JIm K Toastmasters Saint John

In April 2020 people are living through a pandemic as the COVID-19 virus has spread around the world.  The virus spreads quickly with human contact, so many people are living with rules or strong guidance to practice social distancing, or physical distancing. I have seen and prefer the terminology physical distancing with social connecting.  This guidance means people should maintain physical distance from those other than those in your household, and holding no large gatherings, which in some locations means no more than two people. People are limiting the occasions when they leave their homes, and when they do so, must work to maintain two metres of distance between themselves and others. As a result of these physical distancing measures many businesses have closed, hopefully temporarily, or changed their methods of operation. Restaurants and coffee shops are take out only, for example, if they have remained open. Toastmasters clubs have adapted as well. We ...

The inspiration for a speech can come from many places. Neil Peart was the drummer for the rock band Rush.   He passed on January 7 th at age 67.   I wasn’t a fan of the band, but I had seen them in concert twice. His death and the news coverage made me think about my experiences as a possible speech topic. I saw Rush a few years ago on their final tour. As it was their final tour, I got a ticket for their show in Montreal at the Bell Centre. The crowd was adoring. They recognized even the obscure songs after just a few notes, or after an introductory drum roll. I recognized very few of the songs. I’ve always admired the three musicians. They displayed immense talent, but over the years I never really enjoyed the intricate songs like Bytor and the Snow Dog, to name just one. That said, I am glad that I had two opportunities to see them live. The first time I saw Rush was in the 1970’s as a kid growing up in Sydney, Nova Scotia. The headliner was April Wine, the o...

On the evening of Tuesday, July 16 th, the Toastmasters clubs in the Saint John region held a summer showcase event at the Kent Theater. This provided Toastmasters members with an opportunity to meet, socialize, and network, and gave opportunity to speak using a handheld microphone from the larger stage of the Kent theater, and to a larger audience.   I t’s important for us to gently push members outside their comfort zones to expand their skills and experience. Toastmasters clubs consistently provide a supportive learning environment.   However, the club environment does become familiar to members. The environment is still valuable, enabling members to practice the skills of planning and running meetings, planning speeches, delivering speeches and shorter impromptu talks, receiving verbal feedback, and offering verbal feedback to others. When our members use their skills to communicate outside of a Toastmasters meeting, the environment is never the same as a cl...

“ How we spend our days is, of course, how we spend our lives” This line is from The Writing Life by author Annie Dillard.   Whenever I read the line, it causes me to consider how I spend my days, and my life. For many the beginning of a new year causes them to consider in a similar way. The theme of this blog is Toastmasters, and more broadly personal development.   People sometimes ask me why I continue as a Toastmasters member after thirty-two years ( I joined in 1987).   In many ways the quote from Annie Dillard answers that question.   Toastmasters is about personal development, and predominately communication and leadership skills, although there is so much more in the environment of a Toastmasters club. I choose to spend much of my time with people working on personal development, predominantly communication and leadership skills, for two main reasons.   First these are skills, and skills require practice.   I enjoy being in ...

As September draws to a close, Toastmasters clubs in southern New Brunswick are again in full swing.  Many of our clubs that meet in the evenings take a summer recess although those that meet in the early morning or noon tend to keep operating throughout the summer.  We Canadians treasure our warm, summer evenings!  With five public clubs, and one closed club for employees of CRA, between Saint John and Sussex there are a number of options for people who join and develop and practice their communication and leadership skills.  While the public is conditioned to a semester like approach to learning, Toastmasters clubs run regular recurring meetings where the individual learning is self-paced so people can join at any point.     Around the world participation continues to grow.  At the recent Annual Convention held in Chicago it was announced that we have now had 24 years of continued growth, although these days the fastest growth is skewed ...

My previous blog post was on the topic of storytelling and how we need to voice our stories to find areas to emphasize and add color, and to learn what aspects resonate with an audience.  On the date I published that blog post there was yet another mass shooting in the U.S.A,. this time at Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida.  Seventeen people died unnecessarily as a result of easy access to guns that can fire dozens of rounds in seconds.   The students from the high school are now professionally and calmly demanding that their schools be safe and that changes to gun accessibility be made. On television and social media platforms students are offering clear, simple, honest stories on their experience in losing their friends in such a horrific way.  Unimaginable to me. Those students in the media ten days after the tragedy are articulate and applying great pressure on politicians with their entrenched positions on gun ownership rights...