In two days, on Tuesday the 14th, he was leaving to fly to Orlando, Florida to compete in the semifinal round of the World Championship on Thursday the 16th.  That gave him four days to prepare and practice with his newly regained “passion and enthusiasm.

District 31 has been quite successful with our speech contestants in the World Championship over the past 15 years.  We have had two first place winners and several second and third place finishers.  Our biggest home town hero is Darren LaCroix, World Champion in 2001.  He frequently speaks at our conferences and other D31 functions.  Many of us have studied his materials and attended his trainings.  (I have known Darren since before he became a World Champion and I had the honor of being one of his group evaluators on his winning speech).

As our #1 ‘homie’, Darren worked with Stuart on Wednesday evening.  He even got Craig Valentine, 2005 World Champion to help.  Stuart was getting world class coaching for a world class competition.

Late in the afternoon of Saturday May 5th, 2012, the winner of the Toastmasters District 31 (eastern MA and RI) International Speech Contest was announced.   And, the winner is, Stuart Pink.

He may not have realized it then, but his life would be forever changed.  He would be known, forever more, as the Toastmaster who represented District 31 in the Toastmasters 2012 World Championship of Public Speaking.  For that accomplishment alone, within D31, he will always be a dignitary.  He will always be asked about his experience and he will always be interviewed about his expertise.  He will always be invited to tell his story.

Next, he will be off to the semi-final competition of the 2012 World Championship Speech Contest at the Toastmasters International Convention on August 16th.  As one of 89 semi-finalists from Districts around the world, if he wins in the semis, he will go on to compete as one of the 9 finalists on August 18th.  If he wins there, he will be the Toastmasters World Champion of Public Speaking for 2012.

Stuart’s planned schedule of practice for the summer was to give his D31 winning speech as many times as possible to perfect his content and delivery. This is traditionally done by going to as many Toastmaster clubs as possible to practice one’s speech and receive as many constructive group evaluations, input and opinions from as many Toastmasters as possible.

Stuart and I met several times in these circumstances on his journey to winning the District contest – from Club to Area to Division competitions.  He is a very likable young man from London – Oxford education, English accent and scholastic training as a barrister (lawyer).   We connected and bonded quickly.  I admired him as a good speaker with a good speech and the potential to win at progressively higher levels.  He respected my experience as a Distinguished Toastmaster (DTM) with 15 years of leadership and mentoring experience and as a professional public speaking trainer and coach who has trained over 3,000 clients (Public Speaking Workout training).

In Toastmasters, there is no teacher-student hierarchy. But, we do mentor.  Stuart quickly realized that my coaching, training and mentoring experience both in and outside of Toastmasters and my enthusiastic, caring, supportive and encouraging style were helpful to him.  We developed our friendship by email, telephone and when we met at several of his presentations.  We developed the iconic Toastmasters friendship, a win-win-win situation for all involved.  He benefitted by my experience and enthusiastic support.  I benefitted by helping Stuart prepare for his next levels of competition.  And, Toastmasters benefitted by the demonstration of the “Toastmasters spirit”, two members giving their best to benefit each other and the greater good.

Understand, that those of us who give of ourselves in this mentoring dynamic, do so freely, for the betterment of our Fellow Toastmasters and the Toastmasters program. We expect no reward other than to see and hear the growth of those whom we mentor.  Other Toastmasters also helped to mentor Stuart.  I was not the only one.

Stuart’s practice regimen for the summer was to perfect his D31 winning speech for the semi-finals.  But at the same time, he had to write, develop and practice an entirely new speech to be delivered in the finals if he won his semi-finals competition.  Much of our coaching time was spent working on this project.  In late July, I was expecting a call from Stuart, hoping for a report that he had scheduled several more Toastmasters club meetings where he could practice his new speech and get a group evaluation.

When he called, as soon as I heard his voice, I detected a change from the usual.  His gregarious and effervescent personality seemed diminished, out of gas.  Something was wrong.  The reason soon became apparent.  This proud loving father of two young children told me that his wife had just asked for a divorce.  I could hear it in his voice.  The wind had been taken out of his sails, his balloon had been popped, someone had rained on his parade.

