Moments of Truth

Tuesday night I presented a module from the Successful Club Series called "Moments of Truth". This is a one-hour module that I attempted to present in 10-15 minutes (truth be told, I was over 18 minutes, but I gave it a shot!).

A Moment of Truth is an episode when a prospective member comes in contact with any aspect of the Toastmaster experience & forms an impression of the club's quality and service. We must be mindful at all times of the impression our club makes on others, because we are only in existence to serve the needs of our members. Although some of them overlap in different areas, each is important in creating a positive Moment of Truth for our members.

Our Executive Committee is dedicated to creating the best experience possible for our members. I have emailed this to all our members for feedback, but if you are a guest reader of this blog, I hope you will take a few moments to consider how well your club meets the six criteria set forth in "Moments of Truth."

First Impressions

Member Orientation

Fellowship, variety and communication

Program planning and meeting organization

Membership strength

Achievement recognition

First Impressions:

Each guest is greeted at the door & introduced to other members

Each guest is given a name tag & asked to fill out an information card

Meeting room is set up in a professional manner

Location is easily accessible & user friendly

Guests are encouraged to participate in the meeting & comment on their experience

Guests are invited to join the day of their visit.

Member Orientation:

New members are formally inducted and receive a pin & basic manuals

Mentors are assigned

Discuss the educational program benefits with new members

Survey the new member's learning needs

Assign a speaking role as soon as possible

Continue to make new members feel welcome by encouraging them to participate on an ongoing basis

Fellowship, Variety & Communication:

Members greet guests & make them feel welcome

VP Education plans enjoyable, dynamic programs

Regularly scheduled social events

Members are encouraged to participate in Area, District & International events

Inter-Club events are encouraged

Club newsletter/blog is published regularly

Program Planning & Meeting Organization:

Program & Agenda are publicized in advance

All members know their responsibilities and prepare to carry them out to the best of their abilities

Speeches originate from the basic & advanced Communication & Leadership manuals

Meetings begin & end on time

Creative Table Topics & theme meetings are featured

Positive, helpful evaluations based on project objectives & speaker's learning needs

Membership Strength:

Maintain a minimum of 20 members

Members are retained

Actively promote our club in the community or within the sponsoring organization

Continually plan varied & exciting club programs

Recognize Toastmasters who sponsor new members

Regular participation in membership building program

Recognizing Accomplishments:

Member's completed educational requirements are promptly submitted to World Headquarters

Member progress chart maintained & displayed at each meeting

Formally recognize member achievements

Recognize Club, District & International leaders

Member and Club achievements are publicized

Distinguished Club Program (DCP) is used for planning & recognition

Linda steps up for Tarrant County Toastmasters

On Tuesday, February 15th, Afterburner Linda Coleman attended the Tarrant County Toastmasters meeting as a guest to fulfill her opportunity as General Evaluator. (See previous story.)

Linda brought a great deal of excitement and energy to the meeting, leading Shirley Deckard and Pat Quick to some super evaluations for speeches given by Louie McClain and Lisa Woodard, respectively. In her Ice Breaker speech, Lisa revealed how she made history as Tarrant County’s first female African-American Justice of the Peace. Way to go, Lisa!

Linda also commented positively on how the club conducted its meeting and on the club's spirit and energy. Afterward, she made some great suggestions for helping the club reach its charter strength of 20 people. The club coaches are working on implementing them now. Thanks so much for the extra effort, Linda.

Linda has achieved her Competent Communicator and aspires to be a DTM someday. You might have noticed her stepping up to various club opportunities as she works towards her Dream Big Competent Leader commitment. Linda has also attended the District Conferences and enjoys the fun and excitement that we all share during those events. She will help Rose Timmons with the Hospitality Suite at the District 25 Spring Conference coming up May 20th and 21st.

Linda Coleman… Thank you for all you do, and for being who you are.

Steven Timmons

Afterburners are helping new club take off

Tarrant County Toastmasters is a fledgling club that meets in the Tarrant County Plaza building in downtown Fort Worth. Its Tuesday lunchtime meetings start at 12:00 and adjourn by 1:00 pm. The club sponsor is our Division A Governor Pat Quick and currently it has three club coaches: former Afterburner Dodi Foster, DeSorrow Golden of Energizers Toastmasters and Steven Timmons of Afterburners.

Tarrant County Toastmasters can use more support from Afterburners. We need 20 people to charter the club and some of your friends and relatives may be excited to know that they have another lunchtime club meeting in the downtown Fort Worth area. Please spread the word and help build this club up to full strength. You are all welcome to come down at lunch time on Tuesdays and visit as well.

Steven Timmons