Ideas for new Toastmasters Club(s) in Danbury Area

Below are a series of emails between Dave Wheeler and Edina Soboleski, former Area A4 Governor and member of Barnum Square Toastmasters, about some ideas for potential new Toastermasters clubs for Area A4 .

As with all "email strings", it is best if you start reading them from the bottom and work your way up, message by message.

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From: Dave Wheeler Sent: Monday, July 25, 2005
To: "Edina Soboleski" Subject: Re: Toastmasters

Edina,
I'm not exactly sure how we would find a list of DTM, ATM-S & ATM-G, but I will see if I can get the information from the district and I will let you know what I find out!
Dave

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In an email dated 7/25/2005, "Edina Soboleski" writes:

Dave, You can post it. I don't have a problem with ATM-S but I think that it has to be kept to a real tough standard because after you get your DTM there is not as much motivation but we still need to speak & be evaluated or we lose our skills.

Is there any way of determining how many DTM, ATM-G & ATM-S, we have in the area - not Toastmasters definition of area, a radius of x # of miles. It might be an opportunity to get old Toastmasters to return. I've been working on virtual Chapters in another association that I belong to for about 7 - 8 years. I think it's a great idea but I couldn't seem to get it off the ground. I couldn't find a large corp. who would support me with the technology.
Edina
Interim Service Executives
Source For Temporary Service Professionals

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From: Dave Wheeler Sent: Monday, July 25, 2005
To: "Edina Soboleski" Subject: Re: Toastmasters

Edina,
Yes, I expect any new club would count toward the numbers (assuming it got over 20 members). Do you think there are enough ATM-G in the Danbury area to create a full-fledged club? Maybe if ATM-S were included ...as "probational members" perhaps... there could be a larger pool of potential members.

Another idea I've been kicking around (which may or may not be related) is to create a "virtual club" which would have [at least some of] their meetings via conference calls and web video hookups. This would help the members learn a new communication medium which is becoming more common in the corporate world.

I ran the virtual club idea past Toastmasters International (via Rich Couture, past District 53 governor) and they said that a club would still require [at least some form of] "in person" meetings. Our Division Governor this year (Karin) works for IBM so we might have some help with the technology.

I'm not sure if this idea overlaps with the ATM-G club idea, but it seems like both ideas could be most attractive to advanced toastmasters.

What do you think? Would you mind if I post your idea (via a transcript of this email) to my web log to see if we can get comments from others?
Best Regards,
Dave Wheeler

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In an email dated 7/24/2005 "Edina Soboleski" writes:

Dave,
Does an advanced(name?) club count towards your numbers? There are a few of us who would like a club for ATM-G's, if we have enough in the Area. We talked about meeting monthly at the Holiday Inn in Danbury.
What do you think?
Edina
Interim Service Executives
Source For Temporary Service Professionals

The Leadership Vector (Toastmaster speech by DW)

I gave the speech on The Leadership Vector on July 6th and wrote about it on my other blog, Write On!, which is located here:
http://theshot92.blogspot.com/2005/07/leadership-vector.html

Hopefully this is of interest to my fellow Toastmasters !

Speak Up!

Dave Wheeler

High Performance Leadership & President's Council Started

Finally, I signed up my first mentor for HPL (WestConn's immediate past president, Lee Steuber) and mentioned the idea of a "President's Council" for Area A4.

WestConn's current and past presidents both felt that such a council would help bring the clubs in the area closer together (and make it easier for people to branch out and attend other clubs to get a broader Toastmasters experience).

Area A4 Update - Area/Div.Contest planning, TLI & blog promotion

Here is a quick update from Area A4...

I met (informally) with the officers of WestConn Toastmasters at their meeting last night (7-20-05). They are open to hosting the Area contest as well as the Division Contest and I will post the dates once their president, Bruce Cornwell, confirms availability with Wooster School (where the club meets).

I promoted attendance at Toastmasters Leadership Institute (TLI) in Hartford on August 6th and got a fairly positive reaction. I will follow up with an email next week as a reminder.