Anyone who has spoken to Stuart for more than 2 seconds would know that he loved his kids.  His D31 winning speech was about an experience with his children.  And, guess what, so was his new speech that he wrote for the finals competition.  Those kids were his inspiration to enter the speech competition.  They were his key to his success.

There is probably no good time to hear that your wife wants a divorce.  But, this was a really bad time.  Stuart lost his enthusiasm and passion.  He had not been working on his speeches.  His heart was just not in it. He had not scheduled more practice opportunities at any Toastmasters clubs.  And, he had just over two weeks before he had to leave for Orlando, Florida for the competition at the 2012 International Conference.  What was he going to do?  What could I do for him as a coach and mentor?  How could I best use my knowledge and experience to best help my new friend and Fellow Toastmaster in this time of emotional devastation?  How could I best give of myself to help Stuart?

I immediately invited him to one of my workshops (PublicSpeakingWorkout.com).  Over 3,000 people from all levels of all careers and all levels of education and speaking experience have attended PSWO.  I have read their testimonials and heard their stories of their newly discovered comfort, confidence, attitude and perspective of public speaking.  This was the best that I had to offer.

I invited him to come for free, my gift to him.  He could not make the workshop that I had scheduled for the next week.  So, I invited him to experience my workshop as a one on one training the following week.  We scheduled it on Sunday afternoon, August 12th.  Note that he was leaving for Orlando on Tuesday the 14th to compete in the semi-finals on Thursday the 16th.  That is not a lot of time for major changes.

We worked together for the full 4 hours of the workshop, progressing through the four speaking exercises with ample do-overs, practice and coaching.  He participated fully, just like anyone else who has ever experienced PSWO.  When we were done, he said, “Thank you”.

I hear those words, thank you, from most people who experience PSWO.  But, Stuart’s thank you was the most memorable.  Yes, his knowledge, attitude, skills, experience, comfort and confidence were all turbocharged.  But, everyone feels that from their PSWO experience.  From Stuart, there was something more.  It was not just the words, “thank you”, but the profound, effusive heartfelt gratitude with which he said them.

I will always remember his next comment, “You have brought back my passion and enthusiasm”.  Remember that I offered this training to Stuart as a gift from a mentor to a Fellow Toastmaster.  As much as I love being paid for my services as a trainer and coach, I will always hold Stuart’s gratitude as a special reward for my service in the truest and best sense of the Toastmasters spirit.

 This story continues tomorrow. 

Learn the power of our collaborative efforts for Stuart’s success.

In the Olympics, the difference in first and third place in the 100 meter dash might be as little as one hundredth of a second or even less.  Both athletes trained daily for years and years both mentally, emotionally and physically.  They both learned from their coaches, trainers, nutritionists and doctors to be the best of the best in their sport. And yet, no matter how many other wins, losses or injuries overcome, one will forever be known as the winner and the other as the third place finisher for that race.

 They both earned and deserved their place in the final race because of their respective efforts and previous accomplishments.  After all, they beat out thousands upon thousands of ‘would be winners’ who never succeeded at their local levels to make it to the Olympics.

I recently had the experience of helping to coach the 3^rd place winner of Toastmasters 2012 World Championship of Public Speaking.  Note that I said “helped”.  Others helped too.  But, the experience that he and I shared was an experience that changed us both forever.  Because of what we experienced together, our lives are both changed forever.  We have both become an integral part of each other’s story.

If you have ever seen the movie, ”Rudy”, don’t hold your breath waiting for the Hollywood version of my story – you might turn very blue.  But, just an hour south of Hollywood is Toastmasters International World Headquarters – and this is a true Toastmasters story.

Consider this post a preview of “My Stuart Story”.  Tune in to my next two posts for the full story.

Yes, this is truly a Toastmasters story.  In my 15 years as a Toastmaster, I have heard hundreds of self-improvement, success and ‘life-changing’ stories from Fellow Toastmasters who have been members for much longer and much shorter periods of time than me.  Many have far surpassed me in their accomplishments and leadership.  Others have admired my accomplishments and followed my leadership.

