Mentoring a new member - Checklist

If you are mentoring a new member, here are some guidelines to follow:

First meeting with new member

New member profile and objectives

·         Establish the objectives the new member hopes to accomplish in this club

·         What is the current skill level of the new member?

·         Any specific fears of public speaking?

·         Why did you choose to join a Toastmasters Club

·         What can this club do to help you accomplish your goals?

Meeting Structure

·         Discuss the different kinds of meetings and what occurs during each.

·         Business Meeting / General Meeting

·         An overview of what happens in a meeting

o   An overview of the structure of a meeting

o   How we show encouragement (ex: applause)

o   Show them the various meeting role player templates

o   The toastmaster meeting layout for the meeting

o   Roles of each meeting (please discuss the duties of each role in detail)

§  Ah Counter/Joke Master, Grammarian, Timer

§  Table Topics Master and Speakers

§  General Evaluator, Speech Evaluators

§  Toastmaster of the Day

·         How to address the podium. Discuss how we formally address the member at the podium.

o    ‘Madam/Mister General Evaluator and fellow Toastmasters’ …. And guest’

Agree upon basic codes of conduct

·         Mutually agree upon convenient time for sync-ups

·         Mutually agree upon how much in advance speech scripts have to be sent for review

·         When to reach your mentor?

o   When you are assigned a newer or bigger role

o   Whenever you have a question about Toastmasters as an organization

o   When you need some ideas for upcoming speeches

o   When you want your speech scripts to be reviewed

o   ????

(Also read: Mentoring - Speech review checklist)

Second meeting with new member

Club Details

·         Club goals for the year

·         How to sign-up for various roles / speaking slots

·         Details about club mailing list / website / facebook page etc.,

·         Reference the Distinguished Club Program Goals

·         State the Club Mission

·         Two paths to take to achieve awards.

o   Communication Path / Leadership Path

o   Toastmasters International. Describe what that is and explain how there are different levels.

·         Other cubs in the locality

·         Briefly talk about the Toastmasters Magazine

Third (or future) meetings with new member

Roles inside/outside the club

·         What are the different officer positions in the club and what do they do? (Also read: 10 ways of identifying role players for club meetings as VP Education)

·         Briefly talk about the levels that Toastmasters can take i.e., Area Governor , Division Governor etc.,

·         Discuss the different types of Manuals

o   Competent Communicator / Competent Leadership / Advanced

o   Discuss how the speeches in the manual build upon each other to enhance speaker’s abilities

·         Toastmasters’ events outside our club. Example: Speech contests.

    (Also read: Mentoring - Speech review checklist)

Mentoring - Speech Script Review checklist

As a mentor, you'll be helping your mentees in preparing for their speeches. You may be reviewing their speech scripts to suggest improvements and for making maximum impact on the audience. Here is a checklist that you can follow when reviewing your mentee's speech scripts.

When you review a speech script, look for the following things:   

1.     Speech script organized?

a.      Introduction- Interesting or attention grabbing? (How to write attention grabbing speech introductions?)
b.      Body - Two or three key points substantiated with examples or stories?
c.       Conclusion - Memorable? Powerful?

2.      Speech appropriate to the audience?

a.      Topic relevant to the audience?  (Speech Topic selection Ideas)
b.      Content appealing to the audience?
c.       Content is interesting? (informative or entertaining or educative or persuading)

3.      Speech meets the project objectives stated in the manual?

4.      Speech can be delivered within time?

5.      Presentation of the material

a.      Grammatical errors?
b.      Long sentences?
c.       Unwanted statements? Statements affecting the flow?
d.      Written to “speak” (instead of being written to “read”)?
e.      Organized into different sections? Preferably with a sub-heading
f.        Emphasis of appropriate words in the speech (for ex., statements that have to be spoken with high volume should be in BOLD or CAPS… I saw a HUGE ELEPHANT in the forest)

6.      Think from your mentee’s shoes and also from the audience shoes

a.      How will or how can the mentee deliver this script?
b.      How will the audience receive this material?

