"We learn best in moments of enjoyment."
This was the quote of Ralph Smedley, founder of Toastmasters International. I don't know when he said this but Toastmasters has been around since 1924 and it was shortly after or shortly before that he said this.
I thought of this on Thursday when the World Headquarters of Toastmasters tweeted this for throw-back Thursday.
Toastmasters is a great organization which is in constant evolution trying to capture the magic formula that will cause the membership to grow. It actually is growing in Asia and India and the Middle East but has never attracted the membership that it has wanted to in North America. It used to be known as primarily a Public Speaking organization, then it wanted to be known as a Communication organization, then it wanted to be known by two parallel tracks; Communication and Leadership. Now, it appears to be wanting to emphasize the leadership aspect as noted in their tag line, "where leaders are made."
I have committed to becoming a member again after a 2-3 year absence. And, I think I remember why I quit in the first place. I wasn't enjoying myself anymore.
I really think Ralph Smedley had something and I think if the organization wants to grow maybe they have to provide more moments of enjoyment. Now, I realize that people are responsible for their own moments of enjoyment. Also, I'm not talking about evenings of games and silly stuff like that. We all have our definitions of enjoyment. I can tell you that just since I've started this post, that I have written down about 20 moments of pure enjoyment that I had in Toastmasters. Probably very few of them had me laughing, but I still enjoyed myself immensely.
I will tell you of my top two moments of enjoyment.
#1. My club traditionally roasts any member that achieves their Distinguished Toastmaster designation, and many other clubs do as well. When I achieved my DTM, it was an amazing moment. Even though the Toastmaster website referred to me as DTM, I didn't believe it until I got my plaque in the mail. Although, I did check the website several times per day just to see my name with DTM behind it. I didn't think I could get any happier until the meeting of my roast. I was laughing so hard at the funny things said about me and I was so touched that people had noticed all of my quirks and mistakes. It felt like I really mattered. The ability to laugh at yourself. Now, that has to mean that you really understand leadership !!!
#2. This actually technically didn't happen in Toastmasters, but it happened in Toastmistress which was very similar. (Yes, I'm that old.) When I was in Grade 9, I had a lot of aspirations, but I was overly shy. Some teachers wouldn't even know who I was when my mom came to parent/teacher interviews. One of my mom's friends told me that she would take me to join Toastmistress with her. I was not received well. I was too young. One lady in particular, was really against me. I wanted to quit because it really was beyond my league. My mom's friend insisted that I wasn't going to quit and she told me that I would be committed until I finished grade 12. I didn't enjoy the first year. The second year was easier and I won the speech contest but I still wasn't enjoying it that much. A new woman moved into our small town. Before living in Dauphin, she had lived in Vancouver, so she knew everything or so she told us. She was very articulate and, for a while, she sort of took over our town. She had been a member of Toastmistress so she joined our club and tried to turn it upside down. I won the speech contest again that year and when I was in Grade 12, I was the youngest President of a Toastmistress club ever. (The fact that the organization folded shortly thereafter had nothing to do with this !!) In our club, the President acted as the role of Toastmaster in today's clubs. Also, we had a business meeting every meeting, so it was a really big role. I was very grateful that this woman was in our club that year. I learned so much because she challenged me at every turn throwing Robert's Rules of Order at me every chance she got. And then, at the end of the year, the speech contest. We had 6 contestants. This woman was contestant 1. I was contestant 6. I sat in the second last row. In our town, speech contests were a big deal. We sold tickets and always sold out. Contestant 1 spoke. It was a really good speech. Contestants 2-5 spoke and didn't have really good speeches. And then, it happened. In the break between contestant 5 and myself, the original lady who didn't want me in the club looked back at me. We made eye contact. She didn't say anything but I knew what she thinking. She was telling me, "you are our last chance to win over this woman. Go win." It was a pivotal moment in my life. She was telling me that she accepted me. She was telling me that she was cheering for me. It was that moment that I felt the most enjoyment ever !! I belonged !!! (It was more exciting than winning the speech contest 3 consecutive years in a row.)
