COVID-19 UPDATE
Until it is safe to meet in person, we are meeting virtually through the magic if Zoom. We are still speaking, evaluating, and having lots of fun, and would love to have you visit. Please contact us for more details.
WELCOME!
If you are nervous about speaking in front of complete strangers fear not! There is never any pressure to immediately start speaking and we welcome visitors to come sit in and see firsthand what occurs during a typical meeting.
HOW DO I ATTEND A MEETING?
This is easy just show up on time 🙂 There is no advanced sign up, email, or notification required. Our meetings occur every Friday (excluding holidays or whenever we publish cancelled meetings in advance on our website). Our doors usually open around 7:30 am (sometimes as early as 7:15 am) and we have a prompt start time of 7:45 am at which time we usually lock the door for security reasons. If you happen to be running late and find yourself locked out there is usually a phone number on the door of a club officer you can text message or call and we will do our best to get you in.
Our meetings are held in the facilities of Arts West located in West Seattle at 4711 California Ave SW, Seattle, WA 98116. Accessibility is only available through the rear of the building and not off California Ave.
DO I NEED TO BRING ANYTHING?
Nope just yourself 🙂
WHAT TO EXPECT
Typically at least one of the club officers (and likely other club members) will be there to greet you. Upon arrival we have our visitors sign our guest book so we can follow up with you after the meeting. None of your information is sold or used for marketing, this is exclusively a club guest book for our visitors. Once you are signed in you will get a visitor name card and usually we just like to introduce ourselves, ask a little about you, what brings you here, and what you are looking to learn or achieve with Toastmasters.
WILL I BE REQUIRED TO SPEAK?
Absolutely not a requirement. We offer guests the opportunity to talk during the one minute table topics phase of the meeting but it’s completely optional with no pressure. Some people love to jump right in, others like to take their time to test the waters before taking to the stage. We are highly supportive and ready whenever you are.
WHAT IS THE ENVIRONMENT LIKE?
We have the luxury of operating out of Arts West which is a local theater in West Seattle. The benefits here are we have an actual theater complete with stage and seating. Typically the stage changes every few months. One day it looks like a kitchen, the next day a trashed frat house, then all of a sudden it’s a freeway overpass with a drop off! The dynamic change in scenery always adds to the character of our speaking environments.
Sometimes if the theater area is being remodeled we may host the meeting in the front lobby or even downstairs in the basement but most of the time its in the main theater area off the stage as it’s the most accommodating for our purposes.
WHAT’S THE CLUB CULTURE LIKE?
All clubs can have a wide array of personalities, formalities, structures, and cultures. The West Seattle Earlybirds members tends to be a hodgepodge of business professionals, younger members looking to develop their professional skills, retired members who like to socialize, and even multiple entrepreneurs. Our club adheres to the official guidelines and principals set forth by Toastmasters International but our culture is very social and laid back. As earlybirds we tend to come in caffeinated and ready to start our Fridays right! We are a very friendly and non-judgemental group of people who just want to support and enable others to evolve their speaking and leadership skills.
ARE THERE ANY POLICIES WE SHOULD BE AWARE OF?
There are a few basic rules such as no profanity or bigotry (as per the Toastmasters official guidelines). Drinks and food are allowed but please be courteous and pickup after yourself as we need to respect our host facilities Arts West. Otherwise please just respect each other and enjoy your visit.
WILL I BE EXPECTED TO JOIN IMMEDIATELY?
We never pressure anyone to signup. We are a non-profit club and don’t gain anything through forced or aggressive membership seeking. We allow our guests to drop in as many times as they like and then only if they decide to join they can.
WHAT IF I HAVE OTHER QUESTIONS?
No worries you can contact us through our contact form here. Please let us know what are the best times and methods to reach you and one of our officers will get back to your shortly.
West Seattle Earlybirds Toastmasters 