Who goes to Toastmasters to become better at pitching?

https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=1707952

by sienna • 16 years ago

22 8 16 years ago

news.ycombinator.com

Talking and pitching to strangers is not my natural strength, and I usually put a lot of effort into pitches and presentations to figure out almost exactly what I am going to say.

I'm pretty sure that an effective entrepreneur needs to have the skill and confidence to talk about a wide range of topics in front of all kinds of audiences without too much preparation.

Does anyone on HN attend something like Toastmasters to improve their speaking, ad lib speaking and presentation skills?

vitovito• 16 years ago

HN user imdane used to. Maybe he can chime in.

Toastmasters was also the model for my design workshops, although I've never been.

dpritchett• 16 years ago

I attend a private toastmasters club here at the office. I've been going for about 4 months now.

Our veteran members can give nice speeches off the cuff with zero preparation.

I've only given two speeches so far myself but it's already helping with my confidence. There is a strong leadership component to Toastmasters as well - that's where I'm really seeing benefits.

AmberShah• 16 years ago

I went to Toastmasters a few years back, but before I got into Toastmasters. It's really the best thing to do if you want to get comfortable speaking in front of a group and do it well.

imp2• 16 years ago

I've been in Toastmasters for three years now. I think it's great for building confidence. Although I still have a lot of room for improvement, I've come a long way already. It will help you become better with prepared speeches, leading, listening, and impromptu speaking. I was president of my club last year, which was a good experience as well. I highly recommend visiting a club or two in your area. Each club has a slightly different feel and you should pick one that you're comfortable with.

Edit: To give some specifics, I used to have awkward and distracting hand gestures. I've learned to control them and I've actually gotten comments that my gestures are good now. Also, I initially tried to fit in too many details into my speeches, and they would always go over the time limit. I've learned to highlight the important points and trim speeches down (that takes work though). Vocal variety is something I'm working on improving at the moment.

Also, if you want to experience presenting under pressure, there are speech contests twice a year which are fun and competitive.

microtherion• 16 years ago

I was in Toastmasters for many years, and if there were a group in my city whose meeting times fit my schedule, I'd probably still go.

I particularly liked the peer review process (making you both a better speaker and listener, and making you, as a reviewer, pay attention to what makes other people more or less effective speakers), and the well organized manuals. As much as I thought in advance I knew about e.g., humorous speaking, having a topic broken down into individual aspects was a great way to learn.

On the down side, at times some events had the ring of a success cargo cult to it — people thinking that if they learned just the right inflection and hand gestures, they were bound for great things.

Still, I recommend it highly. In most urban areas in the US, there seems to be a large number of clubs to pick from. There is quite a bit of variety between clubs, so it can be a good idea to attend a few different ones before settling down — clubs tend to be welcoming toward guests, and generally don't resort to high pressure tactics to make you sign up.

imp2• 16 years ago

I agree about the cargo cult part of it. Some of the speeches at the higher levels seem a bit theatrical and focus more on the presentation style than the content. Most beginners need a lot of work on their delivery, however, so it seems to work out great for the first few years at least.

andrewtbham• 16 years ago

i suggest you go to ignite. http://ignite.oreilly.com/

i saw a pitch recently, and the guy did the first half in style of ignite presentation. it was solid.

ancornwell• 16 years ago

My father is the chapter president of his club in Connecticut. He swears by it. I have been to his club twice and plan on going to one in San Francisco tomorrow, the rhino club I believe...

My father is the best salesman I know. He could sell noise-canceling headphones to deaf people, and I want to earn that confidence by going to toastmasters.

Who goes to Toastmasters to become better at pitching?

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