District 13 Needs You!

NEW CLUB SPONSORS, NEW CLUB MENTORS AND CLUB COACHES

Every district’s mission is to enhance the performance and extend the network of clubs, thereby offering greater numbers of people the opportunity to benefit from the Toastmasters educational program. So how do you ensure that your district's club network is extending in the right direction?

And how do we ensure our existing clubs are flourishing?

We are in desperate need for new club sponsors, mentors and club coaches in District 13!

Training for all three positions will be offered at our our January 15, 2010 Toastmasters Leadership Institute. Visit www.d13tm.com to register today!


District 13 has been blessed with many leads for new clubs this year. To assist these new clubs in starting off on the right foot it is imperative for them to have Sponsors and Mentors.

CLUB SPONSOR

Each new club may have up to two sponsors. The sponsor is responsible for organizing the new club, including selling the new club idea to prospective member, helping to set up regular meetings, completing paperwork, and planning the charter presentation. Sponsors receive a certificate and credit toward the Advanced Leader Silver (ALS) award after they return the Get Credit form. In addition, District 13 also recognizes Club Sponsors - see Incentive post.

CLUB MENTOR

Each new club may have up to two mentors who are appointed by the district governor. Mentors should be experienced Toastmasters who actually join the new club, providing guidance during the first six months to one year of its existence. The mentor receives a certificate and credit toward the Advanced Leader Silver (ALS) award after they return their Get Credit form. Note: Mentors may apply for credit no sooner than six months after the club's official charter date. In addition, District 13 also recognizes Club Mentors - see Incentive post.

In addition, District 13 has 22 clubs that are eligible for a CLUB COACH.

CLUB COACH

* An experienced Toastmaster who volunteers to help another club in their area.
* This Toastmaster is not a member of the club and they are not familiar with the club or its members.
* This Toastmaster is typically working towards their Advanced Leader Silver.

Responsibilities:

* Assist the club in raising its membership and helping the club fulfill the requirements necessary to reach distinguished status or better.
* Build a rapport with club leadership and its members.
* Assess the environment, observe, analyze and recommend solutions.
* Develop a plan with goals for improvement.
* Implement the plan and help club officers and members to achieve their goals.
* Instill enthusiasm, loyalty and a sense of responsibility for the club's future.

When requesting a club coach, what regulations should I be aware of?

* A club coach may only be assigned by the district governor or lt. governor marketing.
* At the time of the assignment, the club membership must show 12 or fewer members.
* Maximum of two club coaches may be appointed to each club.
* The club coach appointment lasts from the date of appointment to June 30 of the current year if the club becomes a distinguished club or better. If distinguished club status is not reached in the initial program year then the assignment will be extended to June 30 of the following year.

District 13 Club Coach recognition - see Incentive post.

If you are interesting learning more about these three important roles just click the corresponding link on the right column or reply to this column.

Remember, you do NOT have to be working specifically on your Advanced Leader Silver to apply for these roles. You will still receive the credit that can be applied later.

Spring 2011 Club Incentives

Wow! The Fall Club Incentives brought lots of activity from our District 13 Clubs! FIVE Clubs achieved the Smedley Award by adding 5 new members during the months of August/September. Congratulations to Symposium #963214, Bayer #1014683, Penn Hills #1104, Toasteelers #714756 and Westinghouse Cranberry #1276571.

We also had two winners "first-timers" attend the Fall Conference for FREE! Elnora Fortson from the Penn Hills Club and Christine Hampe from the Bayer Club attended their first conference thanks to their clubs fulfilling all three of the Club Incentive requirements which were: Add five new members during the months of August/September (Smedley) 2. All seven club officers were attended by the August 30th deadline and 3. Turned in their dues by the September 30th deadline.

I know we can do better this Spring so I have decided to repeat my Club Incentive. This time your club must add 5 new members during the months of February/March (Talk Up Toastmasters), have all 7 officers trained by the deadline and turn in 75% of your club dues by March 31, 2010!

Once again the clubs that fulfill all three requirements will be able to send a first-timer to the Spring Conference AND have their club's name put in a drawing for 1) 100.00 Toastmaster Store Gift Certificates or one of 2) 50.00 Toastmaster Store Gift Certificates!

