The Toastmasters Podcast

[28:42] On today's show, Greg and Ryan have the delightful honor of speaking with Margaret Page, DTM, our new 2021 - 2022 International President, Toastmasters International. In this inspiring episode, you'll get a chance to hear directly from our illustrious leader as she gives us a peek into her past and her leadership journey, including divulging the embarrassing professional experience that led her to join Toastmasters. You'll take away Margaret's simple yet powerful "3-2-1" model for getting the most out of every Toastmaster meeting or event. Finally, Margaret spotlights examples of members leading the way during times of change—including heartwarming stories of members going above and beyond the call of duty to serve others. Look for a profile of President Page in the September 2021 issue of The Toastmaster.

[23:57] Today's episode features a return visit from professional coach and networking expert, Victoria Salem. Victoria shares with Greg and Ryan best practices for highlighting skills and experience gained from Toastmasters on one's resume / CV, as well as in online profiles such as LinkedIn.    As a coach, Victoria helps individuals build stronger relationships and communicate better so they can enjoy more success and create new opportunities. She is a former member of Covent Garden Speakers in London, England. Victoria's article,  “Revamp Your Resume: How to showcase the skills and achievements you've gained through Toastmasters,” is featured in the August 2021 issue of the Toastmaster magazine. Also checkout Greg & Ryan's previous episode with Victoria, #170: You Can Build Valuable Relationships Through Social Media.You can of course, find Victoria on LinkedIn or reach her through her website tgncoaching.co.uk.

[28:50] Globalization means we live on an increasingly shrinking planet. Our grandparents could hardly have dreamed of communicating with clients and colleagues half way around the world. Whether by phone, email, Zoom, or social media, most of us interact with people from another culture on a regular basis. And the truth is—it can be challenging! Fear not, if you listen to today's show, it can get a bit easier. Dean Foster has been speaking, writing and consulting for more than two decades on the nature of culture and its role in society, work and politics in a globalizing world.

 Dean is the founder of DFA Intercultural Global Solutions and founder and former Worldwide Director of Berlitz Cross-Cultural. Based in New York City, Dean has played a central role in the development of the field of cross-cultural training and consulting.Dean's article, Breaking Language Barriers: Top 10 Tips for connecting with anyone in the world, appeared in the June 2021 issue of the Toastmaster magazine.Visit Dean's website at deanfosterglobal.com.For more Toastmasters Podcast content related to intercultural communication, please check out:Toastmasters Podcast #010: Effective Intercultural Communication with Florence FerreiraToastmasters Podcast #176: Brushing Up On A Foreign Language—Carol Bausor

[25:27] In this episode, Greg and Ryan enjoy a return visit from 2020-2021 Toastmasters International President Richard E. Peck, where he shares his experience undertaking a virtual tour, visiting Toastmasters clubs all around the world. The tour began back in October, and since then President Peck has traveled in his armchair to clubs in over 140 countries around the world. Richard shares stories from his visits and enlightens us about what he learned along the way. We also hear how on this tour he was "Just Richard," downplaying his title as President and experiencing each meeting as a regular member. Richard took on meeting roles at each visit, and delivered a speech at over 75% of the visits.Richard E. Peck will also be featured in the August 2021 issue of the Toastmaster Magazine in A President's Path Around the World. 

'Chartering on a Small Island,' the story of club growth in Mauritius appears in the July 2021 issue of the Toastmaster. Want to connect with Ravin?Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ravin.lama.73LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ravin-lama-17368ba/ 

Dr. Noskow shares how his educational deficiencies related to his upbringing in Ultra-Orthodox Jewish schools in Brooklyn, affording him little exposure to anything outside strict religious studies after age twelve. Without classes in Math, Science or English, he was an unlikely candidate for medical school. On today's episode, Dr. Noskow shares about the challenges he faced in starting a career, and the steps he took to overcome the odds.We also hear how he discovered Toastmasters, what he's learned, and how he's using Pathways to develop a specialized speaking acumen to assist in his advocacy for educational reform.Dr. Noskow is featured along with other healthcare practitioners in the article, Paging All Health-Care Practitioners! How Toastmasters communication skills help a variety of medical professionals in the June 2021 issue of the Toastmaster magazine.Dr. Noskow lives and works in New York City where he's a member of Long Island University-Brooklyn Toastmasters.Find him on Twitter @snoskow.  

