Evaluations: Beyond Toastmasters

As our very own Dr. Chan once said “Toastmasters is not just about giving speeches; there are applications way beyond just learning how to give an effective speech…” Truer words were never spoken. As with most things, we tend to gloss over the underlying benefits of Toastmasters and focus on the more obvious ones.

Speech evaluations are no exception.

The most obvious benefits of speech evaluations in Toastmasters are learning how to give effective and productive feedback, and how to receive and apply feedback to improve our speech skills. As we leave the Toastmaster meeting room, the skills of effective evaluation leave with us as we go on with life. The “sandwiching” technique comes in handy when we talk to our children, especially teenagers. “Praise - Correct - Praise” is so much more effective than “Criticize – Correct – Correct”. Consistently practicing evaluation at Toastmasters equips us with the diplomacy and tact to work with the various people in our lives - managers, supervisors, co-workers, direct reports, customers, neighbors, spouses – the list goes on!

A truly effective evaluation is a win-win proposition. We can express an opinion openly and freely without ruffling too many feathers. (Personally it saves me from the agony of keeping that opinion bottled up for fear of hurting somebody’s feelings.) But it is also a golden opportunity for the person being evaluated to learn something from it and correct or enhance their skill. To become a better person!

Here is a two part video (total of 15 minutes) by a well known Toastmaster Brendan Murphy, DTM. This is a speech he gave at our club Star Search Toastmasters.

Evaluate to Motivate (Part 1)
Evaluate to Motivate (Part 2)

Do you have a mentor yet?

“What should my Ice Breaker speech look like?”
“I have finished 3 speeches; I cannot for the life of me figure out what to do for my 4th speech.”
“How do I participate in a contest? What can I do to prepare?”
“What is CL? Why should I do it? How?”

Do you find yourself challenged with quandaries such as these? Do you wish you could connect with an experienced member, sit down with them and get answers to these questions?

This is your opportunity! Find a mentor who can help you along on this journey of public speaking and leadership.

In the Toastmaster world, a mentor is a more experienced member who takes a personal interest in and helps another member. Mentors serve as role models, coaches, and confidantes, offering knowledge, insight, perspective, or wisdom useful to the other member. Please watch this educational speech by Albert Mo to learn more about mentoring within Toastmasters:



A Star Search mentor can help a new member become familiar with the club or can assist a more experienced member in learning special skills.

We at Star Search are fortunate to have several experienced, articulate and talented speakers and leaders who have volunteered to be mentors. If you have not already paired up with a mentor, please do so – select a mentor from the list below and send me an email. If you are a new member and not familiar with the names listed below, I can help by assigning a mentor to you.

Albert M, ACB, CL
Diana W, CC
George M, ACG
James T, ACB, ALB
Margaret C, DTM
Murthy T, CC
Prasad B, ACS Shashi M, CC, CL
SubbaRao V, CC
Sharad N, CC
Rakhi S

Please email me with any questions, concerns or suggestions that you might have regarding the mentorship program.

Membership Interest Survey

As we embark on a new term, I think this is the perfect time for all of us to take a few moments to reflect on our goals as Toastmasters. As someone once said "It is a dream until you write it down, and then it is a goal".

I am sending out this survey to help with identifying and writing down your goals in both the communication and leadership tracks. Here is the link: http://spreadsheets.google.com/viewform?key=p5ttqnpNSbpSqamyAgwosJg&email=true

For the newer members, if you are unsure of certain terms (CTM, ACG, ACS etc) that are used in the survey, this is your cue to go back to the New Member kit and review the manuals. As always please feel free to send me or any of the officers an email with your questions.

A quote by Benjamin Mays to ponder upon: "The tragedy of life doesn't lie in not reaching your goal. The tragedy lies in having no goals to reach."