It is performance review time. I look over the written evaluation my supervisor has given me. Of course my eyes go directly to the area that is not marked "exceeds expectations": oral presentations. My supervisor tells me that I know what I'm talking about and can be very articulate, but I just appear to lack confidence when speaking to a group. Confidence. How do I gain confidence? I know he's right. In fact, sometimes I'm terrified! How do I gain confidence? While this is only one part of my job - and I do the rest very well - I know this is holding me back. The way we communicate in staff meetings, community meetings, and briefings (not to mention job interviews) has a great impact on our effectiveness in our work and in future opportunities.

It took a while, but finally I went to a Toastmasters meeting. I convinced a co-worker to go with me and visited three different clubs. I joined the one that felt right for me. That was almost two years ago. It worked! It is a rare occasion that I feel any fear at all when speaking to a group. In the past year, I have taken on leadership roles in my work, lobbied in Olympia, done briefings in the Mayor's Office and City Council with confidence. I even participated in a radio call-in show!

I accomplished my first goal: To build confidence in both impromptu speaking and prepared speeches and presentations. Now I'm working on becoming a more powerful and entertaining speaker by using better eye contact and learning to tell stories effectively. I expect to stay with Toastmasters a long time. It's a great way to gain skills fast, and it's fun!

Mary Shaw
Sr. Grants and Contracts Specialist
Seattle Human Services Department

"City Toasters is not only convenient, its members are entertaining, involved, and enthusiastic. The speaking and leadership skills that I've learned there are highly effective tools both in and out of the workplace. If you put your best effort into Toastmasters, you will really have more opportunities for success."

- Peter Di Turi, IT Division, Seattle City Light

I've always had something to say about everything, unfortunately I always kept my thoughts to myself, especially in large crowds. After building enough confidence to volunteer with youth by teaching computer classes, I realized that speaking in front of people wasn't as bad as I initially thought. The computer classes led to public speaking at youth oriented events. At the conclusion of a convention where I was one of the guest speakers, a parent asked me which speaking organization I belonged to, my reply was "none". She referred me to Toastmasters, and the rest is history mystory!

The next day I searched for "Toastmasters" on the Web, found a nearby club, and attended the next meeting. I was totally blown away! After witnessing the agenda-driven structure of the meeting (everything was timed and on-time), the content of the meeting (someone was assigned to tell a Joke, then 2 short and insightful speeches were given), then the low membership cost (the monthly cost is less than a lunch at Mcdonald's), I signed up on the spot.

Since joining Toastmasters, I've learned all of the things that I was doing wrong before I joined. I'm more conscious about using fillers such as "UM" and "UH" when speaking, I make eye contact now, and my presentations now have a basic structure (opening, body, & close).

I think that Toastmasters should be a requirement for every individual who has to speak to more than 1 person at a time (ie., Everyone). I encourage and challenge everyone to at least visit a Toastmaster meeting within 1 month of reading this.

-John P. Smith, Jr., LAN Group, Department of Information Technology