We'll be sending out lots of information on this incentive in our District 13 Keynotes and Newsletter.

Who will be your club's leaders in 2010/2011?

As the end of our Toastmaster year nears (June 30th) each club has an important decision to make.

Who will be your club's leaders in 2010/2011?

What a wonderful opportunity for your club members to grow in their leadership skills! In my opinion the only prerequisite for becoming a club officer is a commitment to learn and grow for the next 12 months.

Toastmasters International will provide you with excellent training tools. First of all, you will receive a manual that thoroughly details how to accomplish your role as an officer. In addition, District 13 provides officer training twice a year to give you one on one instruction and the opportunity to network with other Toastmasters serving in your same officer position. Some will be first time officers and many will be veterans in the role.

Choosing your new officers now also affords them the opportunity to work with the outgoing officers for 2 months before the new Toastmaster year begins on July 1st.

These decisions should be made now so that your new officer list can be in place at Toastmasters International well before the June 30th deadline. Sending in your new officer list prior to the deadline starts your new Toastmaster year with one point towards becoming a Distinguished Club! This can be done online at www.toastmasters.org under Club Business. What could be easier?

International President, Gary Schmidt, DTM, explains the benefits of becoming an officer in the front cover of our May 2010 Toastmaster magazine.

"This is the time of year when we elect officers to serve in every level of leadership in our organization. Are you stepping up to the plate to serve as an officer in your club or district?" Gary goes on to explain the benefits, "Every leadership role I undertook in Toastmasters has made me a better communicator, a stronger leader and a more well-rounded person. I owe my career and increased responsibilities at work to the leadership lessons I learned in Toastmasters."

Need more information about the different officer roles to share with your club? The following link provides some guidelines and checklists to help you succeed as a club officer:

http://www.toastmasters.org/clubofficers.aspx

Ways to Promote Your Club Online

There are a variety of ways to promote Toastmasters and your home club online.

Here are a few suggestions:

1. Add Toastmasters to your email signature. Something s simple as "Ask Me About Toastmasters" with a link to either Toastmasters International - or even better - your club's website. (or both!)

2. Are you on Facebook? Talk about Toastmasters in your posts, add Toastmasters to your profile bio and a link to your club's website on your profile. Connect with other Toastmasters on Facebook and subscribe to the District 13 Public Relations Group.

3. Open a Twitter account for your club and tweet away! You can even add a link on your club's website to lead people to your Twitter account.

4. Add Toastmasters to your LinkedIn profile along with a link to your club's website. Join the District 13 Toastmasters group.

5. Sign up at TribLive's Pittsburgh Neighborhoods and promote your meetings on the Events page. Go to this link to find the neighborhood closest to your club. Be sure to post when, where and how often you meet.

6. Use the "Meet Our Members" feature on our freetoasthost website. Encourage your members to share a short bio on why they joined Toastmasters or how it has helped them along with their picture. Visitors to your website will feel as if they have already "met you" before they arrive at your door.

7. Link you club's website to your club's listing at Toastmasters International and Google. Not sure how to do that? Contact me!

8. Check your club's listing at the District 13 website and provide updated information regarding your club's website for the webmaster.

Do you have a suggestion on how to promote your club online? Share it in the comments section!

"Your Members and You" - Membership Growth/Retention Incentives

In addition to the Toastmasters International recognition, District 13 is offering the following additional incentive programs for club building and membership growth/retention through June 30, 2011.

Fall and Spring Club Incentives: Clubs that complete the following (3) requirements will win one free "first-timers" conference registration (hotel not included) for the corresponding conference (Spring or Fall) AND have their Club's name put in a drawing at that conference for a chance to win a $100.00 Toastmaster store gift certificate or one of (2) $50.00 Toastmaster store gift certificates:

1) Add 5 new members in the months of Aug/Sep (Smedley - Fall Conference) or Feb/Mar (Talk Up Toastmasters - Spring Conference 2) All seven of club officers trained before deadline. 3) 75% of club dues sent in prior to September 30 (Fall Incentive) or March 30 (Spring Incentive)

There are TWO chances per year for your club to participate in these incentives. All clubs are entitled to both incentives each calendar year.

Membership Growth: Clubs with less than 12 members that increase their membership by 5 new members will receive a complete set of one of the following: The Successful Club Series, The Better Speaker Series, The Leadership Excellence Series or The Advance Communication Series.

