Excellence in Education and Training

The start of the Toastmasters year provided the perfect opportunity to deliver online training for the new District Leaders. Over the course of a full day and follow up Division Director and Area Directors sessions, I can report 100% of our District Leaders have been trained, which is fantastic.

The support provided has allowed our Divisions and Areas to deliver the club officer training. With the online environment, the Divisions pooled resources to offer training. During the month of July, Toastmasters Leadership Institutes and Club Officer Training have been conducted. With over 725 officers trained so far, what a great start. There is still time for training during August, and targeted training session will become available. There are already plenty of clubs that have had their seven club officers trained and a set of club officer pins will be coming your way.

Program Quality Team 2020/21

The District Webinar series will commence on 2 August. Leading on this is Program Quality Webinar Manager, Andy Hessey, DTM. There are up and coming webinars providing personal development, alongside Toastmasters learning and a key session on running contests. Keep an eye on the District 91 website for details, and on our social media channels.

This year we are re-booting the Trainers Bureau, under the leadership of Trainers Bureau Manager, Sam Warner, DTM. There will be an update page on the District 91 website, providing details of trainers that clubs can request come and deliver training on Toastmasters areas, such as evaluations and table topics, sitting alongside the skills of mentoring and club development.

The Conference Review Committee Chair, Liz Hobbs, DTM, is undertaking a review of conferences for District 91. This is a unique opportunity, factoring in the lessons learnt from switching from an in-person to an online conference which occurred in 2020. It allows for the supportive tools to be put in place and to build on the last six years’ worth of knowledge and experience. 2021 is due to be held in London, more to follow on the bidding process for those wanting to run this conference.

Pathways

Club officers have been busy writing the success plan for 2020/21. The Distinguished Club Program has changed to reflect the education program is Pathways all the way. As members, take the time to check your educational goals for the year ahead, are you aiming to complete your first Path? Consider the steps along the way and how members of your club can assist you in achieving your goal. For those new to the Base Camp Manager role, there will be webinars scheduled for you too.

With international travel paused for many of us, travel the global virtually. Visit online clubs and expand your Toastmasters experience, from Auckland to Karachi, Cape Town to Barcelona, Helsinki to Cardiff, Dublin to Calgary. Happy travels.

Helena Boden-Brewer

Program Quality Director

Welcome 2020-2021

Thank you for the trust you placed in me in May. I joined the organisation in 2013 out of sheer puzzlement hearing a group meeting in my workplace that kept clapping and cheering at lunchtime. It intrigued me!

I will also remember Linda, the first person that talked to me about Toastmasters and how it could benefit me as an individual and the organisation at large.

What I did not know then were the tremendous opportunities Toastmasters brings to its members:

  • Practice Public Speaking
  • Develop and Practice Leadership Skills
  • Gain confidence in any situation
  • Master the elevator speech
  • And the list goes on …

In my 7+ years as a member, I discovered or perhaps re-discovered, the power of conversation, the power of words and the power of human interaction. Whether a member, Club Leader or District Officer, we are all volunteers, spending our precious time improving our own skills but also supporting others in doing the same.

Cherish the feedback, praise and celebration you receive at Club meetings.

We have a tremendous District, with deep skills in pretty much any domain that I can think of, this makes us successful, this makes us who we are, tackling challenges one after the other.

This year marks the beginning of Pathways becoming our only and future-looking education programme, allowing our members to develop more skills than ever before. Choose a path and progress to the next level, you will be transformed!

As you prepare for your next meeting, ask yourself … how can I bring this unique experience to others? Will this meeting be the best it can be?

Ask colleagues, friends and acquaintances to attend your next meeting, I am sure they will gain a unique perspective and perhaps even think about joining your Club! Now is the time to reach out and share our experience.

I look forward to seeing you at the meeting, and always remember:

“We learn best in moments of enjoyment”
Ralph C. Smedley

High Impact Online

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

You still have time

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

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