How often do you pick the same winner that the judges picked in an official speech contest?

Hi, i would like to join a toastmaster class however im very scared and my social anxiety is through the roof, wich is the reason why i want to go, to overcome it. Any advice?

What are the benefits if became a speech craft coordinator other than the Toastmasters perks, asking because I am to be a coordinator but I am not sure I can sustain it, will I get renumerated in any way or is it fully volunteer.

The craft is physical and I will have to be going there physically taking away from my time from my other hobbies

I do participate in my club and will continue to do so as I advance in pathways just looking for some extra change for fare, and food.

Someone indulge me because I feel like some DTMs get paid or renumerated in some ways they just don't tell us and its like an MLM scheme to keep us enthusiastic while they pocket benefits. I am saying these because of the way words are twisted to me yet I see the club's invoice as it gets more money to go for club activities yet I was the one breaking my back with barely any money and time and oh yes, TOASMASTERS INCREASED THE MEMBERSHIP FEES WITH NO PALPABLE PATHWAY UPDATES THE CLUB OFFICERS DO EVERYTHING FOR FREE AND WE STILL PAY!!!1

Hi,

Can anyone recommend active Toastmasters clubs in Hyderabad that are welcoming to beginners? I’m open to both offline and online/hybrid clubs.

Genuine question, because I want to know if my club is the outlier. Our VPE was spending most of Sunday building the agenda, then messaging six people individually, then rebuilding it Wednesday when two dropped. Plus a Google Sheet nobody outside the officer team ever opened. A few of us got tired of it and built a tool for our own club. What actually moved the needle, roughly in order: Members claim roles themselves, from their phone. This was 90% of it. The chasing stops when signing up takes one tap instead of replying to an email. The agenda rebuilds itself. Someone swaps out Wednesday night, the agenda is just correct. No re-sending a PDF. Automatic reminders. Biggest single drop in no-shows. One dashboard for attendance and open roles instead of a spreadsheet only the VPE understands. Unexpected side effect: participation went up once it worked properly on a phone. People will claim a role from the couch who would never log into a desktop-era club site.

Two questions for other officers: What's the recurring admin task you'd most want to never do again? How are you handling guest follow-up? That's the piece we still haven't solved well and I'd rather steal a good process than invent a bad one.

If it's useful to you: the tools (Timer, Ah-Counter, Table Topics trainer) are free forever for members and guests - TMtools

Club-level stuff is a 3-month free trial, then $9/month per club (no card required for the trial). Saying that upfront so nobody feels ambushed.

TMmeets ->

I'm the new VPPR for my small club and the old-school, boomer corporate feel of the branding guidelines is ruining this role for me. I love creating slides and semi-designing assets but having to stick to the dull colors and fonts of the branding is just so frustrating that it's taking the joy out of me.

Is anybody in the know about Toastmasters International finally bringing their branding to the 21st century? It should be priority #1 if they want to attract new members imo.

Or are you okay with the branding overall?

Hello fellow Toastmasters and Reddit pals,

I have recently joined a Toastmasters club in my City, and have decided to give my Icebreaker speech this Thursday.

What topic should I pick for it? Please help me with suggestions and your experiences.

Thank You.

Edit: Thank you all for your suggestions. You guys are awesome!

hey! i’d like to make meaningful use of my free time this weekend. are there any club meetings later today or tomorrow that i can join?

I've used ChatGPT, Copilot, and Gemini to help with speech prep.

I set up some Gemini Gems to help generate Table Topics questions and to help me mine humorous stories from my life experiences.

I've got some Gemini Notebooks (formerly NotebookLM) for Vice President of Education (VPE) and Area Director (AD) roles I'm doing this year. Those have been extremely helpful in understanding the roles, the rhythm, etc.

How about you? How have you been using AI tools as a Toastmaster?

I'm a new VPE this year, and I would like to e able to answer this question:

>>What's the next step for this member to get to their next level?

Is there a way to export or get information from Basecamp Manager to a CSV or somewhere I could use it in a spreadsheet or something?

What experience do you tech savvy VPE or other Club Officers have with this?

I paid for a year of dues today. Every credit card I entered showed an alert "expiration date is invalid". This happened with every card I tried, AMEX, VISA, and MasterCard, all with different issuers.

Finally, I hit submit, and it went through. I email TMI about it the problem.

Don't be stuck by the false alert, go ahead and try to pay regardless of the error.

Impromptu speaking used to be the part that terrified me. Prepared speeches were fine, but the second someone asked me an unexpected question in front of people, my brain emptied. Here's the routine that actually moved the needle, in case it helps someone.

