October 2022 Leader Letter

October Dues Still Accepted Online — Join the Toastmasters membership movement and watch/share this inspiring video; you can still submit dues payments online to keep your club and members in good standing! Log in to Club Central to submit dues and renew. If you need assistance, please review the Club Central Tutorials. You may also contact Club and Member Support by emailing renewals@toastmasters.org.

Clubs Worldwide Need Your Assistance! — A recent wave of natural disasters has dramatically impacted the ability of clubs to meet in Districts around the world. In the last year alone, the Ralph C. Smedley Memorial Fund® has been able to provide assistance to members affected by extreme weather events in the Philippines and Southern United States, the August 2020 Port of Beirut Explosion, and most recently, the war in Ukraine—all thanks to the generous contributions from members like you. But it doesn't stop there. The Smedley Fund relies on you to continue providing support to clubs where it is needed most. Please donate online as an individual to the Smedley Fund today; you can also email the team at smedleyfund@toastmasters.org.

Paying Annual Dues — Dues for both the current and one future renewal period now automatically appear online in Club Central for club officers to pay at their convenience; keep in mind, dues are nonrefundable. When paying dues online, both renewal payments will have to be processed as two separate transactions. If you have questions, contact Club and Member Support via email, renewals@toastmasters.org or via phone at +1 720-439-5050, ext. 1402 from 8 a.m.–5p.m. Mountain Time, Monday–Friday.

Round Two of Club Officer Training Coming Soon! — The second round of club officer training begins on November 1; ensure club officers attend training so they can acquire valuable lessons and insights that will help your club be successful. For training schedules and more, please contact the Program Quality Director for your District.

Need Help Creating Promo Materials? — Many clubs have already had promotional success using Canva to simply create event fliers, social media posts, and more—is your club one of them? If it hasn't already, your club can utilize one of several Canva versions or even another design tool; just remember, all content must be brand compliant. To make it even easier, utilize templates already created on Canva by World Headquarters. You can also use the Brand Manual to learn best practices. Have fun and submit your designs to brand@toastmasters.org for review/approval.

The Treasure Chest Within Base Camp —The Tutorials and Resources section is the portion of Base Camp that is overflowing with information and forms that you may need on a regular basis. Chances are you will find exactly what you are looking for.

Digital Guest Packet —Now that many clubs are meeting online and hosting guests, the need for good follow-up has increased. The “Why Toastmasters?” webpage is a great link to include in your email to a guest after they visit your club. On this webpage, potential members will find the same information found in the Guest Packet, including Toastmasters' structure, how they can grow, and details on how to join a club.

Evaluation Resources — Did you know that all the evaluation resources are located on www.toastmasters.org and through Base Camp? Members have multiple ways to access the evaluation resources needed to complete their projects in the education program. They can be found when launching a project or in the Tutorials and Resources section on Base Camp in all languages. The English version of these valuable resources can also be found in the Resource Library on the Toastmasters website with just the name of the project—no login required!

Invocations and Pledges — Invocations and pledges are popular ways to open club meetings with an inspirational message. They are usually one or two minutes in length, are delivered by a designated club member, and are entirely optional. If your club chooses to open a meeting with an invocation or pledge, always take care to respect the diversity of club members and visitors. More information on this topic can be found on the Invocations, Pledges, and Controversial Topics page.

Meeting Minutes — One of the main responsibilities of the Club Secretary is to record the meeting minutes. Templates and examples are available online for club meetings and Club Executive meetings. Also available are branded letterhead options.

Acting With Integrity — International President Matt Kinsey, DTM, dives into the first of Toastmasters' core values in this month's Viewpoint column. Don't feel like reading? Watch Kinsey on video as he talks about acting with integrity.

Leading the Bahamas — Over the years, Toastmasters members have made an impact in many professional arenas, including politics. But there has never been a situation quite like this—the current prime minister and deputy prime minister of The Bahamas are both longtime members. Learn more about their ties to Toastmasters, Parliament, and the 2023 International Convention location—Nassau, Bahamas!

Spontaneous Speaking — For many Toastmasters, nothing strikes fear into the heart quite like Table Topics®. Challenging as it may be to answer the call to speak spontaneously, there are some ways to prepare. Discover tips and tricks for becoming a better Table Topics speaker in this Toastmaster article.

Service Interruption Apology — The launch of the Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) platform in May set the stage for exciting opportunities but created some immediate technical issues that are still being resolved, such as the re-opening of the online store. World Headquarters feels your frustration! Thank you for bearing with us, we are getting closer to resolution each week. Continue to check the Service Interruption Updates webpage for the latest maintenance report. We apologize for the lack of timely service, but look forward to recommitting to all of our service standards as soon as possible. We anticipate reopening the online store the third week of October.

Board of Directors Briefing — Did you catch this informative event during the 2022 International Convention? Watch it now on the Toastmasters International website. Listen as the Board of Directors presents on key decisions, recent committee work, and the organization's vision and strategies for the future.

Inspiration Replay! — Did you miss it? The 2022 International Convention has ended, but the storytelling excitement lives on. You can still learn and reshape your narrative with unlimited On Demand access to sessions and highlights for only $60 USD.

Coloring Contest Reveal! — Earlier this year, we asked you to share a little bit about Toastmasters with the young family members in your lives. To help celebrate the organization's 98th anniversary this month, we held the Toastmaster Magazine Coloring Contest for Kids—and the results are in!

Looking for Your Renewals? — Has your club submitted information for members to be renewed that is still not reflecting on your club's roster? If your club has submitted payment by wire transfer, this may be the reason for the delay. Please email the wire transfer confirmation (commonly called the SWIFT Receipt) to the Finance team, financequestions@toastmasters.org. They will ensure that the funds are allocated to your club to renew members from the list and applications needed. During the increased volume for the renewal period, please send only one communication regarding confirmation for the wire transfer.

Need Help Logging in? — If you or a club member has difficulty logging in, use the Forgot Password feature, which sends an email prompting the user to create a new password. If a member needs to reset their password each time they log in, this may be because their contact email address and username aren't synced. Luckily, this is an easy fix! Have the member log in to www.toastmasters.org, go to their profile, click “Edit contact information and privacy”, and then click “Sync my logins”. If that doesn't resolve the issue, email membership@toastmasters.org.

Smedley Award 2022 — Contest submissions for the Smedley Award have ended. Please be advised that all notifications regarding clubs that have earned the award will not be posted until late October due to month-end closing. For more information about the month-end closing dates and their impact on reporting, please refer to the Month End Closing Dates page.