Toastmaster Advanced Manuals: Facilitating Discussion

This manual is designed for practicing leading group discussions. This is one I would like to do, but the projects are all extremely long (too long for a one hour meeting). Optional shorter times are provided, but they only shave off 5-10 minutes.

1. The panel moderator – 28-30 minutes – This requires getting three other club members to be panelists. It’s not the kind of panel I’m used to seeing at cons, with everyone giving short answers to questions. Instead, each panelist gives a four-minute speech and a short Q&A follows.

2. The brainstorming session – 31-33 minutes – The whole club brainstorms a list of ideas and then chooses the three best ones.

3. The problem-solving discussion – 26-31 minutes – Lead the group to discuss the three ideas from the previous project and vote on the best one.

4. Handling challenging situations – 22-32 minutes – This one would be fun. Like the previous projects, you’re leading the club members to make a decision. But four club members (chosen by someone else, so the speaker doesn’t know who they are), are assigned to be troublemakers: interrupting, taking over, or refusing to participate. I imagine the success of this project depends on how well these members play their roles.

5. Reaching a consensus – 31-37 minutes – Lead the group to discuss a problem and solutions and reach a consensus on what to do.

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