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The 20th century gifted mankind with unprecedented ideas & incidents; ideas that
left many legacies. The advent of computers & the internet stands to be one
of them. These advancements have carried us into a future where soft skills
have become a determining factor in an individual’s life. One such idea which
now, in retrospect, appears way ahead of its time laid its roots in the mind of
a young Ralph Smedley, an American guy, in his late twenties.
The Inception: Journey of an Idea
The year is
1905; Ralph working as director of education at Young Men’s Christian
Association (YMCA) realizes a need for the men in the community to learn how to
articulate clearly, conduct meetings, plan programs and work on committees.
This realization & identification of the existing gaps gave birth to an
idea, which would later be materialized and known to the world as Toastmasters International.
For Smedley, it wasn't just about ideas; instead, it was about making ideas
happen.
The journey
started with a simple vision to promote ation and leadership skills in
people through clubs named “Toastmasters.” In the year 1905 in the state of
Illinois, the club started informally, and more people started showing interest
in the activities it conducted. But as luck would have it, Smedley was offered
a position at YMCA California. He had to shift for work, and the nascent club
could not survive due to a lack of proper leadership. Time was testing, but a final
nail in the coffins of hardship was yet to be struck.
The club in
Illinois did not survive, but the idea in the mind of Smedley survived. It
survived unflinchingly through decades. It resurrected in 1924 in California by
defeating the “Shakuni” that is time, and that idea today is known by the name
of Toastmasters International (TI). Wondering what it is? Let’s dive in...
What is it all about?
A Toastmaters
meeting is a 2-hour affair usually held on weekends. The theme of each meeting is
introduced by Toastmaster of the Day. The sessions are run in a very organized
& pre-planned manner, i.e., all the Toastmasters' meetings run in a specific
format. The format comprises of role plays & tasks by the attendees. Each
role player has a specific responsibility to carry. The sessions start with prepared
speeches on topics by the participants. The idea behind this segment is to give
people a chance to work upon their public speaking and communication skills by
speaking on a topic of their choice.
Next up is a
voluntary segment called Table Topics, where participants have to give an
extempore on the given topic. The purpose is to push people to think creatively
and spontaneously, to keep them on their toes. Finally, the segment comes
wherein the previous activities are reviewed, and suggestions are given for
improvement. People assume various roles. They might be Toastmaster of the day,
General Evaluator, Table Topic Master, Timer, Grammarian, Speech evaluator or a
Counter.
Post the
session, every single person gives his/her suggestions and reviews for
everything, be it speakers or any role-player. Their opinions remain anonymous.
This makes a healthy practice for improvement, and one gets to be in a crowd
who asks for help and who is willing to help in any matter. Finally, voting is
done for best speech, best table topic, and best role player; the winners are awarded,
and the session comes to an end with everyone departing with a smile!
A Quest for Change and Development
The question
still remains, is it all just about a meeting? Or about giving speeches,
communication, leadership or
public speaking or constructive criticism? No! The toastmaster story is a story
about change, a change in accordance with time that how an organisation has
transformed its methods with time to contribute something useful & relevant
(and that’s a message to take home.) In hindsight isn't Change the underlying
philosophy of Communication & Leadership, change to stay relevant and ahead
of the times?!
Written by - Jaykishan Laljani
Edited by - Garima Singh
Edited by - Garima Singh
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