My top two moments of enjoyment both occurred when I felt accepted and felt like I belonged. So, enjoyment can mean something else than laughing out loud. I think Ralph Smedley had it right all along.
I thought of this on Thursday when the World Headquarters of Toastmasters tweeted this for throw-back Thursday.
Toastmasters is a great organization which is in constant evolution trying to capture the magic formula that will cause the membership to grow. It actually is growing in Asia and India and the Middle East but has never attracted the membership that it has wanted to in North America. It used to be known as primarily a Public Speaking organization, then it wanted to be known as a Communication organization, then it wanted to be known by two parallel tracks; Communication and Leadership. Now, it appears to be wanting to emphasize the leadership aspect as noted in their tag line, "where leaders are made."
I have committed to becoming a member again after a 2-3 year absence. And, I think I remember why I quit in the first place. I wasn't enjoying myself anymore.
I really think Ralph Smedley had something and I think if the organization wants to grow maybe they have to provide more moments of enjoyment. Now, I realize that people are responsible for their own moments of enjoyment. Also, I'm not talking about evenings of games and silly stuff like that. We all have our definitions of enjoyment. I can tell you that just since I've started this post, that I have written down about 20 moments of pure enjoyment that I had in Toastmasters. Probably very few of them had me laughing, but I still enjoyed myself immensely.
I will tell you of my top two moments of enjoyment.
#1. My club traditionally roasts any member that achieves their Distinguished Toastmaster designation, and many other clubs do as well. When I achieved my DTM, it was an amazing moment. Even though the Toastmaster website referred to me as DTM, I didn't believe it until I got my plaque in the mail. Although, I did check the website several times per day just to see my name with DTM behind it. I didn't think I could get any happier until the meeting of my roast. I was laughing so hard at the funny things said about me and I was so touched that people had noticed all of my quirks and mistakes. It felt like I really mattered. The ability to laugh at yourself. Now, that has to mean that you really understand leadership !!!
#2. This actually technically didn't happen in Toastmasters, but it happened in Toastmistress which was very similar. (Yes, I'm that old.) When I was in Grade 9, I had a lot of aspirations, but I was overly shy. Some teachers wouldn't even know who I was when my mom came to parent/teacher interviews. One of my mom's friends told me that she would take me to join Toastmistress with her. I was not received well. I was too young. One lady in particular, was really against me. I wanted to quit because it really was beyond my league. My mom's friend insisted that I wasn't going to quit and she told me that I would be committed until I finished grade 12. I didn't enjoy the first year. The second year was easier and I won the speech contest but I still wasn't enjoying it that much. A new woman moved into our small town. Before living in Dauphin, she had lived in Vancouver, so she knew everything or so she told us. She was very articulate and, for a while, she sort of took over our town. She had been a member of Toastmistress so she joined our club and tried to turn it upside down. I won the speech contest again that year and when I was in Grade 12, I was the youngest President of a Toastmistress club ever. (The fact that the organization folded shortly thereafter had nothing to do with this !!) In our club, the President acted as the role of Toastmaster in today's clubs. Also, we had a business meeting every meeting, so it was a really big role. I was very grateful that this woman was in our club that year. I learned so much because she challenged me at every turn throwing Robert's Rules of Order at me every chance she got. And then, at the end of the year, the speech contest. We had 6 contestants. This woman was contestant 1. I was contestant 6. I sat in the second last row. In our town, speech contests were a big deal. We sold tickets and always sold out. Contestant 1 spoke. It was a really good speech. Contestants 2-5 spoke and didn't have really good speeches. And then, it happened. In the break between contestant 5 and myself, the original lady who didn't want me in the club looked back at me. We made eye contact. She didn't say anything but I knew what she thinking. She was telling me, "you are our last chance to win over this woman. Go win." It was a pivotal moment in my life. She was telling me that she accepted me. She was telling me that she was cheering for me. It was that moment that I felt the most enjoyment ever !! I belonged !!! (It was more exciting than winning the speech contest 3 consecutive years in a row.)
My top two moments of enjoyment both occurred when I felt accepted and felt like I belonged. So, enjoyment can mean something else than laughing out loud. I think Ralph Smedley had it right all along.
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