Toastmasters - check!

Hi everyone!

Today I'm going to tell you all about my latest item in my To do list that has just been crossed out.

I have this very good friend back in Portugal who, for years have been talking about the Toastmasters and inviting me to go along. I have always said I would go but somehow never went.

Then I came to live in London and again she told me that there were loads of Toastmasters clubs here. Again, I promised I would go and even searched for some locations and chose the one I wanted to try first. But again, Life happened or just was not the right time, and then after 4 more years, I did go last Monday.

And what made me change my mind? Well, I realised I needed something to help me grow professionally and that seems to be a first step. 

And what is this Toastmasters that I have been bragging about?

Well, the Toastmasters is like a school or an ongoing course, I would say. Its main purpose is to help you develop your public speaking during the sessions and these are quite different from what you would expect or at least from what I was expecting.

First, I went by myself, without knowing anyone and not quite sure how it would work, but in my mind I would just be at the back observing how it is. Nothing could have been more different.

As soon as I got there, this very smiley guy came to me asking my name and explaining very briefly how it was going to be and if I wanted to participate - which I politely declined - and then he told me to sit anywhere but, while talking, he was pushing me to the front.

After a few minutes another guy sits next to me and introduces himself and we chatted for a bit - it didn't felt that scary at that point.

Don't worry, I am not going to describe the full session as I don't want to make you feel bored, will just give you a brief idea of what went on.

So, to start, almost everyone has a role and, from what I understood, some roles change before every session. You have the Timekeeper, the Grammarian, the President, the evaluators of the speakers, the evaluators of the evaluators, the speakers, the responsible for the Table topic and the Madame/ Mister Toastmasters.

The speakers are evaluted according to how they have delivered their speach, including behaviour, movements, words, time, grammar and the use or not of the word of the session. There is a different new word in every session that is not used on a daily basis and you get points if you use it.

I went to the one in Grosvenor Square and will go again for sure. If you want to know more about it go to the Toastmasters website.

Thank you for keeping reading my words and thoughts, it has been amazing seeing the visits growing everyday.

Goodnight!