“Toastmaster Training for VP-PROs: Discussion group”

Welcome to Public Relations Officer Training! My name is Kristal, and I’ll hopefully be helping you to understand your role as officer better. Also we can discuss with one another what we’ve learned so far in our roles and exchange some ideas.

1.       The first lesson in PR is to market yourself. As PROs, we need to project a positive and professional image of our respective groups. We are the face of our clubs, for better or worse. So make an unforgettable, positive first impression. Remember our tagline, “Where leaders are made”, and embody that philosophy.

Market your product, with our product being Toastmasters International (TMI). Have promotional materials on hand, including fliers and brochures. Business cards are essential. They should have your contact info, including name, title, phone number, email, website, meeting place, day and time.

Talk up TMs. Have an elevator speech ready for that unsuspecting moment, when you have the opportunity to attract a guest or new member to your club. Be able to say something in about 60 seconds, telling people what TMs is, what the benefits are, & how they too can benefit from being a member. Have a personal testimonial ready, as to how it has helped you.

2.       Be your Brand manager. You are in charge of promoting and protecting the TMs brand & need to ensure that the TM logo and taglines are used appropriately. Color and size specifications, as designated by TMI, must be adhered to, when used in your publications. Also, it is a copyright infringement for any unauthorized person or organization to use our logo or tagline without express permission from TMI.

3.       Apart from being a Brand Manager, you are your club’s link to the outside world. You are responsible for getting your meeting location & times published to various community calendars on the internet, in the newspaper, and other local publications. Also fliers can be posted in public areas; permissions from management should be obtained first.  Good places to post information would be in employee break rooms, bulletin boards, libraries, colleges, coffee houses. Networking events are also a great way to get the word out about your club. You can make some great connections and tell people more about how our organization can be a great benefit to them. For info on networking locations, you can visit Grantham Consulting’s site, www.gconsult.us, and look under “services” and then “networking”. There are a lot of other ways to promote your group that are mentioned in your handout. (**What are some ways you’ve promoted your club?**)

4.       If your club doesn’t already have one, set up a Facebook and/or Twitter fan page.  To save time, you can link these two accounts.  That way, you only have to make one post.  Social networking is a great tool to publicly get the word out about your club, attract new fans, tell people about upcoming events, provide them with interesting tidbits on improving one’s speaking skills, & much more. To make your fan pages more interesting, you should post pictures & videos of your members, acknowledge their achievements, and appeal to a broad audience.  Be sure and label pictures of your members.  That way, their friends can be engaged and share in with the fun.  Better yet, encourage members to share links of interest and encourage their friends to join your fan page.  The more interest, the better your chances are at recruiting potential new members and getting the word out about your club. (**How many of you have fan pages? Do you think it helps?**)

5.       Another responsibility of the VPPR is that of Webmaster.  If your club does not have a website, don’t panic!  TMI has an application, especially for those of us, who have little to no experience with creating websites, called FreeToastHost.org.  This should help simplify the process.  On your website, you will want it to be similar to a newsletter.  It should list upcoming events, contests, membership drives, member accomplishments, club news, pictures, location details, etc. Also, make sure your club is linked to the district website (www.toastmastersd11.org) and that TMI has included your URL in the “Find a Club” list. Your website needs to have a title, description, keywords, and tags that reference TMs, speaking, communications, etc. that way your website can easily be found in an internet search. (**Has anyone here used the FreeToastHost site? What did you think?**)

6.       You will also want to familiarize yourself with press releases.  When approaching the media, whether it’s for radio, TV or newspaper, you’ll want to submit your requests either by email or online form. Familiarize yourself with local print and online publications, broadcast networks, shows, and programs. Be able to recognize the names of journalists, media representatives, and the topics they cover.

When writing a press release, you should be able to explain who your target audience is for any planned events and why your ideal will appeal to the representative. If turned down, thank them for the opportunity and be sure to ask them to be considered for future stories related to communications, public speaking, and leadership. For more tips on writing a press release, there is information in your handout. (**Has anyone done a press release? What was that like?**)

7.       Your club may also want to have a club newsletter or blog. For a newsletter, it is suggested that it is done either monthly or quarterly, depending on a club’s preferences.

** Does anyone have any questions about anything we’ve discussed, so far or about anything from your Club Leader’s manual? **

1.       If not, then let’s go over some of our responsibilities. What are we responsible for? We need to make sure that we have enough promotional materials on hand for any upcoming events and for members to distribute to their workplace or other places in the community.

·         Results from our PR campaigns need to be announced, press releases shared, and upcoming events need to be broadcast. Be familiar with upcoming dates for all PR events, which can be found on pp. 18-21 in your Club Leadership Handbook.

