At the Fall Toastmasters Leadership Institute (TLI) on Saturday October 26, Joanne McDowall delivered a fabulous presentation on club coaching. “Club Coach – the Agent of Change”. Joanne outlined pretty much everything you need to know about, well, being a club coach. Since I had already committed to writing an article about that topic for the District blog, I decided to embrace the opportunity to share my experience as a club coach so far this year.
A challenge was given to the Division Directors, of which I was one, and that was to find a potential new club for their Divisions.
The process of starting a new club has taught me many things. Ask for help, stay positive. Ask for more help. It’s truly amazing, as many of you know, if you ask for help in anything at Toastmasters, toasties will step up. And that has certainly been the case with my startup journey. Many times I’ve thought about giving up, and each time a member of the district stepped up with generous guidance.
This past Spring, with a fortunate placement at the District 64 International Speech contest, l became eligible as a contestant for the Region 4 quarterfinals. The new rules for 2019 required District winners to be judged via a video selection, and only one of Region 4’s nine Districts’ representatives would move on to the semifinals of the Toastmasters’ International World Championship of Public Speaking, held in Denver.
When you hear the word virtual, what do you think? In this era of virtual reality games and experiences, the word virtual has taken on a slightly different meaning. Instead of almost real, it can mean almost like being there in person.
My real life experience with the Virtual Toastmasters club (virtualtm.toastmastersclubs.org) has opened windows to new experiences. Unlike a virtual reality game though, sometimes members really are in the same room. Others attend through video conferencing.
Bob ‘Idea Man’ Hooey, DTM, AS, PRA
It started with a question from our Toastmasters CEO Dan Rex, “Bob, have you ever considered becoming a Region Advisor?” My response, “No, what is it?”
So began my research into a role that would stretch me by allowing me to work with some of the most amazing leaders across Region 4 including District 64. I checked into it and the primary role of the Region Advisor is to train, coach, and nudge. “I could do that!”, I thought. The process started with a long detailed self-assessment and application followed by several interviews by TI staff and past Region Advisors before a phone call from incoming President, Lark Doley. The board had just voted to confirm her appointment of me as your 2018-2019 Region 4 Advisor.