Competent Communication Program
To receive a Competent Communicator (CC) award, you must complete 10 manual speeches designed to develop your speaking skills one step at a time. Each project builds upon what you have learned in the preceding project. How quickly you move through your speeches is entirely up to you.
- Ice Breaker
(4 to 6 minutes) - Begin speaking before an audience by introducing yourself to your fellow Club members and giving them some information about your background, interests and ambitions.
- Organize Your Speech
(5 to 7 minutes) - Organize your thoughts into a logical sequence that leads the audience to a clearly defned goal.
- Get to the Point
(5 to 7 minutes) - Ensure the beginning, body and conclusion of your speech reinforces your purpose and project sencerity and conviction.
- How to Say It
(5 to 7 minutes) - Select precisely the right words required to communicate your ideas clearly and vividly by avoiding lengthy words and sentences and jargon.
- Your Body Speaks
(5 to 7 minutes) – Learn the value of gestures, body movements and eye contact as part of a speech and explore the different ways of using body language.
- Vocal Variety
(5 to 7 minutes) – Explore the use of voice volume, pitch, rate and quality as assets to your speaking and achieve a pleasing natural voice quality when speaking.
- Research Your Topic
(5 to seven minutes) – Collect information about your topic from numerous sources and carefully support points and opinions with specific facts, examples and illustrations.
- Get Comfortable With Visual Aids
(5 to 7 minutes) – Learn the value of visual aids in speaking and how to use them effectively in your presentations.
- Persuade with Power
(5 to 7 minutes) – Present a talk that persuades the audience to accept your proposal or viewpoint by appealing to the audience’s self-interest, building a logical foundation for agreement and arousing emotional commitment to your cause.
- Inspire Your Audience
(8 to 10 minutes) – Understand the mood and feelings of your audience on a particular occasion and put those feelings into words and inspire the audience, using all the techniques you have learned so far.
Advanced Communication Program
Becoming a Competent Communicator is just the first step in the learning process. You can earn additional recognition by participating in the Advanced Communication Program (AC) (3 levels: Bronze, Silver, Gold). Each level of the AC program consists of completing two manuals of 5 speeches from the following:
- The Entertaining Speaker
- Speaking to Inform
- Public Relations
- The Discussion Leader
- Specialty Speeches
- Speeches by Management
- The Professional Speaker
- Technical Presentations
- Persuasive Speaking
- Communicating on Television
- Storytelling
- Interpretive Reading
- Interpersonal Communications
- Special Occasion Speeches
- Humorously Speaking
Competent Leadership Program
To complete the Competent Leadership Program (CL) you must complete 10 Projects designed to develop your leadership skills. You complete the projects by performing roles at the Toastmaster meetings and having a fellow Toastmaster complete a written evaluation and provide critical feedback. The projects are:
- Listening and Leadership
- Critical Thinking
- Giving Feedback
- Time Management
- Planning and Implementation
- Organizing and Delegating
- Developing Your Facilitation Skills
- Motivating People
- Mentoring
- Team Building