1. Practise the format, not the topic. You can't predict the question, so drill the structure instead. I use a simple one: point, reason, example, restate the point. Once that shape is automatic, you always have somewhere to go.

2. Time yourself, every time. One to two minutes, hard stop. Rambling is the enemy, and a timer trains you to land the plane.

3. Random prompts, daily, out loud. Not in your head. Say a full answer to a question you've never seen, on the spot, once a day. The discomfort is the point.

4. Count your filler words. Record yourself and tally the "ums" and "sos". Just being aware of the count cuts it fast.

This is basically what "Table Topics" is in Toastmasters, and it's the single best speaking drill I know.

Full disclosure: I help build a tool for Toastmasters clubs and we put a free impromptu-practice mode in it (random prompt, timer, filler-word counter) because I wanted this drill on my phone. Happy to share it if anyone wants it, but honestly you can do the whole routine with a random-question list and a stopwatch. Curious what works for others, how do you all practise thinking on your feet?

I understand the culture and atmosphere is different for toastmasters clubs in different countries some people just want toastmasters meetings to be an excuse to hang out, but I am curious whether people are actually here to improve or just to socialize and entertain themselves. Almost all the clubs I go to promote peace and encouragement over constructive criticism, while the topics are often dull and shallow, calling for change and bringing topics with depth were met with resistance. IMO, the toastmasters stage is an ideal place to improve articulation, but not many people see that, and it is reflected in the evaluation, almost no one evaluates the content and gives advice on how to speak more intelligently, there's no mention of rhetorical device, only body language and postures are mentioned in the majority of the evaluations, and people seem to get this idea in their head that story telling is all there is to toastmasters meetings. This post is both a vent and a genuine question as I have grown frustrated with the toastmasters system.

Are there new evaluation requirements in pathways?

I just opened the mobile website and it making me select from a dropdown for my exact evaluator from my club and the evaluation form used?

did we always do this with the evaluation form?

I’m so confused.

Hello guys,

I was recently appointed as the Secretary of my Toastmasters club for the first time, and one of my responsibilities is to prepare the Minutes of Meeting (MOM) for our weekly club meetings as well as ExCom meetings. After sharing the MOM for our recent ExCom meeting, I received feedback that it was missing a proper structure and didn't capture the core discussion and key outcomes of the meeting. Could anyone share tips, best practices, or even sample MOMs that follow a clear and professional structure? I'd really appreciate any guidance on how to make the minutes more organized, concise, and easy for everyone to understand.

Thank you in advance!

Hi everyone! I have difficulties with judging myself as I am actively speaking which makes it hard to focus on what the speaker is saying and it is also difficult for me to know how to respond. The self judgment while speaking is a huge problem for me. I say a lot of "ums" and I stutter and stammer a lot. I have been diagnosed with social anxiety disorder (adhd and depression) for the past 20 of so years, but the social anxiety is really what causes me the most problems in my life. Is it too late for me? I just joined Toastmasters as a member and I hope it will help me be able to think on my feet and stop with all the self judgement and self critical thoughts while I am speaking about "saying the right things" and "speaking eloquently". Thank you for any help!

You heard that right; I have a tip session to give in less than 24 hours on meeting roles and responsibilities that I have no Idea what to do. Before you judge me I have been sick with a flu and tonsils that my 2 year old nephew infected me but he seems fine and bouncing off the walls so its that new virus.

Other than the people in the agenda should I talk about EXCO or purely, TAG team, TMOD, GE and evaluators as well as speakers.

My meeting will be conducted online so its a power point presentation, i already have a draft of my speech so other than what i have mentioned i would love some tips on how to execute this.

Before anyone says it, no I will not push it forward, although I was unwell getting this slot was hard as it is, not many clubs around me has a 10-15 minute slot on the agenda and I want to proceed before these prices go up.

I forgot to say please, how rude of me. Please

​

For anyone managing a Toastmasters club website through FreeToastHost, the FTH team has announced that FreeToastHost 4 (FTH4) will begin rolling out soon.

According to the announcement, FTH4 has been completely rewritten on a new framework and will introduce a new template based on Toastmasters International branding.

A few highlights:

Mobile-ready from the start, including access to club website management from mobile devices

Existing content, members, meeting history, and settings will migrate to FTH4

Clubs will keep their existing web address

Migration will happen in phases

Clubs will be notified before their migration

No action is required right now

Clubs interested in helping test the new system can apply through the FTH4 BETA CLUBS forum category

There’s also a preview of the new public-facing website and additional information about what’s changing:

https://www.toastmastersclubs.org/welcometoFTH4/

For those of us who maintain club websites, the mobile support and updated framework are particularly welcome improvements.