Finally, I mentioned this blog (as a tool for communication with all the clubs in Area A4 ). It can be accessed via the web at www.AreaA4.blogspot.com (as you probably know if you are reading these words). The blog is a combination of Toastmaster details and things of interest to me (as a Toastmaster). I encourage everyone to let me know what you think. (You can even add comments online .... see link below this post.)

That's it for now.

Speak UP!

Dave Wheeler
Area A4 Governor

Division A Officers Training, Wed.Aug.24, 7-9pm

The Division A officers training will take place on Wednesday, August 24, 7pm-9pm, at Guideposts, 39 Seminary Hill Road, Carmel, NY 10512

Guideposts is the meetings place of the Putnam Speaks club.

Directions can be found on Putnam Speaks' website: http://putnamspeaks.freetoasthost.com/directions.html

Also planning to attend is Will Ryan, a DTM and Lt. Governor - Marketing for District 53 Toastmasters. I've met him at the executive team meeting and area governor training and he brings plenty of enthusiasm and experience to Toastmasters.

Where do we go from here?

Ever wonder what is your own personal "next level"? What is going to happen next in your life?

I read a blog recently (link here) that got me thinking about how this idea applies to Toastmasters and, in particular, why having a "next level" keeps the Toastmaster experience fun!

For a Toastmaster, there are many such turning points or "next levels".

In the beginning of your Toastmaster experience the "next level" is pretty obvious. For example, if you are a guest visiting a Toastmaster club, the next level is membership. If you've just joined, the next level is your first speech, "The IceBreaker". From there you can progress at your own speed through the CTM manual (CTM ="Competent ToastMaster").

As you get to the end of the manual you come to a decision point. Do you work on an advanced manual and your ATM designation ("Advanced ToastMaster") or do you serve as an officer of your club and develop your leadership skills (and move toward achieving your CL designation for "Competent Leader")? You could even go back and re-do the CTM speeches again to improve your skills.

Your options expand as you progress in Toastmasters. You can work toward advanced designations (ATM-Silver, DTM which is Distinguished ToastMaster), serve in various officer roles, serve as part of the District ToastMaster team (as Area Governor, Division Governor, District Officer) or volunteer to organize various ToastMaster events such as the Toastmaster Leadership Institute (training) or a Speechathon.

The opportunities are nearly endless ... and I haven't even begun to talk about the speech contests and the incredible experience you get from participating.

I hope you are thinking about what you want to get out of Toastmasters and what "the next level" means to you! Reach out for your next challenge and Toastmasters will make it worth your while !

Speak UP!

Dave Wheeler
Toastmasters Area A4 Governor
Greater Danbury, CT
District 53

Serving the following Toastmaster clubs: (click on the names for further information)
Barnum Square Toastmasters, Bethel, CT
WestConn Toastmasters, Danbury, CT (meetings at Wooster School Library)
Diversity USA, downtown Danbury
Socially Speaking, Brookfield, CT

Welcome to Toastmasters Area A4 of District 53 !

Greetings !

This blog is being set up by Dave Wheeler for all the Toastmaster clubs in Area A4.

For those of you that are not familar with blogs (or weblogs as they are also known), a blog is like a cross between a web page and newspaper or personal journal. Many people use blogs as a personal journal or diary while other people use it more like a series of articles or a regular column in a newspaper. This blog is intended to be like a column ... that also provides news and information (also like a newspaper).

A blog does not have to cost anything since there are a number of free host companies. This blog is hosted by blogger.com which is part of Google.

A blog is also very easy to use. You can sign in to blogger.com, set up a blog and be posting in a matter of minutes with the simple, menu driven website. You can also blog via email by simply writing your "post" in an email and sending it to the appropriate address (the address is found in the "Settings" section once you've signed in at blogger.com).

I hope this blog will help improve the communications within Area A4 as well as improve the connection our clubs have with District 53 as well as Division A.

Let me know if there are any questions !

I can be reached via email at theshot92@aol.com !

Speak UP!

Dave Wheeler
Toastmasters Area A4 Governor
Greater Danbury, CT
District 53

Serving the following Toastmaster clubs: (click on the names for further information)
Barnum Square Toastmasters, Bethel, CT
WestConn Toastmasters, Danbury, CT (meetings at Wooster School Library)
Diversity USA, downtown Danbury
Socially Speaking, Brookfield, CT