President's Tip of the Week

Why YOU Should Participate in Toastmasters Speech Contests
(7/23/08)

Each of us came to Toastmasters for a different reason. Some of us come to improve our self-confidence. Others come to develop leadership skills. Most people join to polish their public speaking skills. One thing I can say with confidence about every Toastmaster is that they want to improve something - that's why they joined! I'm assuming that will be true of you, so let me share with you a secret from David Brooks, 1990 World Champion of Public Speaking. He says, "Speech contests are your fastest route to your greatest improvement."

Andrew Dlugan shared how he felt about winning Toastmaster speech contests by saying, "The accolades are very nice, but they are fleeting in nature. On the other hand, the breadth and depth of lessons learned during these speech contests are long-lasting."

Andrew shares a number of the lessons he's learned from participating in contests at his web site (click here). I'm going to share with you the one that struck me when I read his article. "You can always improve. Work on your strengths as well as your weaknesses. Hard work and persistence pays off."

It's the first four words that got to me. "You can always improve." I thought about the message that Dee Dees shared with us at the 30th anniversary banquet. It could be summed up in those 4 words, which is why Dee is still a Toastmaster and competes in our contests after 28 years.

I challenge you to sign up for one of the contests that the club is offering on August 28th. Any member can participate (with the exception of district officers, Tamra and myself).

The Humorous Speech contest requires a 5-7 minute speech. You can use it for manual credit, so this is a great way to get an extra speaking opportunity towards your award. The winner of this contest will advance to the area contest in September or early October.

The Table Topic contest will be just like regular table topics - a 1 to 2:30 minute speech. Everyone will be asked the same question, so it will be a very interesting contest to attend. Bring some friends! This is a club-only contest, so it's just for fun and bragging rights.

Contact Emi to sign up. And remember, "You can always improve."