A safe environment to gain the skill of public speaking is back

A Toastmasters Club contest held in the Waipā District Council Chamber in 2020. Photo/Supplied.

Te Awamutu Toastmasters is a friendly, supportive professional group of people who meet at the Waipā District Council chambers on the first and third Tuesday of each month at 7.30pm.

The next meeting is on Tuesday, July 19.

Toastmasters meetings are a safe environment to learn in. Everyone who attends is there for the purpose of gaining skills from the programme.

Those who benefit the most from attending this group are those looking for jobs or anyone seeking confidence in public speaking.

Our club meetings offer you the opportunity to learn the basic techniques to capture your audience and effectively communicate your message. Participants have a variety of opportunities to learn about public speaking at every meeting. Mutual support and encouragement are the cornerstones of Toastmasters meetings.

Attendees learn by practising speaking in front of the group, evaluating and listening to evaluations of speeches, and following the Toastmasters programme of advancing in steps.

All Toastmasters know what it's like to feel butterflies when called upon to speak and experienced Toastmasters also know that fear can be overcome by trying.

Attending a meeting as a guest is free and there's no pressure to participate until you are ready and comfortable.

Past and present members have found success in the local community with the skills they have learned while attending Toastmasters meetings.

Toastmasters is an international, US-headquartered nonprofit educational organisation that operates clubs worldwide for the purpose of promoting communication, public speaking and leadership.

The Toastmasters New Zealand (North) completed an International Speech Marathon on April 21–26, 2019, and achieved the Guinness World Record by speaking for 127 hours 31 minutes 43 seconds; 171 Toastmasters gave 381 speeches one after the other. This was achieved by a nonstop effort over a week of 24-hour days of speaking. Some people gave relatively brief speeches and others spoke for over an hour. Te Awamutu Toastmasters took a car-load up and were involved in this marathon.

Covid affected Te Awamutu Toastmasters as they were unable to meet for the past few years, but continued to hold meetings via Zoom.

"We are going to be hybrid, we will meet in the council rooms but also remain on Zoom. This is for those who are out in the country and may be busy, they can log in and still attend.

"We are excited for everyone to come back. We haven't been back in the council rooms for over a year, it's been a long time," says Katrina Hudson.