Join us on Oct 27 through Oct 28th for the last Fall Conference EVER!
Register Today
- Two District Championships – Evaluation and Humorous Speech Contests
- Three delicious meals
- 15+ amazing speakers
Help us make this one to remember!
#toastmasters
Slack Community – a New Way to Connect with Toastmasters from Across the World
If you’re in the market for a new way to engage with your club, your District, or Toastmasters from across the globe – sign-up to join the Toastmasters Slack Community today and connect with Toastmasters like never before.
What is Slack?
Slack is a messaging platform built for teams to discuss activities, collaborate on projects, and stay connected from anywhere in the world. Discussions are organized into #channels that you can search.
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9RJZMSsH7-g?rel=0&w=560&h=315]
Who is this Community for?
If you’re looking for a place to…
- ask quick questions from a broad audience…
- share a cool story…
- Learn about new ways to communicate and collaborate with your club…
- Try something different.
As long as you’re a current Toastmaster, you are welcome to join!
What is the Slack Community for?
The objective is to create a network of Toastmasters who enjoy open discussion and sharing their knowledge and experience. Stop by to discuss the ongoing challenges and successes of your club, learn new tricks and share your own favorite resources.
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x6sSa5NpqUI?rel=0&w=560&h=315]
Additionally, this community is a support group for those interested in adopting Slack (or any other SAAS such as Free2Host, WordPress for Toastmasters) to modernize their club operations. Get support- give support.
If you’re looking for something in between social media and email, please sign-up today!
Rap It Up! We’re All About The Growth!
If you were at the District meeting on Saturday, October 3, you were witness to my first rap performance. I explored my potential as a rapper. Drake and K-os don’t have anything to worry about.
If you want to try your hand at motivating your fellow members to get out there and find new members (or you just want a taste of the fun), here are the words to my Club Growth rap. It’s a parody of Meghan Trainor’s song, All About That Bass. Before you try to perform it, I suggest you listen and sing along – lots!
Chorus:
We’re all about that growth, ‘bout that growth, no shrinking!
We’re all about that growth, ‘bout that growth, no shrinking!
We’re all about that growth, ‘bout that growth, no shrinking!
We’re all about that growth, ‘bout that growth!
Yeah its pretty clear; you can’t run with too few
Let’s find new members, members like we’re supposed to do
We’ve got those great skills that employers embrace
All the right clubs in all the right places
If leadership skills are your end and all
We know our Toastmasters is the right call
If you’ve been searching, searching, just look us up!
And we’ll work on speaking skills from the bottom to the top
Yeah, a member she told me, don’t worry about our size!
When it comes to Toastmasters, that message is nothing but lies!
You know, Charter strength (20) or increase your members by five
For it’s not enough to keep a club barely alive.
Chorus: say it with me!
If you are a true sucker for punishment, there’s a little more but I spared our District leaders at the meeting.
I hope to see you all next time, November 21 at the semi-annual meeting. A better reason to come is to find out what’s happening, how you can benefit and best of all, to hear Mike Storkey, TI’s President Elect deliver a keynote (free for all members of District 64).
Remember: growth is good.
Put your goal to work for you
Originally published March 17, 2015 in the Winnipeg Free Press
We often think of a goal as a grand, complex event or accomplishment and too often we fail to achieve the goal because it is too grand or complex!
According to the “Goal Setting and Planning” module of Toastmasters “The Leadership
Excellence Series®”, goals need only be statements of results you hope to achieve.
Goals should be S.M.A.R.T.
S – Specific. Identify what is to happen.
M – Measurable. Easily observe progress toward the goal.
A – Action-oriented. Begins with the word “to”, followed by a verb.
R – Realistic. It is challenging, yet practical and achievable.
T – Time-bounded. Contains a time-table for achievements.
An easy way to implement your goal is to involve team members in setting the goal, write the goal down, consider what must be done to achieve the goal including what obstacles might be encountered, and regularly review your team’s progress toward the goal. Take
action to help the team if necessary, if not, be sure to praise their success.
These actions will enable your team to exercise creative ability, apply problem-solving
skills and increase commitment to achieve the established goals.
At the beginning of this Toastmasters year (July 1, 2014), we challenged our members to
set goals to achieve their individual and club success for the coming year. With only 4 ½
months to go to our year end, we are inviting our members to review their original goals
and ensure they are still valid and in reach.
This is a sample of the process we share in our Toastmasters meetings with the benefit of
training and informational material from Toastmasters International.
Visit a club today and share in our Open House month and visit our District Meeting and
Showcase on March 21st starting at 9:00 am at the Holiday Inn Airport West in Winnipeg.
There are Toastmasters meetings every day of the week (day and evening) in Manitoba and North-West Ontario that would welcome you. Go to www.toastmasters.org/findaclub or call 204-338-7401 to find out more. No experience necessary.
90th Anniversary Open House Month
Originally published October 7, 2014 in the Winnipeg Free Press
Have you ever wanted to sit in on a Toastmaster meeting to see how such a positive experience could take place in one meeting? Now’s your chance! In celebration of Toastmasters International 90th Anniversary, we are designating the month of October as Open House month. Join us in Manitoba and NW Ontario to hear special speakers, experience impromptu speaking and have tons of fun.
You may be wondering why we are so excited about a 90-year-old organization. Here’s why! Toastmasters International, the global organization devoted to communication and leadership skills development, announced record growth over the past year, with a 7.3 percent increase in membership, a 17.2 percent increase in new clubs and a presence in
126 countries. The results mark 21 consecutive years of growth. That relates to 313,000 members worldwide and more than 1500 members in our area. There are not many volunteer organizations that can show such consistent growth.
“We have a number of initiatives underway, including expanding our presence in corporations and modernizing our education program, that will continue to make us relevant to a new generation of professionals,” says Toastmasters Chief Executive Officer Daniel Rex. “These initiatives are supported by the efforts of leaders all over the world who volunteer their time and expertise.”
As District 64 Governor for 2014-2015 I have seen people join Toastmasters with varying skills. From a young woman who couldn’t say her name without crying, to professional speakers who joined to benefit from the feedback we provide at every meeting, and everyone in-between. All can benefit from this self-directed program, supported by members and given encouragement along the way. To hear more comments about Toastmasters, please go to http://youtu.be/WxAV39ySH2A
There are Toastmasters meetings every day of the week (day and evening) in Manitoba and North-West Ontario that would welcome you. Go to www.toastmasters.org/findaclub or call 204-338-7401 to find out more. No experience necessary.
Dorian Guerard, DTM
DISTRICT 64 GOVERNOR
www.toastmasters.org
Ph. 204-338-7401
facebook.com/toastmastersmb
@D64TM