Two Legs

At last weekend's District 24 Toastmasters Conference, one of the guest speakers, Dr. Dilip Abayasekara, talked about the importance of the "two legs" of excellent Toastmasters club meetings:

1. Emotional Experience

2. Educational Progress

This was an "ah-ha" moment for me because it perfectly captured what I love about Toastmasters:  I get to form real connections with my fellow club members as we support one another ("emotional experience") while also learning new things and improving my speaking and leadership skills ("educational progress"). 

These two "legs" reflect that we have both emotional and educational needs that Toastmasters can help fulfill.

For those who are Toastmasters members, Dr. Dilip gave us two questions to ask after each meeting to make sure we are fulfilling both of those needs:

1. Do I feel emotionally enriched?

2. Am I learning and improving?

If you find you cannot answer "yes" to both questions, talk about it with another club member you trust.  Reflect on what you and the club can do to get to "yes" for both questions and then act on those ideas.  After all, Toastmasters is all about feedback and improvement.

If you aren't a Toastmasters member, I encourage you visit a Toastmasters club and, if necessary, visit again until you find a club where you can answer "yes" to both of those questions.  I'd love to hear about your experience.

We can also think about the balance between "emotional experience" and "educational progress" in non-Toastmasters areas of our lives.  In choosing what charities I donate to or volunteer activities in which I engage, I want to "feel" a connection to the cause ("emotional experience") while also seeing evidence of the good they do ("educational progress").  In my relationships, both professional and personal, I want to feel a connection to those I choose to spend my time with ("emotional experience") while also being willing to talk about how we can better interact with one another ("educational progress").  In the workplace, it's important that I keep developing and using my skills to provide value to my company ("educational progress"), but I also want to feel a connection to the work I am doing and to those I am doing it with ("emotional experience").  

If we find a key part of our life is missing either that emotional or educational component, it's worth reflecting on what we can do to alter the situation and restore the balance that comes with having both legs present.  If one leg is too short or too long or missing entirely, it will be challenging to stand.  We need both emotional experience and educational progress.

I encourage us all to seek that balance throughout our lives.  If you aren't sure where to start, remember that this "two legs" concept came from a Toastmasters conference and start with Toastmasters.