·         Also we need to enlist the help of our members to help out with PR campaigns. They can earn credit for doing this in their CL (Competent Leader) manual.

·         Be sure and attend district training, conferences, other TM events, and Executive Committee meetings.

·         Join TM-moderated social networking groups on FB, LinkedIn, and Twitter.

·         **Speaking of TM-moderated social networking groups, has anyone had any positive/negative experiences that they might like to mention? Did you find them useful?

2.       Some of our other responsibilities include:

·         Finding a substitute, if unable to attend a meeting

·         Gathering info from members for monthly/quarterly newsletter and/or website

·         Greeting members & guests

·         Prepare successor for office

3.       Beyond this, just realize that we need to be leaders, which will give us some challenges from time to time

·         Need to set & attain goals for the club through promotion activities

·         Delegate as needed

·         Monitor progress

·         Coach team members, if necessary, which brings us to…

o   How do we motivate our teams? **Anyone?**

§  This can be a challenge & we need deep understanding of what motivates members

§  5 principals that can help us succeed

·         UNDERSTAND what motivates by learning about members

·         FOCUS on how to benefit them

·         MAKE EXPECTATIONS CLEAR – Set milestones for achieving goals

·         RECOGNIZE work; say thank you!

·         BE A LEADER – be enthusiastic about work to be done; support members in all tasks

·         Next, how should we delegate?

1.       Decide what needs delegated; **What are some things we might delegate?**

2.       Who can handle the task; who is available & capable?

3.       Assign responsibility – explain what needs done, give opportunity to decide if can handle

4.       Establish accountability – set deadlines & follow up

·         What are some roadblocks to delegating? **Anyone?**

                                                               i.      Fear of relinquishing control

                                                             ii.      Concern over others not performing up to standard

                                                            iii.      Not wanting to share credit

                                                           iv.      Fear of asking others for help

                                                             v.      Fear that someone else will do better & usurp your authority

·         Sometimes, when we delegate, a member doesn’t always meet our expectations. It becomes apparent that something needs to change. The person needs to improve what they are doing or someone else should be assigned to the task.

                                                               i.      **How would we handle something like this?**

1.       Agree problem exists

2.       Discuss solutions

3.       Agree on action to take & timeline

4.       Follow up

All in all, PR for our group is our responsibility.  We are our group’s primary PRO, but to be truly effective, we need to enlist our members’ help in promoting our club. There is great strength in numbers, and a whole lot of tasks can be completed with minimal effort & in a minimal amount of time, if dispersed among willing and able participants.

“Asperger’s Support Meeting”: Monday, November 14th from 7 PM-9 PM

Good evening!  My name is Kristal Heffley, and I am the proud mom of Amber Palmer, who is here with me tonight.  We have gone to the Asperger Support meetings off and on for a few years now and find them to be very beneficial and would encourage anyone wanting to learn more about Aspergers or needing support to come to these meetings.  What brought us to these meetings?  Her doctor had a flier about the group, and I thought it would be a good idea to learn more about Aspergers and to be around other parents, who have problems in common with our family.  Does anyone have a special story of why they’re here that they would like to share?

The reason I am here before you tonight is because I had asked Kara if she would mind if I mentioned to you about a group that I’m in, Toastmasters, because I think it could be beneficial to people with Aspergers and even their parents.  Both Kara and Sue thought it would be a good idea to talk about, so here I am.

So, does anyone know what Toastmasters is?  -- Toastmasters is a group that started in 1924 and was founded by Ralph Smedley.  Ralph was the director of the YMCA in Santa Ana, California and started the first TMs in the basement of his facility, after recognizing that many patrons needed help in the art of public speaking and in presiding over meetings.  The idea caught on, and pretty soon, other states started adopting TM programs.  In about 10 years in 1935, TMs went international, when the first TM organization was established in Victoria, British Columbia in Canada.  Today, TMs can be found worldwide in 116 countries with over 13,000 clubs and 270,000 plus members.

I belong to a group called Johnny Appleseed TMs, which meets across from the Coliseum on Parnell Ave on Friday mornings at 7:30 at the BBB, which is where I work.  I’ve been a member for over 5 years and was recently elected to President in my club, so that’s part of why I’m here. I’m here to promote it, but I wouldn’t be doing it, if I didn’t think it would be beneficial.  We welcome anyone to our meetings, and have a very nice, fun loving, and informal group.  There are also other clubs around Ft Wayne that meet at different times and locations to meet people’s individual needs.  A listing of the clubs and times can be found online, simply by googling “Fort Wayne Toastmasters”. This is my biz card, for anyone who might like to learn more about our meetings or if you know of someone, who could benefit.

