This is Talk Up Toastmasters. Last night I went to my Club after the holiday break and had a great time. We had 2 prepared speeches: one guy told us about the life of George Westinghouse, and the other talked about fishing. I wasn't keen on the latter as I'm vegetarian, but he was enthusiastic, and very funny too. One thing that really cracked us up was his telling us how he bought a boat, but with the little amount he's been able to do, he reckons each fish cost him $1000! Then we had Table Topics, and I was called on to say what I'd done in the holidays - in Africa! So I made up a yarn about climbing Mt Kilimanjaro and collecting snow so the Africans would be able to have freezers.

Toastmasters is not only educational and informative, it is also heaps of fun, and develops great communication and leadership skills. You gain great confidence by being able to stand up in front of an audience and speak your piece. If anyone needs to do presentations for work or study,you get plenty of friendly, useful feedback. If you have a fear of public speaking and would like to overcome it, there is no better place (and cheaper)to learn than Toastmasters. Check out the website