About DTSE

Downtown Speakeasy Guidelines

This document serves as a foundation for the Downtown Speakeasy Toastmasters. It will outline proper etiquette in various arenas.

Meeting Guidelines

Each meeting is an opportunity to showcase the best that Toastmasters has to offer. Our goal with each meeting is to conduct the meeting according to the Toastmasters International guidelines, ensure that all members and guests enjoy an organized, fun, and safe environment to expand their public speaking skills and grow.

To create such an environment, the following guidelines are suggested:

• Leadership and TM should be 10 minutes early to meetings

• Leadership should encourage speakers and the TM to arrive 10 minutes early

• Zoom

  • Encourage everyone to keep their cameras on for the duration of the meeting

• Leadership should welcome guests and members alike

  • Leadership role is to make everyone feel comfortable

Members

Joining a Toastmasters club allows people to gain access to the educational materials online, as well as have expanded access to meetings to accelerate their growth. Membership is best for individuals interested in growing their public speaking and interpersonal skills.

Leadership is encouraged to continually keep in touch with members, at least once per month, and make sure that the club experience is exceeding members’ needs. Simple email outreach and phone call or coffee meetings are encouraged to develop stronger relationships with members.

Members should be looking at the roles schedule prior to each meeting. If you are planning on missing a meeting in the future, please add your name to the Absent row on the Google Sheet. By communicating your attendance makes it easier on the VPE when making the schedule.

If you can't make a meeting and are assigned a role, please email both the assigned Toastmaster (emails under Member Info tab) for the week and officers-downtown-speakeasy@googlegroups.com so we can find a replacement for your role.  Please don't edit the schedule, unless you have notified the VPE.  

Also confirming Toastmaster and Speaking roles when assigned by the VPE.

Guests

Our club is open and available for guests to visit as many times as they would like. The meeting is a great place to understand the nuances of our club culture and values. Guests may benefit during meetings by networking opportunities and speaking opportunities during the tweet response and Table Topics portions of the meetings.

Below are some guidelines for guest etiquette:

• Guests may visit as many times as they would like

• Encourage guests to visit other clubs as well

• Guests may participate in:

  • Tweet response

  • Table topics

• Guests may not participate in:

  • Speeches

  • Meeting roles (unless necessary)

  • Evaluations

  • Toastmaster role

• When guests arrive, please welcome them to the meeting. Seek to make them feel comfortable and excited about joining the meeting. Some helpful questions include:

  • How did you find out about the club?

  • What made you interested in joining today?

  • What made you interested in Toastmasters?

  • What are you looking to gain in today’s meeting?

• During the meeting, encourage guests to enter their information in the sign-up form

• After the meeting:

  • Reach out to guests, thanking them for attending

  • Send guests the Guest Handout and the Application form

Any additional comments or concerns, please contact  officers-downtown-speakeasy@googlegroups.com