HomeOur LeadersEventsProgram QualityClub GrowthClub ManagementPublic RelationsNewsTrainingResourcesDistrict Calendar

Quick Links:   Find a Club | District Performance | Speech Contests | Speechcraft | HONOUR ROLL 


 

Finding and Visiting a Club
Visiting a club is the best way to learn about Toastmasters! If you are interested in learning more about Toastmasters, refer to the list of clubs to find a District 80 club which meets in a location and time convenient to your office, home or commute.

Starting a Club
Toastmasters groups are formed every day in a variety of settings. Groups meet onsite at corporations, churches, community centres – even in restaurants. Forming a Toastmasters group is simple. All of the materials are provided for you and a team of local Toastmasters will guide you through the process.

Your Organization Needs Toastmasters
Your company’s success depends in large part on how well your employees communicate – with each other as well as with customers. Good communicators tend to be good leaders, and chances are your company needs employees with leadership potential. This is where a Toastmasters group can help.

Getting Involved to Help Other Clubs
If you'd like to get involved by helping new or existing clubs, the program offers these opportunities:

  • A Club Coach may be assigned to an existing club with 12 or fewer members. The coach helps by providing guidance to help the club increase membership, drive fun and productive meetings that meet member needs and become Distinguished (see Distinguished Club Program).

  • A Club Mentor may be assigned to a new club. The mentor helps by providing guidance to ensure the club meets member needs by following the Toastmasters program.

  • A Club Sponsor champions a new club.

Serving as a Coach, Mentor, or Sponsor is one of the requirements for the Advanced Leader Silver award, which is on the path to becoming a Distinguished Toastmaster. Serving in these roles can also be a rewarding experience.

Club Coach
Clubs that have 12 or less members qualify for a coach.

The article Be a Club Coach describes a Toastmasters Club Coaching Experience, including "what worked," "what did not work," and "what I would do next time."
Please contact Club Growth Director at district80.org@gmail.com if you wish to volunteer as a Club Coach, or your club wishes to appoint Club Coaches.  

 

Toastmasters Membership Goals
The overall health of a club depends very much on the number of active members. Having a larger number of members in your club generally translates into more energetic and interesting meetings, which in turns leads to a higher level of satisfaction among your club's members.

Toastmasters clubs are encouraged to keep membership at “charter strength” above 20 members (the number required to charter a new club.) The Distinguished Club Program (DCP) requires that the club has 20+ members at year end (June 30), or the total number of members has grown by 5 or more since the beginning of the Toastmasters year (previous July 1).

There are also DCP goals for gaining new members: one goal for 4 new members and another goal for 4 or more additional members. Aim to bring in one new member a month to keep your club healthy and replace any attrition!

Increasing Club Membership
Most people joined their Toastmasters club because someone invited them to attend a meeting. Encourage all your members to invite friends and co-workers to watch a meeting and see how it works! This website contains some more tips to help your club membership grow.

Open House Meetings
An Open House or demonstration meeting can be one of the easiest ways to build membership.

Retaining Members
In addition to gaining new members, it's very important to keep the current members! To do so, the club meeting should have quality meetings, supportive and constructive evaluations, and an enjoyable environment.

The Club Quality Audit checklist reviews some items to ensure the club is doing well. The Successful Club Series module called Moments of Truth (available for free download) is a good tool to review your club progress. You can also consider these 106 Ideas for Retaining Members.