Centretown Ottawa Toastmasters benefits through a dynamic membership of people from a variety of backgrounds and experience.  Here, members can grow both personally and professionally in a supportive and fun environment. 

 

Objectives of the Toastmasters Program

The primary objective of the Toastmaster program is to better ourselves for the ‘real world’ by improving our public speaking and leadership skills, additionally it provides the opportunity to hone your skills through such activities as preparing speeches, running a meeting effectively, acting as master of ceremonies and speaking off-the-cuff.

 

Our meetings have a formal structure that provides the opportunity for all members to participate, familiarize with proper meeting procedures and heed to time constraints.

The vice-president education prepares the agenda, assigns roles and chooses the theme of the meeting in advance.   The themes can range from “inspirational people” to “favourite sitcoms” – the possibilities are endless!

What makes Toastmasters work?

The key success factors in the Toastmasters organization are regular participation and receiving regular evaluations. No goal worth achieving comes easily, and that is what sets the Toastmasters program apart from other public speaking courses: it affords an opportunity to practice regularly, while allowing you a chance to incorporate the suggestions pointed out to you through evaluations. To see best results, it is recommended to work through the 10 speeches in the beginner’s manual (which you will receive in the mail when you join) within a year. To improve your skills, it is recommended that you participate regularly in delivering speeches form the manual and carry out weekly meeting roles, such as Toastmaster and evaluator. As a new member, you will start off with small roles such as delivering the ‘word’ of the day or an opening thought.

 

Mentoring

As a new member, you have the option to be assigned a “buddy” or mentor who can help you with your first three speeches (or longer if you wish).  Sometimes all you might need is someone to bounce ideas off of or help with structuring the content of your speech.  The help is there if you need it, simply speak with the vice-president of membership.

How to Join

Membership application forms are available at our meetings.  Complete the form and submit your payment (see detailed fee schedule below) and away you go! Fees are pro-rated, based on the month in which you join the club.  This includes a one-time fee of $25, which covers the cost of your new membership manuals that you will receive soon after you join.  Please make your cheque payable to Centretown Toastmasters.

Your Membership Kit

Your membership covers the following items:

New Member Kit: You will receive a basic manual outlining ten speeches. Specific objectives are described for each speech, but topics are your choice – the sky is the limit!

Monthly Magazine: A monthly magazine, The Toastmaster, will be sent to you from Toastmasters International. Each issue contains articles on communications, tips, and ideas on many other related topics.

 

Fee Schedule for New Members

The membership fees for the Toastmasters year are payable from the period from October 1 to September 30 each year. The annual fee to join Centretown Toastmasters is $108 (that’s $9.00 per month), plus a one-time fee of $25 for initiation fees and materials. The following table provides the pro-rated fee schedule applicable to new and existing toastmasters: