Page 22 - September 2017 Voices
P. 22
Pathways: Be an Early
Adopter & Achiever
by Cate Arnold, DTM
For most of us, 1. Go to toastmasters.org, make sure you can
change is work. log in, and that your email address listed
It’s uncomfortable in your profile is the one you want to use.
being in unfamiliar 2. Read through The Navigator, and choose
territory. There are your path
many questions about how we do things in the 3. Finish your Ice Breaker Project which
new system versus what we did in the old.
To get ahead of the curve for Pathways, I includes the Ice Breaker speech
joined a club in District 57, the first district to 4. Sign up for your second speech.
roll it out. What I like about the new Pathways The Early Achiever award goes to members
education program is that it provides much who earn Level 1 in the first 6 months. Level 1
more direction with online guidance to develop has 3 projects with 4 speeches. Levels must be
better speeches and communication skills, signed off on the TI website by your Base Camp
with more informative evaluations, and with a Manager (BCM)—usually the VP Educaton. Don’t
straight forward progression that recognizes our wait until the last minute! Make sure that your
accomplishments more frequently.
What I’ve experienced is that club meetings BCM knows you have marked your Level for
feel the same: we still have speakers, table topics, completion.
evaluations—the same roles. What is different is We are still formulating what the District
the change to using paths and materials on the awards will be, but the further you get through
Toastmasters International (TI) website. What Pathways, the more you will earn for yourself
has helped me the most is being able to talk with and for your club.
people who are already using it. It is becoming I hope you’ll take an early plunge into the
familiar quickly and easily. Now I can help people Pathways pool. You’ll learn and earn fast, and
in District 7 as well.
The best way for us to go from the have as much fun as I am by doing it together.
uncomfortable to the new familiar is to embrace
that old Nike slogan: Just Do It. Our district
leaders are working to make that happen for
us. We have created two new awards, the Early
Adopter and the Early Achiever, that members
can earn only for a limited time.The Early
Adopteris available until Thanksgiving and
the Early Achiever within the first 6 months of
rollout. They also count towards a Triple Crown.
If you earn both of them, you only have to earn
one more award in either the old or new program
to earn your pin this year. Cate Arnold joined Toastmasters in 2003. She
There will be District recognition as well, starting is a member of the blended club Toast of Richmond
with the Top Adopter Club from each divi- in District 57. She is also a member of Storymasters,
sion, which will be awarded at the Fall District Transtoasters, Liberty Toastmasters, and Silicon
Conference. This will be awarded to the clubs
that have the highest percentage of members Forest in District 7. Cate is serving as club Treasurer
earning the Early Adopter. for Silicon Forest and VPE for Storymasters. She is
There are several steps to earn the Early serving the District as Area 41 Director and as a
Adopter award: Pathways Guide.
22 VOLUME 4 ISSUE 3 SEPTEMBER, 2017
