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Visitors are always welcome!
The Bob Leiman Toastmasters Club – - one of the oldest in Fort Wayne – - meets the SECOND and FOURTH Mondays of the Month in Fort Wayne, Indiana at the Northcrest Pizza Hut. Social Hour is 5:45 pm and the business meeting starts at 6:30 pm. We are typically finished at 8:00 pm.What is a meeting like? We start with taking care of business such as reviewing the minutes from the previous meeting, the treasurer’s report, old business, new business, and officer reports. Then we move onto the meat and potatoes!
The Bob Leiman Club typically has three Speakers during a meeting. Speeches usually are from five to seven minutes. We also have a wonderful session called table topics! Table topics help all of us become better at impromptu speaking.
Ever wonder what REALLY goes on a Toastmasters meeting? The following is a list of some of the roles performed at a typical Bob Leiman meeting.
The Bob Leiman Toastmasters Club – - one of the oldest in Fort Wayne – - meets the SECOND and FOURTH Mondays of the Month in Fort Wayne, Indiana at the Northcrest Pizza Hut. Social Hour is 5:45 pm and the business meeting starts at 6:30 pm. We are typically finished at 8:00 pm. |
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SPEAKER
A major portion of each meeting is centered around me….the speaker. I am the reason that many of us join Toastmasters in the first place….to achieve excellence in the realm of communication, and to reduce our fear of public presentation.
However, serving as a speaker is also an excellent opportunity to practice leadership skills. Planning, preparation, organization, and time management are essential to success as a speaker. I use all of these skills as I select a speech topic, do the research and organize the presentation so I can make my point within the allotted time. The structured projects within each manual make progress a certainty and before I know it, the butterflies in my stomach are flying in formation and my self-confidence and personal growth are soaring to new heights! |
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EVALUATOR
I, too, am a critical component of the Toastmasters’ program success. Evaluation is what makes each of us become better communicators and leaders. During the course of a meeting, I may be asked or assigned to be a speech evaluator, topic evaluator, or general evaluator. Not only do I enhance my own communication skills by having to present my observations to the group, my evaluation is an opportunity to practice such leadership skills as listening, critical thinking, feedback, and motivation. When evaluating a portion of the Toastmaster meeting, my purpose is to help the members become less self-conscious and better speakers, while at the same time enhancing my skills of critiquing with finesse. |
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TIMER
I am the keeper of that which we cherish the most…..time. As a communicator and leader, one of the lessons that must be learned is that of expressing a thought within a specified period of time. I am the member responsible for keeping track of time. Each segment of the meeting is timed. I explain my duties and report to the club clearly and precisely. It is an excellent opportunity to practice giving instructions and time management….something we do every day. |
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TABLE TOPIC MASTER
The Toastmasters program has a tradition – every member speaks at every meeting. I manage the portion of the meeting that ensures this tradition. The purpose of my activity is to have members “think on their feet” and speak for a minute or so. I prepare questions and deliver them in a fashion so that our members have the opportunity to streamline their impromptu speaking skills.
Each speaker may be given an individual subject or a choice of subjects may be presented from which the members can draw at random. Performing this responsibility provides good practice in such leadership skills as planning, preparation, organization, time management, and facilitation. Of course, I have the most desirable position of all….since delivering the questions is certainly less terrifying than having to blindly answer one. |
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TOASTMASTER
I am the great and powerful Oz!!!!
Okay, so maybe not….but I am responsible to coordinate and conduct the entire meeting and act as a genial host, including introducing participants. I set the tone for the entire meeting. For obvious reasons, this task is not usually assigned to a member until he or she is quite familiar with the club and its procedures. My duties include introducing the program participants in a way that excites the audience and motivates them to listen. I create an atmosphere of interest, expectation, and receptivity.
Serving in my role is an excellent way to practice planning, preparation, and organization skills, time management, facilitation, motivation, and team-building skills as I strive to make the meeting one of the club’s best. |
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GRAMMARIANI am the expander of the communication universe opening endless possibilities into the world of more eloquent and appropriate usage of the English language. My duties are truly an exercise in expanding my listening skills as well as my evaluation skills….not to mention my communication skills as I present my report to the group. I have several responsibilities during the course of a meeting: to introduce new words to members, to comment on the use of English during the course of the meeting, and to provide examples of good grammar and word usage. |
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AH-COUNTERI hold the premier position! As we all come to the meeting to better our communication and leadership skills, it is of utmost importance that we remove those items that are considered “barriers” or “crutches”. Words that we typically list in these categories are “um”, “ah”, “er”, “but”, “so”, “well”, and “you know”. To those of us in Toastmasters those are known as “pause fillers” and need to be eradicated as quickly as possible. Practicing my listening, evaluation, and communication skills, my area of expertise allows new members to see immediate improvement as they become aware of these barriers to communication and feel a sense of pride as each week their use diminishes to non-existence.
Come visit and see how we can help you to build confidence in YOUR presentations!
A special thanks to good friend Julianne Hyde DTM for providing the use of her wonderful descriptions!
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Bob Leiman Toastmasters