Toastmasters Helps You Establish Yourself as an Authority in Your Niche

Tired of chasing new clients and prospects?  Do you know the easiest way to attract new clients and prospects is to establish yourself as an authority in your niche?  When you give speeches to a small, medium or large group, you start to establish yourself as a leader and authority in your field.  People will remember you and begin to see you as an expert.  Instead of chasing after new clients and prospects, you will attract them to you like a magnet.

Do you want to become a better speaker and presenter? Is public speaking your biggest fear?  Are you worried about your next presentation?   Do you want to speak like a pro?  If your answer is “Yes”, I am sure you want to know how Toastmasters can help you establish yourself as an authority in your niche.

Before I tell you how, let me share my story with you. . .

In 2010, my husband Oliver and I started Golden Vision Training, a digital marketing training company.  As a shy introvert, I would have never imaged that I could be a trainer!  Luckily I had no problem teaching classes to a small or medium group of people. Since 2011 I have started to give free seminars on various digital marketing topics to practice my public speaking. Though I could deliver my topics well, I knew I need to have a systematic training to polish my public speaking skills. After some research, I found Toastmasters is my best choice.

Toastmasters International was established in 1924. It has more than 332,000 members in over 15,400 clubs in 135 countries around the world. I heard about this organization many years ago but I never thought it could help me because for years I had accepted the fact that I was not a good speaker.

Now as a trainer, I have to be a good speaker.  I joined Toastmaster in March 2014. I’ve witnessed so many members (including myself), who started as nervous newbie speakers, become better speakers with confidence.

Let me share with you how Toastmasters can help you.

• • Overcome your public speaking fear by practicing

Do you know the secret to overcoming the fear of public speaking? The secret is . . . “practice and practice and practice and practice.”

The toastmaster meetings are learn-by-doing workshops. There is no instructor but you will have a mentor assigned to you once you join the club. You decide your own pace according to your schedule.

We meet once a week. The meeting is structured in a way that gives everyone opportunities to stand up and speak. I recommend you attend the club meeting regularly. There are plenty of opportunities for you to take on different roles.

By taking different roles over and over again, by delivering speeches one after another, you will notice that you are less and less nervous but more and more confident. According to psychologists, repetition can loose your sense of sensitivity, fear and nervousness.

• • Follow the communication track to build your public speaking skills

Toastmasters educational system has two tracks – communication track and leadership track. The communication track is designed to build your public speaking skills step by step. You start with the Competent Communication manual. It has 10 projects. Each focuses on one main objective. It helps you build up the basics of your public speaking skills. For example, how to organize your speech, how to say it, how to use your body language, vocal variety, visual aids, etc.

Once you complete you Competent Communication manual, you enter into the advance level. You can choose from 15 advanced communication manuals to learn skills specific to your interest. For example, I am trainer and I want to be a professional speaker so I choose Professional Speaker manual. If you are in sales and marketing and want to increase your conversion and sales, you can use the Persuasive Speaking manual. If you just want to speak with humor, you can pick up the Entertaining Speaker or Humorously Speaking manual.

• • Follow the leadership track to develop your leadership skills

The leadership track is designed to help you develop your leadership skills. You get credits when you fulfill different club meeting roles, organize club events, and serve in the club executive team and beyond. Who says you are not a leader? Learn to be a leader at Toastmasters.

• • Develop critical-thinking skills and build listening skills

By writing your speeches on different topics and evaluating other member’s speeches, you will develop critical-thinking skills, improve your writing skills, and build listening skills. You will communicate in a clear, well-structured and logical way and speak like a pro.

• • Enjoy a safe, friendly, supportive and fun environment

We are a diverse group of people who work together to improve our public speaking skills.  We all want you to be successful. No one is a born speaker. We all started as a newbie speaker. Here is a safe place to practice and make mistakes. You will be amazed by the positive, encouraging and constructive feedback you will receive every time after delivering a speech or taking on a role. Moreover, we are a group of fun people. The theme of each meeting is different. Each meeting is exciting, educational, inspiring and fun.

As you give more speeches,  your confidence level increases.   You can offer to speak in other business and networking events such as  local business exhibitions, chamber of commerce events or local meetups.  Don’t forget to take photos and video your presentation which can be posted on your website and your Youtube channel.  A recent study shows that 51.9% of marketing professionals worldwide name video as the type of content with the best ROI.  Here are 8 reasons why you should use video marketing.

From an introvert to a confident speaker, I can’t say enough about the transformation Toastmasters has brought to my business and personal life. This year I have been selected to give a workshop on social media in Toastmasters District 86 Spring Conference. Even last year, I would not have imagined I could do it. It is the support and mentorship from our Confidently Speaking Toastmasters club members that encourages me to pursue a bigger dream.  English is not my native language.  If I can do it, you too can do it.

Find a Toastmasters club near you and get started.  Joining a Toastmasters club could be one of the best decisions you’ve ever made in your life. Three years later, when you look back, you’ll be amazed by the progress you’ve made in your career, business, and personal life.  Join us mailing list to learn how to market your business online using our WELCOME Lead Attraction System and be inspired.