Hopefully you try to have fun themes for your Toastmasters meetings. But how can you go above and beyond that, for special meetings like the one closest to Halloween? Costume Parties What a great time to get everyone to dress up! This can be especially fun if there is a connection between the speeches and the costumes the speakers wear. Also consider a theme for the...

All contestants must compete on a level playing field, as much as is possible. Not only does this mean everyone should have identical competition situations (as much as possible), but that those conditions should not unduly favor any particular type of contestants. An inconvenient contest location may favor local contestants. A location that is noisy or has poor...

Once you have your beautiful, bold Toastmasters club banner, you face a new problem: where do you put it? The official Toastmasters Banner Stand is insanely overpriced at $110. I’ve also heard several clubs complain about it being unstable. A frugal, opportunistic Toastmaster may try reusing an existing tripod or easel that a member has, and hanging the banner...

Benefits of a Do-It-Yourself Banner Stand Every type of banner stand has their disadvantages. I believe that for many clubs, the best solution is to make your own. Inspired by the examples of other Toastmasters have build banner stands, such as the very tall version from District 53 or the one mentioned in District 37 Sergeant At Arms training or the beautiful...

Many Toastmasters clubs are wide open to anyone who is 18 or older, can pay dues and is voted into the club. When a club is listed as “membership eligibility required,” it’s typically because the club is for a specific group of people: employees of a company, members of the military at a base, students or faculty or employees of a university, that...

In December 2013 and January 2014, I delivered a number of workshops in the Toastmasters Leadership Institute for San Antonio. Here are my notes on what I did in my sessions, and general Toastmasters tips and info on the relevant topics. Table Topics Why are Table Topics Called “Table Topics”? How to Run Table Topics Should Table Topics be Evaluated? Why...

In January of 2014, I had the opportunity to train sergeants at arms at a COT (Club Officer Training) event in District 55. You know what officer training needs? Weapons. Ok, break out the Nerf guns! The sergeant at arms is technically the lowest role in Toastmasters, coming after all other six in matters of seniority. However, I argue that the SAA is the one whose...