FAQs

Toastmasters is an international, non-profit organization that offers a proven-and enjoyable way to learn and develop communication, speaking, and leadership skills. We have over 250,000 members in more than 12,500 clubs in 106 countries worldwide. Over 2,000 of those members participate in 106 clubs located across Central and Western New York State. Toastmasters offers a proven and enjoyable way to practice and hone communication and leadership skills

Here’s how it works: Think of a Toastmasters meeting as a learn-by-doing workshop in which participants hone their speaking and leadership skills in a friendly atmosphere in a peer-group setting. A typical club has between 20 and 40 members who meet bi-weekly. Bi-weekly meetings normally last between one and two hours in total. Toastmasters has developed a structured learning curriculum for both speaking and leadership skill development.

Members develop their speaking skills initially by working in the Competent Communicator manual, a series of ten self-paced speaking projects designed to instill a basic foundation of public speaking. Participants learn skills related to use of humor, gestures, eye contact, speech organization, and overall delivery. When finished with this manual. Members can choose from 15 advanced manuals to learn skills related to specific, individual interests. Members also receive a Competent Leadership manual which focuses on self-paced leadership skill development.

Our club meetings, and all Toastmaster meetings, are intended to be a mutually supportive environment for people to develop their speaking, personal and leadership skills. You will see people try their skills in a safe environment where they can get feedback and support. A typical club has between 20 and 40 members who meet bi-weekly. Bi-weekly meetings normally last between one and two hours in total. There are two types of Toastmasters clubs: Open or “community clubs” and closed or “corporate clubs”. Open clubs are generally open to all, whereas corporate clubs are closed clubs sponsored usually by an employer.

It depends on the type of club. Usually, corporate clubs meet weekly for an hour (many meeting over the lunch hour, or immediately before or after work hours) Meetings of open or community clubs vary. Most hold meetings every other week or twice per month. A typical club has between 20 and 40 members who meet bi-weekly. Bi-weekly meetings normally last between one and two hours in total.

In general, we have 20 or more attendees at any given meeting. Membership is very diverse. Everyone has one thing in common, a sincere interest in improving their speaking skills whether in a one-on-one setting or in front of groups. Our professional members come from all types of industries; they are consultants, engineers, IT gurus, sales people, business owners, entrepreneurs, telecom experts, motivational speakers, marketing professionals, just to name a few. Members speaking skills range from those just learning to explore their communication skills to more experienced speakers. This diversity is what makes the club exciting and a great learning opportunity and resource.

Keep in mind there is no typical meeting. There is a standard agenda for each meeting. Each meeting is somewhat unique because every meeting has different participants and different speakers. There are many more roles for members to participate in at a meeting beyond just a speaking role, including a the Toastmaster for the meeting, a grammarian, Time keeper, speech evaluators, table topics manager, and word watcher. Toastmasters is a “learn by doing”, and the meeting roles are the mechanisms for this learning. It is recommended that a guest attend a meeting to experience how all these roles come together to make a great meeting and learning experience for all members!

Toastmasters is a very low-cost skills development program compared to other comparable alternative learning courses. Dues are $27 for each six-month period. The normal Toastmasters year consists of two-six month periods (April to September, and October through March) but individuals can join at any time. In addition to Toastmaster dues, there are normally monthly club dues which vary (Average of $1.50-$2.00 per month). Corporate club dues vary as well. Many may be subsidized or paid in full by the employer.

The initial cost of workbooks for new members is $20 and is payable when the individual joins a club. Additional workbooks are available for additional costs; however, some training materials are complimentary and are provided by Toastmasters International for no additional cost.

Dress code is established by each club. The normal dress code is the dress code of your employer if you are a member of a corporate club. Most community clubs require business attire where gentlemen are expected to wear a jacket and tie; women are expected to wear equivalent professional attire. Toastmasters prides itself in creating a professional environment which mirrors many work environments. The dress code is one way we create this environment.

There are 4 basic sections to meetings and an agenda is provided at every meeting.

1. Impromptu Speaking:

The table topics segment allows members to learn and experience impromptu speaking (thinking on your feet). Members are called on to stand up and talk “off the cuff” on a specific topic or scenario for 2 minutes or less.

2. Prepared Speeches:

There are prepared speeches which follow specific manuals provided from Toastmasters International. Every member receives a manual from Toastmasters International and speeches follow the specific objective of helping a member develop speaking skills through a sequential progression.

3. Evaluations:

The evaluation portion of a Toastmaster meeting is an essential part of the learning process. Each speaker is assigned an evaluator who provides written feedback to the speaker. The Evaluator also provides a 2 minute verbal evaluation of the speaker. The evaluation provides feedback on what a speaker does well and suggestions for areas of improvement. Normally, evaluators are experienced speakers that have given a minimum number of speeches.

4. A business session:

Meetings may also include a short club business meeting that covers the administrative aspects of running the club. This segment provides updates, announces special activities and includes club officer reports.

The most important thing required of you as a member is to make an effort to make it to meetings. Many of our members either never miss a meeting or miss meetings infrequently. Of course everyone runs into personal or professional conflicts from time-to-time.

The easy answer is “as often as you would like”. Some members like to speak frequently and might present a speech every month; others might only present a speech every 2 to 4 months. The Vice President of Education of each club works with each member to determine how often a member wishes to speak. Also, members take on various roles during a meeting that require them to speak during the meetings.

A new member may select a mentor, a seasoned Toastmaster, to help them prepare for their speeches and learn about meeting roles and responsibilities. Members may also be assigned a “coach” to help them in a variety of situations to get up-to-speed with speaking, leadership, and member activities. Toastmasters also provides many online resources to help the member learning process.

Members will tell you they enjoy a higher level of confidence when speaking, whether it is in a one-on-one setting or in a group setting. Members join to improve their communication, speaking, and presentation skills, as well as leadership abilities which can build self-confidence and promote job advancement. Members also enjoy the social benefits of their clubs and making new friends and developing new business and professionally relationships.