In November of 2022, I received an email from a gentleman named Joe Vieira who was desperate to get help overcoming his fear of public speaking. As the administrator of our club’s web site, I have answered hundreds of “first contact” emails, but this one felt different. Without even meeting me, Joe poured his heart out to me. He told me about the anxiety, the accelerated heart beat and the sweating whenever he had to speak to more than one person at a time. He told me how his fear was having a negative effect on his relationships with his employees and affecting his business.
I made my return e-mails more positive and encouraging than usual and I finally convinced Joe to attend a meeting in the spring of 2023. I didn’t see Joe at the meeting that evening and the next day, I found out why. He told me that he had driven to our meeting location, looked through the window, turned around, got in his car and went home.
When we started our 2023-2024 season, I encouraged Joe to try again and this time, he made it through the door accompanied by his girlfriend for moral support. At the end of the meeting, the guests were asked for their comments and when it was Joe’s turn, he said “I feel extremely nervous talking to all of you right now, but you’ve made me feel safe and I’d like to come back”.
At the next meeting, Joe participated in Table Topics and did very well for a first timer. When asked for his comments this time, he said that although he was very nervous while speaking, it was comforting to know that everyone was speaking and having fun. After the meeting was over, Joe came up to me and asked me if he could do a speech at the next meeting. It is impossible to put into words how excited I was about the rapid transformation that was unfolding before my eyes. I told Joe how impressed I was with his courage and I told him “Absolutely, let’s make it your Ice-Breaker speech”.
The following week, Joe was introduced, he walked to the front of the room and stood in front of the podium without any notes. He then proceeded to deliver an amazing speech with excellent vocal variety, body language and eye contact. To everyone in the room, it was obvious that Joe was a natural and gifted story teller. At the end of the meeting, Joe was on cloud 9 and he asked me if he could speak again at next week’s meeting and of course I said yes. I sensed that he had a lifetime of stories to tell and now that the fear of speaking was gone, he couldn’t get them out fast enough.
It is important to note that Joe’s girlfriend came with him to every meeting for moral support and it was so touching to see how proud she was of his transformation. At our next meeting, Joe was introduced as the next speaker and he started another amazing speech about appreciating the people you love. He moved around the speaking area and as he made his way to where his girlfriend was sitting, he got down on one knee, pulled out a ring and proposed to her right in the middle of our Toastmaster meeting. There were cheers, screams and a few tears. It was a meeting that we will never forget and by the way, she said yes.
Since joining Toastmasters, Joe has continued his amazing transformation in our meetings, in his personal life and in his professional life as well. He can now speak to all of his employees at the same time, he has joined a local business organization that requires him to give regular speeches and he has given a presentation to the Niagara Regional Council. All things that were impossible just a few short months ago.
As the Beatles said “All You Need Is Love” and to become a confident public speaker, all you need is Toastmasters. It was absolutely amazing to witness both at the same time at Niagara-on-the-Lake Toastmasters.
Created by Charles Kennedy, DTM, Niagara-on-the-Lake Toastmasters