Over the past year I’ve been improving my speaking skills through the Competent Communicator manual that Toastmasters provides and with the help of fellow members at our club.
Various members at the club talk about improving listening skills along side the speaking skills. I’ve never really paid that much attention to the listening skills and thought is was just a thing “experienced toastmasters rattled on about”.
How wrong I was.
Just this morning I attended a breakfast networking meeting and listened to a presentation from a local charity. There were three presenters aver the 15 minutes and although the information they gave us was very good to hear, the delivery left much to be desired.
This is where my own “now improved” listening skills have come into their own. The amount of advice I wanted to give these presenters was huge. But what to do without offending them.
I resolved to congratulate them on a great presentation and tell them about my nervousness from a year ago when I started to give public presentations and told them about how I’d overcome my “umms and Ahs” and am now almost free from using those “filler words and sounds” and all due to the excellent guidance I get through Toastmasters and Brighton and Hove Speakers Club members.
So, if you have a fear of public speaking or want to take the step up to the next level of professionalism in your presentation skills, I urge you to come along to our next meeting and see how Toastmasters and Brighton and Hove Speakers Club can help to get you there.
When you join Toastmasters through Brighton and Hove Speakers Club you’ll receive two manuals that lead you through 10 speaking and 10 leadership projects in a caring and supportive environment where you can improve and get advice all at your own pace.
