Test your speaking mettle with NPC Toastmasters, Monday, April 24 at 7pm

Do you enjoy the challenge of speaking off-the-cuff? At the last Toastmasters meeting we had a great time doing just that during the very popular Table Topics session. Participants had to explain in one to two minutes why their car sported a particular bumper sticker. These different bumper stickers included:

· Be the reason someone smiles today

· Life begins at the end of your comfort zone

· Kindness is the language the deaf can hear and the blind can see

· The best things in life aren't things

How would you have responded? Or is planning what you want to say more your style, or you want to improve your media presence?

Whether you are in front of a camera or just want to be a more competent and confident speaker, Toastmasters can help you. The next meeting is on April 24 at 7 p.m. in the McClendon Room.

Former National Press Club President Angela Greiling Keane was a Toastmaster member for many years. She said, “Public speaking is such an important skill for journalists and communicators. People pay hundreds or even thousands of dollars for classes to improve skills they use to appear on TV, stand in front of an auditorium full of people or make cogent points in meetings. Toastmasters is not only geographically convenient to Press Club members, but it’s also an affordable way to improve public speaking by learning from skilled peers.”

The National Press Club Toastmasters Club is open to the public and meets on the second and fourth Mondays of each month at 7 p.m. There is no charge to visit and no limit to the number of visits. Membership fees are about $130 per year.