
Who goes to Toastmasters to become better at pitching? - sienna
Talking and pitching to strangers is not my natural strength, and I usually put a <i>lot</i> of effort into pitches and presentations to figure out almost exactly what I am going to say.<p>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.<p>Does anyone on HN attend something like Toastmasters to improve their speaking, ad lib speaking and presentation skills?
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microtherion
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.

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imp
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.

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imp
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.

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dpritchett
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.

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ancornwell
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.

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andrewtbham
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.

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AmberShah
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.

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

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

