If you're at all familiar with the Toastmasters organization, you may think of it simply as a "public speaking" club. It is so much more than that, though. In fact, people visit Toastmasters clubs for a wide variety of different reasons – to overcome shyness, to brush up on presentation skills, to develop leadership skills, or simply to become a better speaker, among a host of other reasons. While my initial reason for visiting a club was fairly unique, the benefits I’ve reaped from the last ten years of membership are not, though I could not have imagined such benefits when I began my journey. Continue reading and you’ll get an idea of what I mean.

Back in June of 1999, I walked into a Chandler restaurant to attend my first Gilbert Toastmasters meeting. Actually, that’s not entirely true. Ten years ago this month, I had my husband drag me to my first Gilbert Toastmasters meeting. As a moderately functioning agoraphobic, being outside of my house meant being way outside of my comfort zone.

While it was my idea to visit a Toastmasters club, I needed my husband to take me. He and our toddler son sat immediately outside the meeting room for that moment when I would have to flee the premises, a moment that never came. I felt so welcomed and was made to feel so comfortable that on that first visit, I filled out the application, submitted my dues check, and didn’t look back.

In this new environment, I found mentors, counselors, confidants, and so much more amongst the club membership. What seemed to be a conspiracy to challenge me to grow was simply a club following the Toastmasters program. While my goal was simply get out of the house once a week, they didn’t allow me to settle for that. They challenged me through helpful evaluations, gentle prompting, and outright nudges.

At one point I was encouraged to attend a Toastmasters conference, an idea that terrified me, but I gave it a try. I have really enjoyed these conferences and have made some great friends there. I had so many opportunities to improve my conversational skills and grow as a communicator, but something else happened at these events – I watched others serve the organization and learned that so many of them started out just as insecure as I was. Yet there they were, speaking to larger groups on the art of leadership and serving as leaders themselves. Before long, I was ready to begin growing as a leader.

Serving as an officer grew my leadership experience beyond telling my toddler “No!” when he attempted to climb up the bookshelf. Through the VP of Public relations position I was able to develop the passion of sharing my story with others. One of the first ways I was able to do that was by taking advantage of the growing medium of the internet. I launched this website, which enabled me to learn the marketable skills of website management. As a direct result, I was hired by a couple of fellow club members to manage the website for their real estate business – a job I still have today. Employment turned into friendship, but the friendships didn’t stop with them. My closest and dearest friends and mentors are all Toastmasters I’ve gotten to know over the last ten plus years, and I wouldn’t have it any other way.

I have taken a little time off to give my son a pair of brothers and to attend a few college classes. But I always returned to my beloved club as soon as I was able – including with baby and bottle in hand. My Toastmasters friends all the while kept nudging me in the direction of personal growth. I didn’t fight it.

The club itself also changed over the past decade. From Chandler we moved to Mesa, back to Chandler, back to Mesa (yes, Gilbert Toastmasters has received the brunt of many jokes), finally settling in its hometown. Twenty-plus members grew into fifty-plus members, and the club is one of the most successful in the state of Arizona. Sadly, I’ve had to say goodbye to fellow members over the years, but others have stayed and those who have left have been replaced by new friends. Each member along the way has contributed to my personal growth.

Over a decade after first walking into a club meeting as a shy agoraphobic, I have been President of my club, an Area Governor (a leader who oversees a group of clubs), I’ve recently facilitated a workshop teaching teenage boys Toastmasters skills, I’ve presented upwards of 40 speeches, and spoken to audiences as large as a few hundred, and I am now taking my next leadership leap as Gila Division Governor with over 30 clubs in my service area. I am happy to label myself as a “recovered” agoraphobic. Today I am confident and capable, all because I walked into a club meeting, met a bunch of friendly people committed to helping me grow, and embraced the Toastmasters program.

My story all started by visiting Toastmasters International’s website. I visited a couple of clubs, and found one that fit my personality - this one. Do the same and you’ll have begun a potentially life-changing journey. What do the next ten years have in store for you? How will your story play out? Take the first step.