May - Finish Strong

With only 59 days left in the Toastmasters year, "Finish Strong" was the perfect theme to support our district trios in leading through the last 10 weeks of their term.

Region 2 Advisor Pamela McCown, DTM, PID shared insights on promoting Toastmasters in her presentation, "It's the Final Countdown." She encouraged leaders to keep activities focused on supporting the mission of the district and especially, promoting Toastmasters training in our communities.  Pamela highlighted that a key part to club websites is to have engaging information on the homepage that appeals to non-members. This will help to peak their interest, click more into the website and hopefully, attend a meeting and join the club. Another key, is to touch base with previous members - invite previous members to renew. 

Our second speaker, Region 1 Advisor Mark Lucas, DTM, PDD delivered a presentation that helped to keep our leaders organized while finishing out their current term and getting ready for their next role. In his speech, "Transitioning: How to Perform Two Roles Without Going Crazy," Mark offered these tips: 1) schedule your time 2) talk with current team to ensure seamless transition 3) build a pipeline of leaders 4) get a mentor and meet weekly and 5) delegate tasks. Oftentimes, when a person becomes a trio member for the first time, it's like transitioning from low or mid-level management to the C-suite (executive level leadership, e.g. CEO, CMO).  He ended with a powerful reminder that courage is the "ability to continue forward though you don't know the chances for success."

Key tips from our Active Learning (impromptu Q&A)  session led by Ede Ferrari-D'Angelo, DTM, PID:

• Have a transition plan
• Continue to be of service after your term is over
• Be mindful of past ways of working, but think towards the future.
• To reconcile differences in priorities among team members and district goals, utilize the "Understanding Communication Styles" and "Understanding Leadership Styles" from the Level 2 projects in Pathways.
• District Success Plan is a valuable tool that should be referred to all year long. Great way to bond with the team.
• Practice recognition. Offer incentives to encourage participation.
• Build the leadership pipeline by 1) hosting a leadership breakfast inviting members to learn more about opportunities and 2) filling committee roles with different people - avoid serving in too many roles.
• Share personal stories of success and joy that you attribute to your Toastmasters training. This is what inspires others to participate, lead and join.
• You may only have one chance in your role. Give it your ALL now. Leave nothing left on the table.

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