When giving feedback on the script:

1. Give specific feedback (instead of just saying “make the introduction interesting”… suggest them an interesting speech introduction… tell them “this is how, I would’ve done it”)
2. Give constructive feedback (Also read: CRISP Speech Evaluations)

• appreciate the nice things about the speech script… don’t just comment about the items that aren’t written well
• Use words such as “I recommend”… instead of “You should”…
• User statements such as “Consider changing this introduction…” instead of saying “This introduction is boring”…
• Use track changes in Microsoft Word… it helps the mentee to understand the changes that you’ve done to the script

Spice up your speeches with "Quotes"

This is a collection of quotes from various sources :)

Quote Author When i say SORRY, It doesn't mean that i'm completely wrong and you are right,but it means that i value our relationship more than my EGO...! Anonymous If you do something and turns out pretty good, then should do something else wonderful, just don't dwell on it too long. Just figure out what's next" Steve Jobs In a day when you don’t come across any problems, you can be sure that you are traveling in a wrong path Swami Vivekananda Focus on the Small Hinges and the Big Doors Will Open Wide Do not go where the path may lead; go instead where there is no path and leave a trail Anonymous It is not titles that honor men, but men that honor titles Niccolo Macchiavelli Leadership Is Not About the Leader Anonymous Volunteers are not paid – not because they are worthless, but because they are priceless. Anonymous “It’s been said that a good leader inspires others with confidence in him while a great leader inspires others with confidence in themselves.” Anonymous You can't do good if you don't feel good. Plato The dream is not what you see in sleep… dream is which does not let you sleep Abdul Kalam You are the same today as you’ll be in five years except for two things; the books you read and the people you meet.” Charlie Tremendous Jones You can’t fire a volunteer Anonymous You will become as small as your controlling desire; as great as your dominant aspiration You don’t have to be great to start, but you’ve to start to be great Zig Ziglar You can achieve everything in life that you want, if you can help others achieve what they want Zig Ziglar The ignited minds of the youth is the most powerful resources on the earth, under the earth and above the earth Abdul Kalam Small things make perfection, but perfection isn’t a small thing Anonymous I refuse to lower my standards to accommodate those who refuse to raise theirs Steve Gamlin "Dont share Ur Top Secrets with any 1 because,if U Urself cant Keep Ur Secrets Don't Expect Somebody Else 2 Keep it" Adolf Hitler No one in this world is perfect, if you avoid people for their mistakes, you’ll be ALL Alone Appreciation is a wonderful thing: It makes what is excellent in others belong to us as well. Voltaire The one who follows the crowd will usually get no further than the crowd. The one who walks alone is likely to find himself in places no one has ever been Albert Einstein Do not go where the path may lead, go instead where there is no path and leave a trail Ralph Waldo Emerson if you have one child, you are a parent. if you have two, you are a referee ! If egg is broken by force outside, life ends.  If egg is broken by the force inside, life begins Title is for a year, relationship lasts longer Saro Velrajan Title comes and goes, relationship stays forever Saro Velrajan Your trophy goes to the shelf, but the experience stays with you forever Saro Velrajan Small people use big words, big people use small words, servant leaders use the right words Saro Velrajan “I fear not the man who has practiced 10,000 kicks once, but I fear the man who has practiced one kick 10,000 times !!” Bruce Lee Focus on your members and follow the numbers Saro Velrajan ‎'I' is the smallest word in the dictionary. Don't make it the biggest in your vocabulary! Management is efficiency in climbing the ladder of success… leadership determines whether the ladder is leaning against the right wall Stephen Covey You will never reach your destination if you stop and throw stones at every dog that barks Winston Churchill Most people don’t listen with the intent to understand, they listen with the intent to reply back Stephen Covey Change small, change often Difficulties in your life do not come to destroy you, but to help you realize your hidden potential and power. Let difficulties know that you too are DIFFICULT APJ Abdul Kalam If you judge people, you won’t have any time to love them Mother Teresa If you find this yet another place to work, you should find another place to work Anonymous Great spirits have always encountered violent opposition from mediocre minds Albert Einstein Never play with the feelings of others, because you may win the game but the risk is that you’ll surely