Toastmasters was designed to help people overcome their fear of speaking in front of audiences.  The way we do that is by practicing in front of a small, informal group on a regular basis.  We take turns giving talks, ranging anywhere from 60 seconds, which is called a “Table Topic”, to about 5 - 7 minutes for a prepared speech.  Those of us, who don’t have assigned speaking parts are doing other things such as timing a speech, evaluating the speakers, introducing the speakers and evaluators, among other assigned roles.  Each week, we come together to help each other improve our speaking skills.  It’s just like a physical work out.  If you keep at it, you get better over time.   

Personally, the reason I joined Toastmasters is because a friend suggested it to me to build my confidence up so I would be comfortable giving talks as President of this organization I belonged to.  While I did not accept that role, Toastmasters did help build my confidence, and I kept going and have made a lot of improvement in my presentation skills over the years.

The reason I think Toastmasters would be helpful to young adults on the Autism spectrum is because I have witnessed positive changes in so many different people, just for being a part of this program.  I have seen people, who didn’t speak native English, improve their speaking and become more articulate.  Individuals with speaking impediments have improved their talking and confidence level, simply by being a part of a support group that is patient and willing to work with them to overcome difficulties.  Individuals, who are socially awkward, can learn better skills from evaluators, by having a mentor, and by observing the good example of others.  (*See http://www.toastmasters.org/MainMenuCategories/WhyJoin/SuccessStories/MeetLisaBishop2.aspx.)

Also, I know Travis or John has brought up interviewing in here and how difficult that can be.  One thing we do in TMs gives extremely good practice for interview questions.  It is called the “Table Topic” session, where a person will ask you a question, and you have to answer it in 60 seconds or less.  You are taught to answer a question by answering it with an introduction, body, and conclusion, just like you would when writing a paragraph.  If you master answering questions this way, it can help prepare you for interview questions that might normally intimidate you.  It helps you be able to master the art of giving spontaneous answers.  Would anyone like to volunteer to try a Table Topic question?  I have (candy) for anyone who’d like to volunteer. :-)

On a personal note, I want to tell you how the group has helped me.  I have been in the group for about 5 years.  One of the first things I noticed at work was my emails to my bosses and coworkers dramatically improved.  I wrote more effective, coherent messages, and could make my point quickly and efficiently, which bosses like.  I started taking on leadership roles in the organization.  At one point, I was coordinating book fairs and blood drives, training managers on new systems processes, and heading the Emergency Action Team, which involved teaching employees on emergency procedures.  It opened up a lot of doors for me, and with every new opportunity that has come along, I admit I still feel fear, but it doesn’t stop me in my tracks, like it might have at one time. 

I tend to think of fear in terms of diving into a pool.  Initially, it’s kind of scary.  The water might be cold.  You really just don’t know what to expect, and that cold water might be painful.  Over time, though, after having jumped into that water enough times, you start to realize that the experience isn’t all that bad.  In fact, you might start enjoying it after a while and even start viewing it as a challenge and even exciting.  I can attest to it that from my experience, I honestly do look forward to new speaking challenges.  It helps me to learn and grow as a person.

Another door that TMs has opened up for me is I am better able to talk about my daughter’s Aspergers, which is so important, when talking to family, friends, neighbors, teachers, community resources, etc.  I have written a couple of speeches about my experiences with Aspergers and entered one of them in a competition last year and won 2^nd place at the Area level.  Because I was involved in that, my audience that I was educating about Aspergers increased that much more, every time I gave that speech.  And what is it exactly that we try to promote here?  Education.  The more people that understand and know about Aspergers, the better we can all get along.  My primary purpose in writing that speech was to educate others about my journey of being an Aspie mom.  Of course, as you all know, that journey continues on for the rest of your life and is actually rather difficult to cut down to a 7 ½ minute talk. 

Also, one of my friends encouraged me to start a blog, based on that speech, and I did.  That was an interesting experience in itself and further got the word out that way too.  I heard from people I’d never heard from before.  Then, I experimented with recording videos and posting them to youtube, which I did as part of my speech rehearsal.  So for me I have had quite the educational journey with TMs, and I just think it can be beneficial to a lot of people in so many ways, especially if you are able to communicate better and can teach others what we so desperately need them to understand.   

I guess at this point I just wondered if anyone had any questions about anything I’ve talked about.  If not, I’ll share with you a light-hearted video I made about some of the funnier experiences I have had with being Amber’s mom.  http://youtu.be/NZxJX-2GW_Q