One thing that we all share in common is, the “Toastmaster spirit”, a bond, through our membership and experiences in this wonderful organization (www.Toastmasters.org).  Having been a member of and participated in many other organizations, I have never had another experience like my Toastmaster membership.  From churches to fraternal organizations to clubs and civic organizations, there is something different about Toastmasters.

In the ‘Toastmasters spirit’, everyone is there, certainly to learn and grow their own self interests of confident public speaking, communication and leadership skills.  But, we are also there to benefit from and be of benefit to our fellow members and the greater good of the organization, Toastmasters.  Even I might think that this praise is a bit over the top had I not experienced it personally and consistently throughout my 15 years of membership.

I have received much recognition for my efforts, accomplishments and leadership in Toastmasters.  For that, I am grateful.  My consistent response is, “All that I give is a mere token of what I  received.” 

In this vein, in this spirit, please return to read my next post, “Almost the World Champion – My Stuart Story part 2”

The term, “elevator speech” is used to describe this opportunity to give your self commercial.

Presenting multiple Toastmasters Speechcraft programs in a prison environment has enabled us, the teaching team to observe the consistant growth of our inmate Speechcrafters in these two skill sets.  Tonight, the eighth class of our 6th 12 week Speechcraft program demonstrated several skills that are additional benefits of the Toastmasters experience.

Content organization, storytelling and listening are three skills that were really spot lighted tonight.  Organizing  your speech , concentrating on having a distinct opening, body and close is the second assignment in the TM  manual and in the Speechcraft program.  Slowly, our SCers have developed this skill.  We have seen in grow slowly.  On any given night, one might have a good opening and even well developed body material but then fail to have a strong close (conclusion).  Among the 5-6 speakers in each class, any variation of this model might occur.  Tonight, each speaker had a well organized speech containing all three aspects.

Their story telling skills have have gelled over the last three meetings with tonight being the best yet.  As trained volunteers for the Rhode Island Depart of Corrections, we cannot ask any of our SCers about their backrounds or why they are there in prison.  But, because of the friendly supportive Toastmasters “spirit” environment that we create in the program, they share so much about themselves in their speeches and in their Table Topics (2 minute impromptu speaking opportunities).

In the first weeks, they would state a series of facts or mention events in their lives with little description or elaboration.  by hearing our speeches and Table Topic responses and studying their assignments, they, one by one started to grow from fact stating to actually telling a story.  And, telling it in a manner to hold the audience’s attention and interest.  We all love to hear an interesting story.  Seeing this skill develop before our very eyes (and ears) is a great reward for those of us dedicated to teaching this program.  It helps our SCers bond together as a group and we get to to know them better when they open up and share their well told stories.

Listening is an important skill to develop.  When an evaluator evaluates a speech, he must listen intently and critically to the speech in order to give a good evaluation.  Tonight, one of our SCers mentioned how important listening skills were to him as he heartfeltly thanked our teaching team and the Speechcraft program.

He mentioned how learning the importance of listening has changed his life.  He now intentionally and actively listens to other inmates and the officers both in our program and back in the prison environment.  The line that empahsized  the lesson that he learned was, “most of us are in here because we never listened to anyone before”.  He elaborated about never listening to parents, teachers, employers or their victims.  The power of this story demonstrated the power of Toastmasters training and the Speechcraft program.  I am so proud to be a part of both.

Esther and Dale, two female members of our Team, run the Women’s Speechcraft.  The Women’s Warden asked us if we could provide some male presesence in the classes because many of the women in the program have had very few or no positive male role models in their lives.  So, we men on the Team have each been taking turns spending an evening at Women’s.  We all enjoy the experience, but we do not want to break the continuity of being at our Men’s program.

People frequently ask me if there is a difference between teaching public speaking to men and women prisoners.  The answer is no.  In fact the answer is such a strong no, that it can be extended to cover all women and all men in any level of any career, education level or life situation.  The fear of public speaking is universal, covering all ages, genders, cultures and careers.