[29:52] So much focus is put on the content of our speeches, presentations or even written material but often forgotten is the importance of the title and how it can make or break that work. In this episode Greg speaks with Lesley Stephenson will enlighten us with what a good title is and why it’s important that you pay attention to it when you create your content. She'll also share some tips on how to go about creating that fitting title and things to avoid along the way. Lesley's article Titles That Talk: Short, clear, and compelling speech titles make a strong statement is featured in the April 2021 issue of the Toastmaster Magazine.You can also read about Lesley's humanitarian journey, The Paths Less Traveled: Three global humanitarians speak out and lead in service of the greater good in the February 2019 Toastmaster Magazine.Lesley Stephenson is an international keynote speaker and corporate communications coach and humanitarian based in Switzerland. She's a Distinguished Toastmaster, a member for 16 years and belongs to two Swiss corporate Toastmasters clubs: Google Zürich Toastmasters and the UBS Rhetoric Club Opfikon. She has also 
placed twice in the semifinals of the Toastmasters International Speech Contest.You can reach Lesley at LesleyStephenson.com or by e-mail, info "at" lesleystephenson.com.  

[23:27] Clear communication today, particularly in healthcare, can mean the difference between life and death. Today's guest serves on the leading edge in the fight against COVID-19 and certainly fits in that category. Michael Osur, DTM is director and chief health strategist of the Riverside County Department of Public Health in California. He oversees a staff of 600 with a combined budget of over 125 million dollars. A past International Director for Toastmasters, Michael shares about the challenges faced by his department over the past several months, and how skills learned in Toastmasters equip him to lead, serve, and communicate every single day. Michael was featured in a Toastmaster magazine May 2021 online exclusive Q&A, entitled: Leading the Way in Public Health: Past International Director draws on his Toastmasters training for COVID communications.Michael can be reached at: mosur "at" Toastmasters "dot" org.  

[27:53] With the onset of the pandemic a little over a year ago, a significant number of meetings, conventions, and other events stopped being face-to-face. Many were permanently cancelled, other went online. Some moved to “hybrid,” a combination of live and virtual. In this episode, Greg and Ryan speak with Markus Seppälä, a TEDx speaker, event host and stand-up comedian who has become an expert in this area. You’ll learn a little about Markus and what motivated him to dive so deeply into evolving meeting formats like Zoom meetings, live streams, virtual events, and so on, as well as his ongoing creation of YouTube videos on the subject.Markus will share what hybrid meetings mean for Toastmasters and their respective clubs, how to improve the meeting experience, and what the future of their meetings may look like.He’ll share some tips and resources along with best practices including, what works and what doesn’t, do’s and don’ts, and the gear you might need (or don’t need.)Markus is featured in the Toastmaster magazine, most recently in the April 2021 issue, in an article Hybrid Harmony: How to make club meetings work when members are online and in person and in February 2021, A Funny Thing Happened: How Toastmaster Markus Seppälä found his way into the world of comedy. Based in Basel, Switzerland, Markus runs Comedy Basel, the biggest comedy club in town. He has been a Toastmaster since 2007 and is a founding member of the Basel International Speakers club. He can be reached at https://markuspresents.com. Find his YouTube videos at: https://www.youtube.com/c/MarkusSeppäläPresents/videos.

[24:35] David Jones, DTM shares the emotional story of losing his wife in a tragic car crash, and how that experience inspired him to serve others. David began a journey of service, in tribute to his late wife, starting with speaking to those recently arrested for driving under the influence of drugs and/or alcohol. Eventually, David joined both Toastmasters International and Rotary International, and he's now continuing his wife's legacy working on a charitable project in Uganda that ties together his Toastmasters, Rotarian, and church community connections. You can read David's article, Serving Others in Wake of Tragedy: How my experiences in Toastmasters and Rotary changed my life, and others’ in the April 2021 Issue of the Toastmaster Magazine.You can connect with David by e-mail at dj.cmh at att dot net or by visiting JonesOhio.com.