Angela Sheehan is a long-term member of Speakeasy Toastmasters who has served the club in a range of roles including that of President.
I expected suits.
I expected suits, I expected a room full of suits, maybe lots of business types and I wasn’t too sure about this Toastmasters business anyway. It might be awfully serious. I might not like it. Maybe no-one would talk to me. I had arrived on my own and was new to Mallow - I probably wouldn’t know anyone. I needn’t have worried. I met farmers, lots of farmers and teachers, nurses, engineers, students, landscape gardeners and the list goes on…from all walks of life, all ages and all very friendly and very welcoming. That was more than 12 years ago and I’m still a member of Toastmasters and I’m really glad that I went along to that first meeting. It wasn’t what I expected. It was much, much more.
I expected serious speeches and ‘cerebral’ topics – and while some speeches are serious many are amusing, light-heated, informative and always very varied. The speeches are never boring and all original with much research or life learning included. This means that you leave a Toastmasters meeting on a Thursday night, possibly still giggling at a funny episode you heard about or certainly having learned something new and it’s quite likely you will have been provoked into thinking more deeply about some very varied issue.You would be surprised what you would hear at a Toastmasters meeting.
I really didn’t expect to learn so much and laugh so much.
I never anticipated tapping into my creative side. But of course! You write your speeches yourself. I certainly enjoyed that. Included in the nearly 40 speeches I’ve given over 12 years have been serious speeches, informative speeches, entertaining speeches (well I thought they were). They are not taken out of the air and decided by whim. Typically the nature of the speech will depend on the type of manual you are currently working on e.g. at the moment I’m working through the ‘Special Occasion Speeches’ manual and my next speech will be in praise of someone I know or someone famous. I have also given speeches from a range of other manuals including ‘The Entertaining Speaker’, ‘Storytelling’, ‘Speaking to inform’ and ‘Specialty Speeches’. I might try ‘Persuasive Speaking’ next.
Each speech has been ‘evaluated’, which means that someone from the club offered some very constructive feedback and suggestions for improvement. This leads to continuous improvement. And the role of evaluator allows members to develop their ability to listen, analysand and critique in a very positive way.
I didn’t expect to enhance my CV and include Toastmasters experiences in a successful job interview. But that did happen. I was able to include the years of experience in PR, marketing, event management, and advertising which I gained through numerous roles in the club. Getting involved with the club committee and taking on all types of roles over the years, including President, resulted in opportunities to gain experiences in many areas of personal development.
Someone once said that Toastmasters is one of the best kept secrets around. They were right. There’s a wealth of knowledge and experience to be gained, at very low cost. What more can I say.
You get much more than you would expect from Toastmasters.
Speakeasy Toastmasters meets every 2nd Thursday in the Hi-B. next meeting at 8pm Hibernian Mallow, Thursday 7th Feb. Non members are most welcome and are never asked to speak. Contact Jerry 0863752895,or Noel 0872427485.
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