Based on my experience of having trained over 3,000 people through Public Speaking Workout, my opinion is that 90% of us, men and women, have a fear (anxiety or nervousness) of public speaking to some degree or another.  Some are paralyzed with fear to the point that they avoid all speaking and leadership opportunities even if it negatively affects their careers.  Others are just anxious and nervous before a speech or presentation and always wish that they were or could be better speakers.

There is no difference in teaching comfortable confident public speaking skills to women or men.   Anyone can learn to become a comfortable confident speaker.  Just like any other skill set, it takes commitment to learn and practice the skills repeatedly in order to gain the competency and experience that leads to comfort and confidence.  I challenge anyone to explain how learning public speaking skills is any different than learning any other skill set.

Public Speaking Workout training has been presented at major corporations and universities, to grade school and high school students and to many youth groups (Boy and Girl Scouts, 4-H and Police Explorers) and to both men and women prison inmates.  That ‘s a lot  of experience, covering all ages, genders, career experience and education levels.  PSWO training can help anyone become a more comfortable confident speaker/presenter in any speaking situation.

It can help you too.  If you want to or need to develop your public speaking skills, Public Speaking Workout training is a quick, easy, fun and very effective way to do it.  But, nothing will happen without you taking the first step to contact me.  Whether you want to attend a PSWO in person or if you want private coaching online or by phone, you must face the fear of facing the fear.   That is the first step on the path that leads to confidence.

In his 30 years in a technical profession, Phil was very successful as a businessman.  In selling his services, he could speak to anyone.  He had total confidence in his expertise, he was recognized as an expert and he could compete with anyone in his field.  A few years ago, well into his career, he had to give a presentation to his local town council, including many people that he had known for years.   That is when it struck him.

The Fear of Public Speaking has the reputation of being the #1 FEAR.  When Phil was asked, “When was the first time you remember having that paralyzing fear of public speaking?”, this was the situation that he remembered.

He remembered the nervousness, the anxiety, the ‘butterflies” in his stomach, feeling flushed,  having sweaty palms and worrying about remembering his material.  These are the feelings of someone who is an experienced expert in his field.  Have you ever been in this situation?  What are the visceral feelings that you feel when you have to speak in front of an audience?  Have you had some or all of these same feelings?

Wanting to never be in this situation again, Phil avoided further public speaking situations.  Does this sound familiar in your life or career?  Have you said “no” to opportunities to speak at work or in your community?  Have you said no to leadership opportunities that would benefit your life and career?  Have you avoided promotion and advancement because it would involve having to give reports, presentations or speeches?  Many people avoid these career and life enhancing opportunities to the detriment of their careers.   The fear of public speaking is insidiously powerful.

Phil decided to take action to overcome his fear.  After watching a Public Speaking Workout training video, he was inspired and motivated to attend PSWO training.  In 4 hours, he changed his fear of public speaking to newly developed comfort and confidence.  He changed his attitude and perspective of public speaking.  He learned and practiced skills that he had never been taught.  He gained real time practical experience with supportive encouraging coaching.  He was able to make mistakes in a safe supportive invironment and he was given the opportunity to correct the mistakes by practicing again — and again, and again, until he felt comfortable and confident in his performance and delivery.  In 4 hours, he changed his life, his career and his future regarding public speaking.

Just like basketball practice (or any skill training), Phil had the opportunity to practice, get coached and practice again and again until his performance approached ‘muscle memory’.  All of the old feelings of fear and anxiety diminished as his comfort and confidence grew, practice after practice.  Isn’t this the way we learn all other skills in our lives.  This applies to all skills, academic, sport, art, dance, music and business skills.  We learn and practice day after day throughout our lives and careers.

As experienced as Phil was in his career, he never had any public speaking training.  Have you?  Public speaking is is such a vital life and career skillset and yet most of us get little or absolutely no training.  Even if we took Public Speaking 101 in college, one entry level course is not enough to instill a career full of comfort and confidence.  Can you imagine an engineer with only Math 101 skills?  Besides, most of us avoided taking even that basic public speaking course.

Public Speaking Workout training can change your life and enhance your career.  Are you ready and willing to overcome your fear to become a comfortable confident speaker?