Toastmasters International

What is Toastmasters International?

Toastmasters International is the world leader in helping people improve their public speaking and leadership skills.
Headquartered in Rancho Santa Margarita, California, the non-profit organization has more than 260,000 members in over 12,500 clubs in 113 countries. Since 1924, Toastmasters International has helped people of all backgrounds become more confident in front of an audience.
Learn more about Toastmasters International by browsing through the tabs or by checking the official website

Vision

Toastmasters International empowers people to achieve their full potential and realize their dreams. Through our member clubs, people throughout the world can improve their communication and leadership skills, and find the courage to change.

Mission

Toastmasters International is the leading movement devoted to making effective oral communication a worldwide reality.
Through its member clubs, Toastmasters International helps men and women learn the arts of speaking, listening, and thinking – vital skills that promote self-actualization, enhance leadership potential, foster human understanding, and contribute to the betterment of mankind.
It is basic to this mission that Toastmasters International continually expand its worldwide network of member clubs, thereby offering ever-greater numbers of people the opportunity to benefit from its programs.

Values

Toastmasters International’s core values are integrity, dedication to excellence, service to the member, and respect for the individual. These are values worthy of a great organization, and we believe we should incorporate them as anchor points in every decision we make. Our core values provide us with a means of not only guiding but also evaluating our operations, our planning, and our vision for the future.

A basement brainstorm

When people hear the word “basement” they’re more likely to picture mold and spiders than the birth place of a global communication and leadership training organization. But a basement in a YMCA in Santa Ana, California, is exactly where, in 1924, Ralph C. Smedley held the first meeting of what would eventually become Toastmasters International.

Smedley began working as director of education for a Young Men’s Christian Association (YMCA) after he graduated from college. He observed that many of the young patrons needed “training in the art of public speaking and in presiding over meetings” and Smedley wanted to help them. He decided the training format would be similar to a social club. During the early 1900s the word “toastmaster” referred to a person who proposed the toasts and introduced the speakers at a banquet. Smedley named his group “The Toastmasters Club” because he thought it suggested a pleasant, social atmosphere appealing to young men.

When Smedley started the Toastmasters group at the YMCA in Santa Ana, California, members practiced speaking skills in a supportive, informal atmosphere. The seedling club blossomed. Word spread about Smedley’s YMCA experiment and soon people in other communities and even other states began asking for permission and help to start their own Toastmasters meetings. By 1930 the burgeoning clubs had established a federation to help coordinate activities and provide a standard program. Toastmasters became Toastmasters International after a speaking club in New Westminster, British Columbia, Canada, expressed interest in joining the organization.

A series of rented office spaces in Southern California served as Toastmasters International’s “home office” until 1962. That year the staff moved into its first World Headquarters building in Santa Ana, not far from the YMCA where the first Toastmasters club met.

Over the next three decades the number of Toastmasters grew, and so did the need for a larger staff to service them. World Headquarters relocated in 1990 to its new building in Rancho Santa Margarita, California, about 20 miles south of Santa Ana. See our timeline for a detailed account of Toastmasters’ history.

The evolution of its educational programs and resources are a big part of Toastmasters International’s success and growth. Training has expanded from the 15-project manual Basic Training for Toastmasters, developed by Smedley, to include other materials to help members develop skills in listening, giving feedback, decision-making, delegating and mentoring.

With over 12,500 clubs and more than 260,000 members in 113 countries, Ralph Smedley’s “basement brainstorm” continues to thrive in the 21st century.

Famous Toastmasters

Organization Structure

Toastmasters International is an international nonprofit educational organization dedicated to making effective oral communication a worldwide reality. With its headquarters in southern California, the Toastmasters International organization is governed by a Board of Directors representing various clubs and regions around the globe. District 4 Toastmasters is a part of this organization, as summarized by the hierarchy listed below:

Members the participants – and benefactors – of the entire organization. There are currently over 262,000 members worldwide with 4,300 residing in District 4.

Clubs the core unit of the Toastmasters organization typically made up of 20 to 30 members. There are over 200 clubs in District 4.
The mission of a Toastmasters club is to provide a mutually supportive and positive learning environment in which every member has the opportunity to develop communication and leadership skills, which in turn foster self-confidence and personal growth.

Areas a group of 4 to 6 clubs supported by an area governor and area council made up of club officers. There are 39 areas in District 4.
The mission of the area is to provide district contact, support and services to the club so that the club may in turn fulfill its responsibilities to its members.

Divisions a group of 4 to 6 areas supported by a division governor and division council made up of area governors. District 4 is made up of 8 geographical divisions.
The mission of the division is to serve the clubs assigned to it by providing district support and resources through the area governors.

Districts a geographic area established by the Board of Directors of Toastmasters International. There are 83 districts worldwide. District 4′s geographic area includes the San Francisco peninsula, Silicon Valley, and the Santa Cruz and Monterey peninsulas.
The mission of the district 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.

Regions a geographic grouping of districts. There are 14 regions worldwide with an elected international director and an appointed region advisor marketing in each supporting their districts. District 4 is in Region II, which includes Hawaii, Nevada, Oregon and California from Ventura County north.
Every group within this structure exists solely to improve the activities offered by the Toastmasters program, and each of the larger groups is dedicated to helping the more local groups and individual clubs realize the Toastmaster vision of effective oral communication.

District 59

District 59 constists of over 180 clubs throughout continental Europe. The Munich Business Speakers are in the Division I, Area I2. Here is what our District Governor from 2010-2011 has to say

Dear fellow Toastmasters from District 59

CONGRATULATIONS to all of you. As Number 6 of the best Districts in the world we are a President´s Distinguished District. You can be very proud of (y)our accomplishments last year which helped lead to this wonderful recognition. What a great success! I’m very grateful having been a part of it.

Let’s look ahead. We are now one month into our Toastmasters year 2010-2011.
This will be a year full of exciting challenges and limitless possibilities. I believe that we deserve to repeat and even exceed last year’s success. We can do it. It is easy to do.

Have you already started the process of “Fulfilling Your Dreams”? How?

Continue to follow your goals. I’m sure you all have your communication and leadership goals written down. Remember that if you know where you’re heading the goal is easy to reach. Continue to fulfill your dreams by taking small steps toward the achievement of your goals. If you do so (y)our success is inevitable.

Make every speech count. Provide and receive valuable feedback. Help as a leader to ensure exciting quality meetings every single time. Toastmasters provides a variety of experiences on all levels of communication.

Share your passion and your experiences about Toastmasters with those around you. Toastmasters has a lot to offer for all of us. Why not start a new club in your company or in your neighborhood? Then we can give even more people in our District 59 the opportunity to benefit from the Toastmasters program. Starting new clubs leads to countless fun and very rewarding experiences.

Ask your Toastmasters colleagues what their expectations are and see how you can implement those ideas into your club’s environment. Sometimes a brief interview or survey can show many suggestions for improvement. Toastmasters is not static. It’s a dynamic and learning environment where all of us have the opportunity to grow beyond our expectations.

Have fun with everything you do and continue
“Fulfilling Your Dreams”.

Have a great day.
Benjamin