lose the person for a life time Shakespeare The world suffers a lot. Not because of the violence of bad people – but because of the silence of good people Napolean I am thankful to all those who said NO to me. It is because of them I did it myself Albert Einstein If friendship is your weakest point then you are the strongest person in the world Abraham Lincoln We must learn to live together as brothers as we will perish together as fools Martin Luther King The weak can never forgive. Forgiveness is the attribute of the strong Mahatma Gandhi It is very easy to defeat someone, but it is very hard to win someone APJ Abdul Kalam If you buy things you do not need, soon you will have to sell things you need Warren Buffett Never depend upon single income, make investment to create a second source Warren Buffett Do not save what is left after spending , but spend what is left after saving Warren Buffett Never test the depth of river with both the feet Warren Buffett Do not put all your eggs in one basket Warren Buffett Honesty is very expensive gift. Do not expect it from cheap people Warren Buffett Successful people have all had to do things they didn’t feel like doing in order to get where they are. Rory Vaden You always get paid for how hard you work, but it’s not always right away. Rory Vaden Are we going to give up, or are we going to be the kind of people who stand up and do what it takes, even if we don’t feel like doing it? Rory Vaden When it comes to making commitments to other people, sometimes one of the hardest things to learn to say is no when we mean no. Rory Vaden We need to stop spending so much of our time trying to make the right decisions and instead start spending our time making decisions and then making them right. Rory Vaden The foundation of a disciplined life is integrity and doing what we say we’re going to do. Rory Vaden Procrastination is one of the most expensive invisible costs in business today. Rory Vaden In the absence of disciplined focus, we become strangely loyal to performing daily acts of trivia. Rory Vaden Success is more a matter of choice than of circumstance. Rory Vaden We always pay a price for success. We either pay it now or pay it later with interest Rory Vaden Success is never owned. It is only rented and the rent is due every day Rory Vaden Be not afraid of greatness. Some are born great, some achieve greatness, and some have greatness thrust upon them Shakespeare Never be proud for what position you hold, because after a game of chess the king and the soldiers go into the same box Anonymous What is success? When your signature turns into autograph. APJ Abdul Kalam A great marriage is not when the 'perfect couple' comes together. It is when an imperfect couple learns to enjoy their differences Dave Meurer The good news is I'm fast. The bad news is I'm walking alone If you want to do everything to everybody than trying to do something to somebody, you won't be able to do anything to anybody Anonymous The difference between the right word and the almost right word is the difference between lightning and the lightning bug Mark Twain There is a difference between interest and commitment. When you are interested in doing something, you do it only when it is convenient. When you are commited to something, you accept no excuses only results. Kenneth Blanchard Contests are NOT meant to differentiate a bronze from a silver and a gold. Contests are meant to transform a golden ore into a golden ornament. Saro Velrajan The greatest leader is NOT necessarily the one who does the greatest things. He is the one that gets the people to do the greatest things. Ronald Regan When you have the commitment, capability can be built. Commitment is much more important than capability Saro Velrajan Don’t just delegate a task to a super star, create a super star by delegating a task. Saro Velrajan Let us also remove the word "negative" from our dictionary… the digital photographers have already removed it from theirs. Saro Velrajan Take the first step in faith. You don't have to see the whole staircase, just take the first step Martin Luther King Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover Anonymous Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming 'WOW What a Ride!' Anonymous If you don't know where you're going, any road'll take you there Anonymous Every role in Toastmasters has a purpose. If you are not learning anything by doing a role, you are not doing your role right Saro Velrajan Judges should be like God. People should believe in them and trust them, but should not see them. Saro Velrajan If you have to pick the best contestant as winner, you'll have to first pick the best judges. Saro Velrajan Leadership is not hunted, it is harvested Saro Velrajan When you harvest leadership, people will hunt for you Saro Velrajan

For a categorized list of quotes, drop me an email or leave a comment here with your email id. I'll send you the XLS.