The Power of the 5 to 7 Minute Speech

Each year at Toastmasters many of us take on the challenge of the International Speech Contest. 

It is a very simple routine – develop a catchy 5 to 7 minute speech that will help us move on to the International stage.  Is catchy the right word to describe it?  Probably not.  Most of the speakers that go on to win the title produce a speech that borders on life changing. 

In my 18 years as a Toastmaster I am always, yes always, amazed at how much information, how much attention to detail and how much of a life altering message these speakers can pack into a simple, yet powerful, 5 to 7 minute speech.

A little context here.  Toastmasters currently has over 350,000 members world-wide in over 16,800 clubs in 143 countries.  Every one of these 16,800 clubs can select, through an internal contest, one of their members to go on to represent them at an Area Contest.  At the Area Contest you are typically competing against 4 or 5 other Area Club representatives.  If you win there you go on to compete in the Division Contest.  There you might compete against 4, 5 or more competitors. If you are successful there then it is on to District Contest.  

As of this writing there are 118 Districts in the Toastmasters organization. To come out as the leader in a District means you are one of the top 118 speakers in the Toastmasters world.  

In our District, District 64 located here in Manitoba, NW Ontario and NW Minnesota, you would be ranked as number 1 against a membership of nearly 1,400 other Toastmasters.  Truly quite an accomplishment to even reach the District level.

But back to that International stage.  Each summer Toastmasters International hosts their Annual Convention (similar to an Annual General Meeting) where over a thousand Toastmasters from around the world come to consider Toastmasters’ business.  It is at this particular event that the ultimate International Speech champion will be chosen and crowned as the World Champion of Public Speaking.  The winner in August of 2019 was Aaron Beverly who spoke about his experience attending a wedding in India. 

You will want to view the speech on YouTube.

Now back to my original thought – the power of the 5 to 7 minute speech. 5 to 7 minutes is not a lot of time.  If you listened to Aaron’s 7 minute speech you will notice how much it captivated you, how he was able to draw you in to his story, how he had you laughing at times but in the end how he delivered a very powerful message about the world today and how we need to come together.  All this in a simple 5 to 7 minute speech.  Incredible. 

The International Contest season has started.  Members are already crafting speeches, practising them, and refining them.  Clubs are in the early stages of planning their contest or preparing to select their best, hopeful entrant to that next level at Area.  By the end of April our 6 Divisions, A through F, will have selected the individual to represent them at the District 64 International Speech Contest on May 2nd. 

If you are a Toastmaster member watch for your opportunity to participate, volunteer to help or simply be an audience member.  If you are not a Toastmaster member consider attending one or two of these events.  You will be amazed at how much these dedicated, fun loving and competitive Toastmaster members can pack into a simple, yet powerful, 5 to 7 minute speech.  I like to think of it as the power of the Toastmasters program on display at its’ very best – let the contests begin!


Lloyd Gwilliam, Distinguished Toastmaster (DTM)