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Frequently Asked Questions

Frequently Asked Questions

How do members improve their public speaking skills?

Toastmasters International provides members access to an educational program called Pathways. This program includes a number of different paths that include several detailed projects within specific areas of interest, including but not limited to: Dynamic Leadership, Innovative Planning, Leadership Development, Motivational Strategies, Persuasive Influence, Presentation Mastery, and Engaging Humor. Every chapter meeting is structured to provide support and encouragement to visitors and members as they strive to improve their speaking and leadership abilities.

Click here for more information about getting started with Pathways.

Will I have to speak?

Toastmasters strives to be a positive and supportive environment; we never require visitors to speak unless they are comfortable doing so!

What is the typical progression of involvement with Toastmasters?
[Note: order and steps may vary]

  • Meeting attendance as a visitor
  • Participation in table topics (impromptu 1 minute speeches)
  • Volunteer for a meeting role
  • Become a member of Toastmasters
  • Sign up for meeting roles
  • Give speeches 

What are roles?

To help ensure that each meeting is successful and efficient, members (and sometimes guests) volunteer to fulfill certain roles for the meeting:

  • Toastmaster: the master of ceremonies who leads the meeting
  • Speaker: gives a prepared speech, usually 5 to 7 minutes in length, often with one or more specific objectives
  • Evaluator: provides constructive feedback to the speaker at the conclusion of his or her speech
  • Timer: monitors and records the time elapsed during each speech and table topic response
  • Grammarian: introduces and monitors usage of the “Word of the Day”; listens for both imprecise uses of the English language as well as exceptional turns of phrase
  • Ah-Counter: listens for the use of filler words (ex. “um”) as well as repeated “double clutch” words
  • Table Topics Master: prompts volunteers to speak extemporaneously for 1-2 minutes on a variety of topics he or she selects
  • General Evaluator: provides constructive feedback on the meeting in general

To ensure a prompt start time, members are encouraged to sign up in advance for roles via our web site.

How can I join?

Visitors are always welcome, but — for full access to the Toastmaster educational experience — click here!

I've started giving speeches.  What should I keep track of?

The most important thing is to make sure you have copies of your evaluations.  This is not only a good reference but also a convenient verification that the speech was given.  You may access all of the evaluations you received if the on-line form was used.  For speeches given outside of our meeting, you will need to keep a copy of the evaluation.

How do I access my online evaluations?

Under the gear icon on the main page, select evaluations. There are 4 tabs on the page that comes up. One of them is for evaluations received and another for evaluations given. After selecting the desired evaluation, right click, select print and then save to PDF.

When I give an evaluation where can I find the form?

Find the speaker and click the blue link to the right of the title of the speech.

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