In April, RBC branch manager Thomas Sullivan travelled to Saskatoon to compete in a public speaking competition.
He placed first in a District E Evaluation Contest, competing on behalf of the local Battlefords Toastmasters Club. Club member Michelle Colcerin placed second in the Division E International Speech Contest.
Sullivan was contacted for an email interview and responded quickly.
鈥淚 was really excited that I won,鈥� wrote Sullivan.
According to Sullivan, he found the experience enlightening because he was able to see many other evaluators in action. This allowed him to listen to their different styles and to learn from their different methods.
Sullivan joined Toastmasters in 2013 because speaking has always been an interest and is a skill he uses every day. When asked about what keeps him coming back, he wrote it鈥檚 the sense of community, the great feedback and the laughter, as well as the constant learning opportunities.
鈥淚 find it equally rewarding to watch the growth of others as I do when I notice my own improvements,鈥� he wrote.
Every time he leaves a meeting he walks away with something he learned, or a skill he improved, and that keeps him coming back.
鈥淩egardless of your vocation, public speaking and communication is essential.鈥�
Although Sullivan sees these skills as more important in a leadership position, he still thinks how impressive it is the Toastmasters club is really a 鈥渨hat you make it鈥� organization.
鈥淭here are opportunities for people to work on the micro skills needed in everyday life and if you want to pursue more complex skills then you can do that as well,鈥� wrote Sullivan. His winning speech was an evaluation of other speaker鈥檚 speeches. In meetings, Toastmaster members are asked to sign up as evaluators of one another. This critique helps everyone improve.
鈥淚 try to do an evaluation at least once every couple of meetings,鈥� he wrote.
Because evaluations are critiqued by others, at Toastmaster competitions, the balance of practice with feedback has really helped Sullivan to improve both public speaking and evaluation skills.
The Battlefords Toastmasters Club holds meetings every Wednesday at 7 p.m. at the Don Ross Centre. Meetings are open to guests wishing to see what the club has to offer. The first three are freebies and the club encourages new membership.
