Episodes

Monday Oct 31, 2016
Toastcaster 75 Doing a Personal Content Audit with Kevin Achtzener
Monday Oct 31, 2016
Monday Oct 31, 2016
[26:51] We accumulate all kinds of digital stuff but Visual Productivity expert and regular guest Kevin Achtzener tells us once and awhile we need to do a content audit. Even though content is King as some say and drive space is cheap these days, we need to review our digital clutter. Perhaps it's outdated, no longer relevant or represents who we are. And as Toastmasters as we progress, some of the old content no longer reflects our skill level. Kevin shares his experience and gives us tips and tricks as to what you can do with your content for yourself and your Toastmasters Club. You may be amazed that sometimes you can re-purpose it rather than delete it.

Thursday Sep 29, 2016
Thursday Sep 29, 2016
[19:15] In this episode we speak to Toastmasters International Immediate Past President Jim Kokocki, DTM, from New Brunswick, Canada. We learn a little about his Toastmasters journey including his year as President, an insight on leadership and maybe a sneak peek at his Keynote and Plenary session he'll be presenting at the inaugural Fall Conference for the newly created District 99 to be held in Sherwood Park, Alberta, Canada. Oct 21-22, 2016. If you are interested in attending, check out the D99tm.org Fall 2016 Conference Page.

Friday Sep 16, 2016
Toastcaster 73 100 Conversations in the City - Robert Lavigne
Friday Sep 16, 2016
Friday Sep 16, 2016
[31:05] Robert Lavigne, The Digital Grapevine, Digital Strategist and Podcaster moved from Toronto, Ontario Canada 99 km to Brantford, birthplace of the telephone and legendary #99 Wayne Gretzky.
What started as an exercise in brand building and a series of individual topics in Robert’s new hometown became a humbling learning experience of 100 podcasts, 100 conversations over 2 years that weaved together stories that transformed him and helped bring their community closer together. Robert shares his experience and also how the series concluded with an interview with a man who represents community - Walter Gretzky, affectionately known as "Canada's Hockey Dad," father of #99 and Lord Mayor of Brantford. The City of Brantford recently recognized Robert for all his efforts.

Friday Aug 19, 2016
Toastcaster 71 The Art of Competing with Dantu & Miller
Friday Aug 19, 2016
Friday Aug 19, 2016
[42:40] This episode we learn about the Art of Competing with Russ Dantu, 6x District Speech Contest winner & 2015 WCPS Finalist and Lance Miller, 9x District winner and 2005 World Champion of Public Speaking. Lance coached Russ for last year's event. You'll hear them share that experience, competing tips and give us a glimpse of The Art of Competing, their new and already popular CD, which can be found at LanceMillerSpeaks.com or RussDantu.com.

Thursday Jul 21, 2016
Toastcaster 70 Russ Dantu Road to World Championship Part 2
Thursday Jul 21, 2016
Thursday Jul 21, 2016
[27:32] Russ Dantu, District 42, Calgary, Canada continues his journey to the World Championship of Public Speaking semi-final and then on to the finals in Las Vegas. He takes us through his experience after winning at District and on to the finals and all his exciting trials and tribulations along the way. This is a continuation of Episode 57.

Saturday Jul 09, 2016
Toastcaster 69 How Toastmasters helps Authors w/Rick Lauber
Saturday Jul 09, 2016
Saturday Jul 09, 2016
[22:26] Rick Lauber is the Best Selling Author of Caregiver's Guide for Canadians, The Successful Caregiver’s Guide (USA) and a contributor in two Chicken Soup for the Soul books. A former Toastmaster with New Entrepreneurs in Edmonton Canada, Rick shares why he joined Toastmasters, how it helped him and how it can help budding authors. He also offers a few tips on using your Toastmaster skills to help promote your book. Rick can be reached at RickLauber.com.

Monday Jun 27, 2016
Toastcaster 68 TmTools - Tools for Toastmasters - George Marshall
Monday Jun 27, 2016
Monday Jun 27, 2016
[29:22] George Marshall , DTM is the author of TmTools - Tools for Toastmasters, a series of tools to help Toastmasters at any level - Member, Club, Area, Division or District to truly get the information that they need in the sea of Toastmasters data.
TmTools do not replace, but rather extend information and reports we currently use - and they are constantly being improved and expanded. TmTools often give people that "I didn't know I could get that infomation," look on their faces.
George is a member of a member of three clubs: his home club (Star Search), an advanced club, and online club Netizens. He's the Producer, Toastmaster Time, D57’s TV show, District 57’s Statistician and a Revitalized Education Program Ambassador.

Monday Jun 13, 2016
Toastcaster 67 Ummo App: Your Harvard Developed Personalized Speech Coach
Monday Jun 13, 2016
Monday Jun 13, 2016
[27:46] Ummo App is your personalized speech coach & crutch-word finder developed at Harvard University. Greg speaks with two of its developers from Dehli, India and the Bay Area in California, Anshul Bhagi and Sam Li who tell us what the app's about; how they developed it and how IBM's Watson plays a role. They also tell us how you can use it to analyze and improve your speaking skills and share how Boston Toastmasters have been involved and what the future has in store for the app.

Monday May 30, 2016
Toastcaster 66 Whoosh! Wipes Out Your Gadget's Bacteria
Monday May 30, 2016
Monday May 30, 2016
[07:13] Smartphones & Tablets have 10x the bacteria of your toilet seat. Whoosh! Dragon's Den approved is a cool product that not only cleans, it disinfects and safe enough to spray in your mouth. In this episode, Greg puts Whoosh! to the test. You can also read the review at CanoeTech Blog. (Photos courtesy Whoosh!)

