Toast Talk

Dear Club President and Club VP Education:

THE DISTRICT 7 BUSINESS MEETING requires your club’s vote, as the elected representatives of your club, at Leadership ’11.

To ensure there is a quorum at the business meeting, please fill out a proxy form for your club. This form is a critical tool for District 7 in the planning and executing of the business meeting! We need to have a proxy form on file for both the President and VP Education for each club.

The proxy form is used to indicate how we should handle your club’s votes. Please fill out this form even if you plan to attend the conference. This is so that we can place your ballots into your name badge to have them ready for you (and avoid you having to spend 20 minutes in line to reach the credentials table). Adding a backup proxy, in case you don’t arrive by the business meeting, will also help ensure that your club’s voice is represented at this critical meeting where the future of D7 is voted on!

If you will not be attending the Leadership ’11 conference, you must still submit the proxy form and indicate who from your club should receive your ballots (we prefer you proxy to “any member of the club” but you can specify any two club members to receive your ballot)

MAKE SURE YOUR CLUB IS REPRESENTED AT THE DISTRIC 7 BUSINESS MEETING BY SUBMITTING THE PROXY FORM

As a fellow Vice President of Education, I’m focused on developing the members of my club into the next generation of club leaders.  One of the best tools I’ve found to get people excited about being a leader is district events.  I have seen many members transform their ideas about what they want to be at these events and I want your members to have the same experience.

My progression started in 2009 at the spring district contest.  Past District Governor Ann Snelling (then active in the role) traveled with her husband Le from Silverton to Grants Pass to be a part of the event.  Watching her inspired me and when approached by the Division governor about serving as Area Governor for the coming year, I made the decision that this was my new Toastmasters direction.

By winter of 2010, I was serving as a VP in my local club and attending Toastmaster’s Leadership Institute (TLI) in Wilsonville when I connected with Rose Wellman, our current Lt. Gov of Education and Training who was running the D7 website.  I was inspired to continue serving the district and stepped up to help her.

It’s now fall of 2011 and I’ve served in all club officers roles except treasurer.  I served one year as an Area governor and the district’s webmaster.  I was involved with communication 10 and served as conference chair for Leadership 10 and Communication ’11.  Leadership ’11 marks a new venture for me as I step forward into a speaking roll with my session Lead the Room: Be an Efficient, Effective, and comfortable meeting leader.

I don’t believe that any of this would have occurred had I not attended the District event in 2009 and I thank those who encouraged me to go.   Who in your club is the next leader just waiting to step forward?  Encourage all your members to attend District Events and Sign up for Leadership ’11 before the price goes up on October 25th!

Scott Alexander

VP of Education Jefferson State Toastmasters

Here are 5 compelling reasons why it should:

D7 Calendar – Let your members see all upcoming club, area, district events and networking opportunities. Quickly check-out numerous occasions to celebrate the success of our district and meet other D7 Toastmasters from clubs in Oregon west of the Cascades to the coast, a small part of Southern Washington and Northern California.

Member Resources – Tips and techniques to assist you in promoting your club, ideas for open house events, speech contest kits, DTM Excel Worksheet and numerous articles including, but not limited to, ways to be a great leader and how to become a distinguished club.

Connect you club to the bigger picture of Toastmasters International – Learn about club incentives that recognize members, clubs and district leaders for their outstanding efforts for club membership, education, leadership and promotion of Toastmasters. Easily find meeting locations of clubs throughout U.S and world.

D7 Call for Speakers – Do you have members interested in presenting at upcoming district events and premier conferences. We are always looking for speakers and we especially like to feature our members. Connect your members with the D7 Call for Speakers!

Associate with D7 – Connect with members on and  to share your ideas, photos and track what club is in possession of the Traveling Gavel (Find out the details on D7′s new Traveling Gavel at Leadership ’11). Have fun, meet new people, share the Toastmaster’s experience and plan how your club can capture the gavel.

Invest in your club’s success by sponsoring one of your officers or members to attend Leadership ’11 on November 5^that the Oregon Convention Center, located in the heart of downtown Portland’s Rose Quarter/Lloyd district.

Toastmasters, Where Leaders are Made, is not just a tagline, it’s reality. Dedication, communication, and engagement are key elements to being an effective leader. Capitalize on these qualities and ensure your club continues on the path to being a Toastmasters President’s Distinguished Club. Don’t delay or, lose sight of your club’s vision. Register your sponsored club officer or member now for Leadership ’11, the Northwest’s premier leadership conference – a day certain to be filled with information, education, inspiration, entertainment and worth every dollar.

When deciding which officer or member your club is going to sponsor, it’s vital that you adhere to Toastmasters International policy. Essentially, club funds “may not be used for social or political purposes, or for the benefit of any individual”. However, Clubs can spend their funds on Toastmaster related business, like a Club Sponsorship program, providing (1) a vote from their active membership is conducted and (2) the club directly benefits as a result of using their club funds. Since Leadership ’11 is focused on leadership training, a suggested requirement can be that the officer or member awarded the sponsorship is required to give a speech on a leadership lesson learned at the conference.

It is also important to note that during the Leadership ‘11 business meeting, scheduled at 1:00 p.m. on November 5^th, important D7 business is taking place! To ensure that there is a quorum and your club is represented, Toastmasters International clearly defines that, in the absence of the President and/or VP Education and designated by stated officer, a member of the club may represent the club and vote on their behalf.

According to ASTD* the average working person in the US receives five days training each year. Approximately, 80% is functional and short-term: how to use corporate IT systems, overview of company processes, industry-specific skills, and so on.

The other 20% is for long-term training leadership, team management, problem solving, decision making, project and change management, personal effectiveness, communication skills, and more.

This means on the average,  YOU receive only one day’s training each year from your employer focused on the essential skills that make a real, long-term difference for YOU to have a successful career.

Invest in yourself by attending Leadership ’11, the Northwest’s premier leadership conference on Nov 5th at the Oregon Convention Center.    

*American Society for Training and Development report 2008

Brand new this year is our Friday night event. Leadership has never had a Friday night event and we want to see everyone show up for a great night. Rory Vaden will present “The Audience is Not in their Underwear!”. His presentation will be followed by a networking and the evening will be finished off with a Tall Tales exhibition.