Leaders know the importance of being able to address an audience.
Whether it’s running a meeting of shareholders, presenting to a potential client, or running effective staff meetings, being able to persuade, inspire, and communicate important ideas is critical to your success.
If you want to rise above your peers, be more successful both in business and personally, there is nothing that will guarantee you stand out from the crowd more than the ability to speak effectively in front of an audience. It gives you instant visibility within your organization and enhances your reputation far more than any other business skill.
Facing your fear of speaking in public is much easier within a group of people who fully understand that particular challenge. After all, everyone at Foothills Toastmasters has “been where you are now.”
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“The greatest danger for most of us is not that our aim is too high and we miss it, but that it is too low and we reach it.” – Michelangelo |
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Welcome to the Toastmasters family!
You’ll find that you’ll meet people who may end up being lifelong friends — leaders that you can lean on for business tips that often go well beyond public speaking.
Toastmasters truly is like a second family!
| “Toastmasters gave me the confidence to speak in front of any group at any time. The willingness that every member has to help each other is second to none. The more you participate, the more you get out of it and the learning never ends.” – S. Fylypchuk |
How Toastmasters Works
As a member, you learn by speaking in front of an audience and working with others in a very supportive and fun environment. (We like to laugh and learn at the same time!
You increase your self-esteem and confidence every time you speak. It doesn’t take long to start to feel comfortable addressing a group and you polish your presentation skills at the same time.
Our meetings typically have 10-20 people who meet for about two hours on Thursday evenings. We are one of the few dinner clubs in Calgary. Members have specific roles assigned each week and meetings give everyone an opportunity to practice:
- Conducting meetings. Our weekly meetings begin with a short business session which helps members learn basic parliamentary procedure. It prepares you for a position on the board of an association or corporation.
- Giving short impromptu speeches. You’ll learn to present a two minute talk on any subject in any meeting you might be called to address at the last minute.
- Presenting prepared speeches. You’ll organize and deliver longer-length speeches (up to seven minutes in length and receive valuable feedback to help you improve. Each speech project concentrates on a specific important element of speaking, such as speech organization, voice, language, gestures, and persuasion.
- Constructive evaluation. You’ll learn how to deliver constructive criticism, an essential skill every leader must master.
| “Foothills Toastmasters has been a game changer. At first I associated Toastmasters with public speaking but soon learned it is much more than that. Through Toastmasters I’ve become a better communicator, a better listener, a better leader and yes I now feel comfortable speaking in front of large groups. It’s been a key factor in building my real estate business.” — Gord Piper |
The Tools We Use
Members also have access to books, audio, and video on speaking and leadership. They receive the award-winning “Toastmaster,” a monthly magazine that offers the latest insights on speaking and leadership techniques.
| ” When my mother passed away recently, delivering the eulogy became a breeze without the stage fright I usually had to contend with. It was still an emotional time, though I felt that I had delivered a really good eulogy for my mother coming from deep within my heart.” – A. Naron |
Interested in Joining?
Feel free to join us as our guest any Thursday night from September through June. Be sure to come a bit early (about 5:45 or so) as the meeting begins at 6 pm sharp. Our meetings are free to guests and there’s an option of enjoying dinner during the meeting for at a very reasonable price.
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“The only reason to give a speech is to change the world.” — John F Kennedy |
About Us
Foothills Toastmasters is a non-profit, volunteer-based club devoted to improving public speaking & leadership skills located in Calgary, Alberta. We’re a local chapter of Toastmasters International.
We’re one of Calgary’s longest serving and largest clubs (in existence for 72 years as of 2022). We strive to create a welcoming, fun environment that is extremely supportive to everyone from experienced speakers to new members with little or no experience.
| Foothills Toastmasters Our meeting is located at Brentwood COOP Community Room 4122 Brentwood Road NW, Mall to east of Crowchild Trail We meeting every Thursday from 6-8pm. Contact us via askme@foothillstoastmasters. |
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