Saturday May 14, 2016
Toastcaster 65 Taking Advantage of Your Toastmaster Magazine
Saturday May 14, 2016
Saturday May 14, 2016
[07:43] The Toastmaster Magazine is a valuable resource both in print and tablet versions. In this episode Greg gives us a little reminder as to why it's a good idea to check out either or both on a regular basis and let you in on a secret as to how the Official Toastmasters Podcast and on occasion Toastcaster get subjects for podcast interviews.

Tuesday Mar 29, 2016
Toastcaster 63 iRig Mic Lav Suitable for Speakers & Podcasters
Tuesday Mar 29, 2016
Tuesday Mar 29, 2016
[09:08] Finding a decent affordable Lavalier Mic is not always the easiest thing. This episode, Greg puts on his Gadget Guy hat and looks at iRig Mic Lav by IK Multimedia and why its a good idea to use one to record all your speeches and presentations. You can read the full review at Canoe Tech Blog.

Monday Feb 15, 2016
Toastcaster 62 Lance Miller: Bad Super Bowl Interview/Dealing With Failure
Monday Feb 15, 2016
Monday Feb 15, 2016
[27:44] Greg speaks with Lance Miller 2005 World Champion of Public Speaking as he shares his insights about Cam Newton's defeated attitude during a post Super Bowl 50 media interview. Lance reflects on lessons learned, dealing with defeat and adversity taking a page from his own life both in business and journey to the World Championship. Read the Post at LanceMillerSpeaks.com

Friday Nov 20, 2015
Toastcaster 60 Don't Get Dinged for Damage You Didn't Do
Friday Nov 20, 2015
Friday Nov 20, 2015
[15:17] Record 360 can help protect you from damage you didn't do. I interviewed CEO and Co-Founder Shane Skinner about their app and realised that this is very relevant to the Toastmasters audience since some of us rent vehicles or places to stay when we head to conferences and conventions. It also relevant at home and at work. Enjoy the interview. When you're done, head to Record360.com where you can find out more, link to your favourite app store to download the app.

Monday Nov 02, 2015
Toastcaster 59 Entrepreneur Credits Toastmasters for $10K Prize
Monday Nov 02, 2015
Monday Nov 02, 2015
[20:29] Entrepreneur Rana Varma from Calgary, Alberta Canada credits Toastmasters as key in helping him win a $10,000 prize for a new product pitch at a recent health competition. He tells us about his pitch, his new invention the Slate Scale and how skills he learned in Toastmasters helped make all the difference.

Sunday Jul 19, 2015
Toastcaster 57 - Russ Dantu: Road to the World Championship - Las Vegas
Sunday Jul 19, 2015
Sunday Jul 19, 2015
[11:24] Greg speaks with Russ Dantu of Calgary, Alberta Canada and winner of the District 42 International Speech Contest, as he shares his experience in preparation for the road to Las Vegas for the 2015 World Championship of Public Speaking semi-final a possibly the finals at the Toastmasters International Convention. (Photo credit: Rhys Davies)

Sunday Jun 21, 2015
Toastcaster 56 - Spanish Train: A Journey in Vocal Variety
Sunday Jun 21, 2015
Sunday Jun 21, 2015
It's no secret that Vocal Variety can certainly enhance a speech or presentation. In this episode Greg proves that song lyrics can in fact be used to illustrate it. He uses Spanish Train, by Chris de Burgh, one of his favourite artists to do so. In fact this was speech #6 from the Toastmasters Competent Communicator Manual. If you wonder why he had to prove it, you'll need to listen to find out. (09:31) [Chris de Burgh is also famous for many other great songs, including: Lady in Red, High on Emotion, Don't Pay the Ferryman & more. I encourage you to check out his website]

Thursday Aug 21, 2014
Thursday Aug 21, 2014
[10:30] Legendary broadcaster Red Robinson introduced The Beatles at their first ever Canadian concert, Aug 22, 1964 in Vancouver, British Columbia. Host Greg Gazin, had an opportunity to recently speak with Red, who recounted the events of that day - and which might be a surprise to some and talked about an upcoming 50th Anniversary concert to commemorate that day. Full article: The Day the Beatles Shook Vancouver at Troy Media.
in 2004, Greg was managing a Beatles Tribute band and approached Red to ask him to emcee the 40th anniversary event in Vancouver. As a newer Toastmaster with knocking knees, he persevered.
Photo is actually a painting of Red holding the concert poster. (They're available as a limited edition. Artist is Glen Green, designer of Canada's Olympic Coins). Visit RedRobinson.com for more details.

Saturday Aug 16, 2014
Toastcaster 46 - 7 Gadgets & Tech Tools for Summer Trips
Saturday Aug 16, 2014
Saturday Aug 16, 2014
Whether you are a Toastmaster or simply a traveler, there's always a need for technology on the road to make the trip so much better. Here are a few Gadgets & Tech Tools and a few things to think about before heading out on the road this summer. You can also read the full article at Canoe Tech Blog.

Thursday Jan 02, 2014
Toastcaster 42 - Keep your Ahs for your Doctor
Thursday Jan 02, 2014
Thursday Jan 02, 2014
Crutch words can hinder our communication and even make us appear unprepared or not confident. Here's a way to recognize them and help keep yourself from using them. Listen to our podcast and if you like, you can also read the Troy Media article..

Monday Aug 05, 2013
Toastcaster 41 - Do you Golf with only a putter?
Monday Aug 05, 2013
Monday Aug 05, 2013
When you play Golf, chances are that you will use more than just a putter. So why is that businesses sometimes have only one message? Same goes for communicators. Some deliver the same speech regardless as to who the audience is. Sadly the results are not always as you think. LIsten to our podcast and if you like, you can also read the article at Troy Media.