By Kelsey Dean, Area 43 Director

District 25 Toastmasters Summit 2021 is in the books. True to its theme, I feel empowered to do anything!

In true extrovert fashion, spending time with like-minded people always inspires me to new heights. This year’s education sessions, keynote speeches, leadership panel, and area council meeting enhanced that feeling. We started the day with some technical challenges during the Area Council meeting. However, working through those challenges quickly provided productive meetings and proved to every one of us that our leadership skills can turn a challenging situation around. We used the Brainwriting exercise to gain new perspectives and solutions to the struggles our clubs face. Our lunch entertainment, and I do mean entertainment, was one of the most thought-provoking speeches of the day. Since they haven’t yet invented a way for us to be in two places at once, I had to make the hard decision of which education sessions to attend. I wanted to attend all of them! I went from building bridges to pulling up a chair, both of which inspired me to step up. They also taught me skills to be successful once I did so.

A poignant question from the audience in the leadership panel really helped me understand why I love Toastmasters. What sets Toastmasters apart from other professional development programs? For me, it’s the friends along the way that make doing the work feel less like work and more like having fun with your friends.