Over the past six years, I’ve been invited to be a guest speaker at our local Toastmasters. Each time, I observed the other speakers hone their skills. I felt at home and enjoyed participating.  

Last year, I decided to join Toastmaster and get involved.  As a result, I became the Vice President of Education. I was drawn to Toastmaster because of my love for learning. I felt like I belonged in the group that shares the same passion for personal development.

Why do I like Toastmasters?  I like Toastmasters because it gives people who want to improve their ability to communicate a safe place to hone their skills.  It is a judgment-free zone, where everyone aims to help you improve by providing you with constructive feedback.  While working on your ability to communicate, you have a support group that offers you honest feedback. The forum also allows you to develop your skills to do an impromptu presentation with what we called table topics.  Table topics are two-minute speeches based on a quote provided by the Table Topic Master. Besides, Toastmasters has a program called pathways that has 10 paths you can choose from to enable you to develop your communication, strategic management, conflict management, or leadership skills. It is the most comprehensive program that is consists of five levels with numerous exercises that enable you to work on your ability to research and present your materials.

Like anything in life, you get what you put in.  The more you spend in developing your ability to present, the more your confidence and your presentation skills will improve. I suggest you find a local Toastmasters and be a part of it. Remember that your ability to communicate is your key to your success.