Madison Achiever’s Toastmaster Club

Are you feeling nervous? Does your normal confidence drain away at the thought of speaking? We offer support and encouragement in a nonjudgmental place to practice. Or are you an experienced speaker but wonder if you can improve? We all strive to do better; word choice, effective pauses and concise presentations are just some of the aspects we try to work on. As you gain confidence, you might even challenge yourself to participate in a contest. The real goal is to compete against yourself and improve with practice.

Toastmasters’ new education system, Pathways, is an exciting, flexible and interactive way to develop your skills and help others in your club develop theirs. Pathways includes online training, videos and interactive tests. There are hands-on, real world projects available, including more than 25 elective projects. These projects are designed to work in conjunction with a speech and include: training for activities such as attending a networking event, working for a volunteer organization, designing and leading a committee or managing an event, creating a podcast or blog, and gaining storytelling and humor skills.

Preview the first Pathways project, the Icebreaker speech, here and learn more about the Pathways program, click here. Each project consists of the training details for at least one speech but might also include additional learning components for a variety of speaking, management and leadership skills.