Over the Thanksgiving break, Sea Dragons Gavel Club President Bruce Yu traveled to Hangzhou, a beautiful city in China, and attended a meeting of the Future Champion Advanced Toastmasters Club, one of the two Toastmasters clubs in the city where English is the primary working language. After visiting many Toastmasters clubs, he found this one to be especially strong in English proficiency. Many members demonstrated advanced speaking skills, while in other clubs he had visited, only one or two members were highly proficient.
The participants at this meeting were highly responsible and well prepared. Even first-time guests demonstrated confidence and composure. Throughout the meeting, Bruce Yu listened to three well-developed speeches: a self-introduction with detailed stories, a speech on bravery and fear, and a presentation on “hair as energy.” Each speech connected closely to the meeting theme, Mindset.
In the Table Topics session, Bruce Yu shared his reflections on the mindset of kindness. He spoke about how kindness flows through Toastmasters, as shown in this meeting, where members learn by doing in a supportive and collaborative environment. He also discussed how this spirit can be further cultivated within the Toastmasters community by focusing on improving communication and English skills, rather than emphasizing positions, ranks, or status.