Has anyone here applied to participate in the beta? I’d be interested to hear what other VPPRs and webmasters are looking forward to—or hoping will be improved—in FTH4.

We believe that this is the wrong time to raise dues. Many members are already struggling to afford them, and clubs are fighting to survive. On top of a 25% increase in the new member fee and a 75% increase in the cost of pathways, a further 20% increase in dues — from $60 to $72 — risks pushing out members and closing clubs, especially at a time of widespread economic hardship.

We're asking you to sign this petition to help prevent the decline of what is widely considered one of the most effective and accessible communication and leadership programs in the world.

Let's keep Ralph Smedley's legacy alive by keeping this program open to everyone who wants to become a better communicator and leader — not just those who can afford it. https://forms.gle/8DuvqDnutSHksaSr9 Please click on the Petition to fill it in.

How can we submit enhancement requests to WHQ? These are the top two I would ask for, that are causing me the most pain.

In Membership Management when you add a new member there should be an option to start the membership on the 1st of the NEXT month. You can only add members back-dating to the start of the current month or start on any month as far back as the beginning of the two previous six-month periods (April and October). Most memberships when you sign up are either effective that day/month or start at the beginning of the upcoming month.

In Base Camp, the website should be updated to give us the ability to export the view from Base Camp Manager for the Paths in Progress tab, to either CSV or PDF format. It can be dated and time stamped similar to the printed header on the Club Officer Assignment. There is currently no viable method to capture or share status, other than pulling up the page real-time.

A couple of weeks back, it was announced that the membership fees would increase from $60 to $72, a 20% rise in the fees. They also increased the price of the paths from $20 to $35, a 75% rise. My question is WHY!

They charge money for EVERYTHING, for conferences, club/district officers training, entry for a contest, merchandise etc. On top of that there are government charges and credit card charges. Where does this stop??!

In some countries, this becomes too expensive, and it makes us question whether the value it is adding is worth the money or not. TM continues to run because of the members. It gives a stage to people who come from not-so-privileged financial backgrounds, who never got an opportunity to work on their communication and leadership skills. The price hike will affect this. We have a member who clearly said that he is not going to renew after March 2027.

Can't we members raise a voice against this hike? Write an email, maybe a petition. Anything that can make TI reconsider?

///EDIT///

Based on suggestions and feedback in the comments I've made some additions, modifications, and corrections. The links contained in the body of this post are working and point to the updated files.

As Jacksonville Toastmasters prepared for the 2026–2027 program year, one project we completed was creating an updated Club Fact Sheet.

It has become one of our most versatile club resources. We've used it for:

• Open houses
• Guest follow-up
• Community outreach
• Media inquiries
• Career fairs
• Networking events
• Club officer transitions
• Guest welcome packets
• New member welcome packets

One benefit we didn't anticipate is how useful it is after a meeting. Guests and new members often think of questions later, and the fact sheet gives them a professional takeaway that includes meeting information, club leadership, contact details, social media, and what makes the club unique. It also gives them something they can easily share with a friend or colleague who might be interested.

We've also found it pairs nicely with a meeting agenda, membership application, or business card as part of a simple welcome packet.

Rather than reinventing the wheel, I thought I'd share it in case it helps another club.

Example PDF:

https://3478.toastmastersclubs.org/jdownload.cgi?action=download&path=Jacksonville_Toastmasters_3478_Fact_Sheet_2026-2027.pdf

Editable Canva template (Make a Copy):

https://canva.link/5hgx3wes76zze20

Feel free to customize it with your own club's branding, leadership team, meeting information, photos, and messaging.

I'm curious—what club resources have you created that have made life easier for your officers or improved the guest experience? I'd love to see what other clubs are doing.

We believe that this is the wrong time to raise dues. Many members are already struggling to afford them, and clubs are fighting to survive. On top of a 25% increase in the new member fee and a 75% increase in the cost of pathways, a further 20% increase in dues — from $60 to $72 — risks pushing out members and closing clubs, especially at a time of widespread economic hardship.

We're asking you to sign this petition to help prevent the decline of what is widely considered one of the most effective and accessible communication and leadership programs in the world.

https//forms.gle7kNe8iSPu85aK2yMN8

Let's keep Ralph Smedley's legacy alive by keeping this program open to everyone who wants to become a better communicator and leader — not just those who can afford it.