Club Coaches: Club Coaches who help bring their assigned clubs to Distinguished status by June 15, 2011 will receive a Toastmasters International Promotional Zip Tote and Recycled Portfolio.

New Club Sponsors: New Club Sponsors who bring their new club to charter status will receive a special pin from the LGM, a Toastmasters International Promotional travel mug and Attache Case.

New Club Mentors: New Club Mentors that work with the newly chartered club for a minimum of 6 months will receive a special pin from the LGM, a Toastmasters International Promotional Crown Pen and Business Card Holder.

Talk Up Toastmasters!

The Talk Up Toastmasters Contest is right around the corner, beginning on February 1st

Talk Up Toastmasters!
Program Dates: February 1 – March 31
Toastmasters love to talk? So take advantage of it. During the "Talk Up Toastmasters!" membership contest, you can encourage your members to invite guests to a special meeting where regular procedures are augmented by a discussion of Toastmasters' many benefits. Add five new, dual or reinstated members to your roster between February 1 and March 31 to receive a special "Talk up Toastmasters!" ribbon to display on your club’s banner. Membership applications and payment for members who join between February 1 and March 31 must be received at World Headquarters or online no later than March 31. Each members join date as listed on the application must be no later than March. Transfer and charter members do not count for credit. Effective July 1, 2009, in addition to the ribbon, qualifying clubs will also earn a special discount code for 10% off their next club order.

What does YOUR Club have planned to increase membership during the program dates?

How about an Open House?  Did you know Toastmasters International now provides a free Open House power point presentation ?  It can be downloaded by visiting their new Virtual Brand Portal at this address:  http://www.toastmasters.org/vbp/

(if the link does not take you to the Virtual Brand Portal cut and paste the url into your address bar)

You'll also find business card templates, fliers for both corporate and community clubs, and lots more goodies!

Share your ideas by commenting to this post!

FAQ - Can I give speeches outside of my club?

Answer:  Yes. You are allowed to do up to two speeches per manual outside of your club, as long as you have received prior permission of your Vice President Education. You also need to get a written and verbal evaluation from a Toastmaster, although the Toastmaster does not need to be in the same club as you.

Example: Do you belong to a corporate club?  Do you give presentations for your company?  As long as you have a Toastmaster to evaluate your speech you can give up to two presentations PER MANUAL outside of your club meeting.

Your Club's International Speech Contests and Evaluation Contests

How familiar are you with the District 13 Calendar?  It's the best way to keep up with what is going on around District 13.

For instance, did you know that all the clubs in District 13 should have their International Speech and Evaluation Contests completed by February 28th?

That means if you are your club's VP of Education you should already be informing your members to start working on their contest speeches and ordering your contest materials.

You'll need to order Item 1169 for the International Speech Contest and Item 1169E for your Evaluation Contest.  You also need to arrange a Model Speaker for your Evaluation Contest - try to find someone outside of your club as your model speaker to give your contestants a fresh speaker to evaluate.

Your certificates of participation (Item 510D) , prizes and/or trophies are not included in your contest packs so be sure to make arrangements for those as well.  If you club's budget can't support purchasing trophies be creative.  Even a nice First, Second or Third place certificate is a great display of recognition.  Just don't let your winners OR participants go home empty handed.

Not sure of the rules?  Tadaaa!

Need help encouraging your members to enter the contests?  I found this article in Toastmaster's magazine, Manner of Speaking: The Real Prize, to be very effective.

Okay, you're all set!  Have a great contest and don't forget to share your results with your Area Governor.  They will be arranging the next stop for your winning speaker's contest.

Awesome TLI!

Wow!  What a great Toastmaster's Leadership Institute today.  I hope you enjoyed your training as much as I did!

Congratulations to our Lgt. Governor of Education, Paulette Harvey, for putting on such a great training for us.

I would like to thank Rob Olszewski, District 13 Public Relations Officer, and Francine Milligan for helping me with my workshop today.

If for some reason you weren't able to attend training today be sure to contact your Area Governor to find out where and when your club's make-up training will be held.

Oh, and the first one to comment on this post and tell me they were in attendance today will win a 10.00 gift certificate to the Toastmasters store for their club!