at the clubs in Italy, with the testing situation there, to witness their members continuing to be actively engaged, providing invaluable support for each other and in turn, have helped their clubs to grow. The measure of this success, clubs achieving distinguished and having a strong membership-based. We can learn from this if you have established and experienced members that haven’t yet renewed, it is time to bring them back into the fold. As well as welcoming guests to join meetings and continuing to attract new members. Ensuring new members are registered with Toastmasters International by the end of June.

Some clubs are excelling, they have increased their member base. If that is your club, are you sharing your good practices with other clubs? Can you help a neighbouring club that is struggling? We have pre-charter clubs that are close to chartering and looking for support, can you get involved? This is your opportunity to support all clubs to bring them back to a strong membership position. While we are at it, let’s Beat The Clock!

It has been an absolute delight and pleasure to serve as your Club Growth Director this year. I look forward to continuing to serve you, next year as, your Program Quality Director.

Helena Boden-Brewer, DTM

It’s a great time to finalise

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Dear members,

In just two weeks, the Toastmasters year will be over; now is a great time to finalise and deliver that last speech to get this elusive educational award or get that coveted Triple Crown (3+ educational award in a year).

Reach out to your VP Education to confirm all your awards have been registered on Club Central this side of the Toastmasters year.

Did you know that at the time of writing this note, 149 of you have already achieved a Triple Crown? Join this exclusive group and receive a pin recognising this achievement.

Despite the last 3 months of challenges, opportunities and new practices, we have over 100 Clubs that have already achieved the Distinguished status, with over 20 Clubs on track to become Distinguished simply by renewing 1/2 members, or register 1 Educational Award!

Together we have managed to keep meeting, deliver speeches and closeout on projects, you have made a significant impact on your personal growth but also that of fellow members.

Over the coming weeks, I will be attending both my Club meetings and help celebrate the achievements of our members on their anniversaries. I encourage you all to look at ways to recognise the achievements of the year, a special meeting, an award ceremony or simply an extended recognition segment at the next Club meeting.

Let’s keep focus on achieving and recognising our achievements!

Looking forward to hearing your success stories!

Arnaud