A quick bio

According to their website, Toastmasters International is a world leader in communication and leadership development. It has more than 357,000 memberships. Members improve their speaking and leadership skills by attending one of the 16,600 clubs in 143 countries that make up our global network of meeting locations. But you are not here to read that pre-written text, are you? You’re here for my personal experience and opinion of Toastmasters.

My Personal Experience & Opinion

How I joined a Toastmasters Club

One of the first things I did when I arrived in Seoul was to look up for a group or an organization that I could join to meet like-minded people. I found out that there was a Toastmasters International club in my neighborhood via the Meetup application. I quickly sent a message to the Signature Toastmasters’, the club in my neighborhood, VP of Public Relations, Jane stating that I’d like to attend that week’s meetup as a guest. She also quickly replied that I’m more than welcome to do so! Now, let me say that I didn’t know anything about Toastmasters before going in, I only googled it.

The members are great

The first thing I noticed when I entered the meeting room was that I felt welcomed. Everyone was friendly and sincere. They immediately accepted me as one of their own, and that felt amazing. They quickly explained how things worked out during the meeting and I was able to participate in one of the sections called Table Topics, I even got an award from it. Furthermore, I noticed that everyone in that room was trying their absolute best to improve their speaking skills. It didn’t matter whether they were good or bad at it. I really liked that attitude.

The joint meeting

In that first meeting, I’d also learned that there was going to be a joint event at that weekend. They asked me if I would want to be a part of it, to which I happily said yes. So, I got the chance to be the Debate Master of the joint meeting of Area 12, District 93, Toastmasters International. Since I was totally new to the whole Toastmasters concept, I kindly asked them to inform me of the Debate Master’s responsibilities. They briefly explained that all I need to do is prepare a question that would allow people to debate on it in groups of 3. I thought to myself that it seemed easy enough for someone like me, an experienced English teacher.

The highlights video

I arrived a little bit early that day to help people out arranging the place. Then, I listened to speakers while waiting for my turn to participate. When the time finally came for me to go up on the stage, I can say that I was really nervous at first. But, again, everyone was so welcoming that my nervousness vanished into the thin air. However, I can’t help but mention that I kind of butchered the whole Debate section (you won’t be able to see this in the video highlights ’cause I edited it out for obvious reasons). At first, I thought I would make everyone speak by putting them into groups. Shortly after I arranged the groups, I saw my co-members rushing to my side. They quickly reminded me that I should’ve only picked 3 people each to debate the question on the stage. After hearing that I immediately stopped everyone and explained that everything I said so far was wrong. Again, everyone was so forgiving and understanding. Only after that, we were able to continue with the meeting, properly this time.

All in all, it was a fun and enlightening experience to be there. I sincerely I hope I was able to improve my public speaking skills a little bit just like everyone else. It can be easily said that Toastmasters meetings are great!

What about the content though?

Now, I’m an official member of the Signature Toastmasters club. Toastmasters International has a pathway guide that allows its members to choose a development route most suitable for them. For me, it was ‘Innovative Planning’ since I’d like to learn more about designing innovative projects and speeches. When I enrolled in the pathway, it was the time to start using their online learning system.

TM Pathways – Learning Experience

Toastmasters International has a great learning management system with a lot of videos, documents, guides, and tutorials in it. You can also interact with your fellow members, comment on their speeches and so on. I immediately liked this online campus feeling.

To sum up, I can easily see many people taking advantage of this content and improving their speaking skills tailored to their needs.

The big question: “Should I join a Toastmasters International club?”

Yes, you should. It will allow you to become a better public speaker, speechwriter, planner, leader, and so on. Moreover, if you’re also trying to improve your English skills, Toastmasters International will help you with that, too! Click the link to find a Toastmasters International club around your area: https://www.toastmasters.org/find-a-club

Serkan Burak Koçoğlu

English Linguist, Teacher, and Translator