Congratulations!  You just started your new Toastmasters year.  What do I do now?

This is usually what happens at the beginning of the year for a lot of clubs.  Sure, the club was existing before July 1st, but what do you need to take care of at the beginning?  Here is the first thing I feel that a club needs to establish at the beginning of the year:  Establish  Your Club Leader Roles.  This involves installing of the club officers, training your officers, updating your club information, and using helpful resources.

If you have not done so already, install the officers of your club.  It may seem that it’s too formal, but if you think about it, just like the member induction, this formality is very helpful in building the foundation of your club and set the tone of what is expected of your officers.  You can find the installation of the officers in the Club Leadership Handbook, under Club Events ==> Club Officer Elections.   Invite one of your newly appointed/elected District Leadership.  If you don’t know who they are, just check out www.d30toastmasters.org.  Having this installation is the best thing to start your year.

Club officers are trained semi-annually for their specific role and also learn club team building strategies.  These happen at the Toastmasters Leadership Institute (TLI) provided by the District.  Check out the dates of the training at the District website.  Having your officers learn their roles is not only necessary, but it is also a goal that clubs need to achieve to be considered successful.  Having four officers or more gives a club the opportunity to achieve Goal 9 of the Distinguished Club Program.  Officers must be trained initially (between June 1 to August 31) and at the mid-part of the year (December 1 to February 28).

Updating the club’s information in your own club’s webpage and also the contact information in the Toastmasters International website helps people who are thinking of visiting or joining your club.  It’s the best way to keep communication going at your club and shows who is responsible for the success of the club.

Finally, utilize the resources District 30 provides for you.  You can find most of these items at www.d30toastmasters.org.  There’s a treasure trove of documents, links, and downloadable items found on the page.  Bookmark the page and refer to the page as much as possible.

Enjoy the start of your club’s Toastmasters year.  Having your officers installed, trained, announced, and equipped with knowledge will help your club.  Having Club Leadership established is the key of your success.