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Typical Meeting

Saratoga Toastmasters | Roles 101
The success of a Toastmasters meeting depends on the program participants. There are many roles to
fill, and each job is designed to improve the members’

public speaking,listening and leadership skills. Program participants must know and understand their
duties so they can prepare for them.
****If your role title is in BLUE, you have tasks to perform day(s) before the session ****
VP EDUCATION
Send out the meeting agenda with role assignments for the upcoming Saturday session by Tuesday.
Inform Toasmaster to followup on unassigned roles.
TOASTMASTER
The Toastmaster is a meeting’s director and host. You won’t usually be assigned this role until you
are thoroughly familiar with the club and its procedures.
As the Toastmaster, you’ll introduce each speaker. If a speaker will not write his or her own
introduction, you will write it. Introductions must be brief and carefully planned. Contact speakers
before the meeting to ask about: Speech topic, Manual and project title.
Make sure all roles are filled the day before the session (that is on Friday). If there are any
unassigned roles, send out an email to the group
Print at least 25 copies of agenda sheet
Collect brief intros from all speakers & evaluators
Get breakfast for at least 15-20 people (Suggested items: Pastries, Cookies, Fruits, Juice, Yogurt,
Cake. Home cooked items are everyone's favorites :-))
Adhere to the timing in the agenda
TABLE TOPICS MASTER
With TABLE TOPICS™, the Topicsmaster gives members who aren’t assigned a speaking role the
opportunity to speak during the meeting. The Topicsmaster challenges each member with a subject, and
the speaker responds with a one- to two-minute impromptu talk. When the Toastmaster introduces you,
walk to the lectern and assume control of the meeting: - Briefly state the purpose of Table Topics
and mention any theme. - If your club has a word of the day, encourage speakers to use that word in
their response.- Be certain everyone understands the maximum time they have for their response and
how the timing device works (if the timer hasn’t already done so).
Talk to Toastmaster for the session and get the theme for the session. If there is no theme, feel
free to pick one
Prepare 12 - 15 questions on the topic. Recommendations: Keep questions open ended (What do you
think? vs. Do you agree or disagree).
Call members who don't have any roles assigned (Call someone who don't have green sheet on their
name tag)
Remind the aduience to use "Word of the day"
Summarize (if time permits) at the end and ask for timer report for voting
SPEAKER
Speaking program is the center of every Toastmasters meeting. After all, what’s Toastmasters without
the talking? But members don’t just stand up and start yakking. They use the guidelines in the
Competent Communication (CC) manual and the Advanced Communication Series (ACS) manuals to fully
prepare their presentations.Every speaker is a role model and club members learn from one another’s
speeches. Prepare and rehearse to ensure you present the best speech possible. No speech is perfect.
So, get out there and try! If you don’t write your own speech introduction, make sure the
Toastmaster of the meeting prepares a good one for you.
Look up the CC Manual and read about the project & objectives. If you are working on ohter manuals,
please refer those manuals and projects
Prepare speech focusing on objectives and make sure to follow timing guidelines provided in the
manual
Talk to your mentor (If no one is assigned, talk to VP Education immidiately and get a mentor)
Practice, Practice & Practice. Practice solo, Practice in front of family, Practice with mentor
Gather feedback from evaluator & audience
GENERAL EVALUATOR
Ensure the speech and leadership project evaluators know their responsibilities, supervise the
timer, grammarian and Ah-Counter, Evaluate everything that takes place during the club meeting and
make sure each activity is performed correctly.
EVALUATOR
:Several days before the meeting, review the Effective Evaluation manual. Talk with the speaker or
leader you’ve been assigned to evaluate and find out which manual project they will present. Review
the project goals and what the speaker or leader hopes to achieve. Begin and end your evaluation
with a note of encouragement or praise. Commend a successful speech or leadership assignment and
describe specifically how it was successful. Don’t allow the speaker or leader to remain unaware of
a valuable asset such as a smile or a sense of humor. Likewise, don’t permit the speaker or leader
to remain ignorant of a serious fault: if it is personal, write it but don’t mention it aloud. Give
the speaker or leader deserved praise and tactful suggestions in the manner you would like to
receive them.
AH-COUNTER
The purpose of the Ah-Counter is to note any word or sound used as a crutch by anyone who speaks
during the meeting. Words may be inappropriate interjections, such as and, well, but, so and you
know. Sounds may be ah, um or er. You should also note when a speaker repeats a word or phrase such
as “I, I” or “This means, this means.” These words and sounds can be annoying to listeners. The
Ah-Counter role is an excellent opportunity to practice your listening skills.TIMER
One of the skills Toastmasters practice is expressing a thought within a specific time. As timer you
are responsible for monitoring time for each meeting segment and each speaker. You’ll also operate
the timing signal, indicating to each speaker how long he or she has been talking. Serving as timer
is an excellent opportunity to practice giving instructions and time management – something we do
every day.
WORD MASTER
Select a "word of the day" for the meeting.It should be a word that will help members increase their
vocabulary – a word that can be incorporated easily into everyday conversation but is different from
the way people usually express themselves. Adjectives and adverbs are more adaptable than nouns or
verbs, but feel free to select your own special word.
Select a "word of the day" (if this is done in your club)
Print your word on the white board, its part of speech (adjective, adverb, noun, verb) and a brief
definition in letters large enough to be seen from the back of the room
Prepare a sentence showing how the word is used
When introduced: Announce the word of the day, state its part of speech, define it, use it in a
sentence and ask that anyone speaking during any part of the meeting use it
GRAMMARIAN
Throughout the meeting, listen to everyone’s word usage. Write down any awkward use or misuse of the
language (incomplete sentences, sentences that change direction in midstream, incorrect grammar or
malapropisms) with a note of who erred. For example, point out if someone used a singular verb with
a plural subject. “One in five children wear glasses” should be “one in five children wears
glasses.” Note when a pronoun is misused. “No one in the choir sings better than her” should be “No
one in the choir sings better than she.”
THOUGHT OF THE DAY
The thought, an inspiring quotation that sets the tone for the day’s meeting, is a welcome option in
many clubs. It is usually delivered by a designated club member at the beginning or the end of the
meeting, and is sometimes used as a replacement for or in combination with an invocation or pledge
of allegiance.
Pick a quote or thought. Please limit it to less than a minute
When introduced: tell your quote/thought of the day
JOKE MASTER
This a great way to end the session on light note. The idea is to have members end the session on
light note and prepare for rest of the day with joyous mood!
Present clean, concise, appropriate jokes. Please limit it to less than a minute. Can be joke,
anecdote, or personal humorous story. Be dramatic: act out the part enthusiastically
When introduced: tell your joke. Have fun!

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