Contributi
Italy does not have a cultural background for public speaking. So that in general, when one talks about toast, one tends to think of succulently stuffed sandwiches.
A fortunate coincidence three years ago, led to my becoming one of the first members of the Milan-Easy Toastmasters Club, and I can state now, –joining was a good choice.
Begin an active Toastmaster brings you to a positive approach to important facts of life. The most important is certainly the ability to speak in public capably. We often miss opportunities in life, because we are not able to express ourselves properly and quickly. Well, Toastmasters is all about expressing yourself. It gives you the sense of certain rules which, if duly followed, will lead you to become a good communicator and allow you to express your thoughts in total freedom.
Personally I have enjoyed this experience and I can state that thanks to my activity within the club I have been able to apply the techniques I have learned in many aspects of my job.
Conducting a meeting and setting an agenda have become so simple, and what is important, the regular exercise of our club session has helped me to act in this way very naturally.
At Toastmasters we are familiar with the Table Topics exercise. A regular session in our meetings where one person asks questions to others, selected randomly. There is no time to prepare an answer, you must immediately stand up and reply! How many times in our daily working life do we face Table Topics subjects? I must say that activity has helped me a lot, and in many cases I have found myself reacting very naturally to suddenly being asked a question.
The skills and confidence developed at Toastmasters have given me more opportunities in my job, and in a way also in my private life.
There is however, no end to Toastmaster activities. The present a constant growing process which has to become part of our lives, and the more one gets acquainted with it, the more it may help. The nature of the club is that by helping others, we help ourselves. Through evaluation, coaching and feedback, everyone has an opportunity to develop.
I think I owe “Toastmasters International” a great thanks for what I have achieved and I have a great hope for future improvements and personal growth, not only for myself, but for the other members of our club as well.
Francesco Campironi
Senior Club Member
Please note that this article had been written and published in June 1996, three years after the club foundation.
