Two things I thought I would NEVER do: firstly, voluntarily get up early (you see I was the laziest so-and-so you could imagine), and secondly, join a speakers’ club (you see I had a terrible stutter, as you can see here). So how come in March 2010 I found myself involved in FOUNDING a new early morning Toastmasters club in London? Well it all started nearly three years ago …

In May 2007 I joined the McGuire Programme. What sort of stutterer was I? Well, if I got to my local train station and the ticket machine was out-of-order and I’d forgotten my pen-and-paper to write down what I wanted, I would “happily” walk two miles to the next station, all to avoid one moment of stuttering. I had to admit that I was powerless over stuttering - my life had become unmanageable. (Anyone familiar with the Twelve Step Programme used by Alcoholics Anonymous will recognise this as Step One.) By lunch-time on the first day of my first McGuire course I believed that the McGuire Programme could restore me to sanity (Step Two), and I started following directions (Step Three). The twelfth and final Step is about “carrying the message” to others, and this is exactly what led me to be involved in founding of a new early morning Toastmasters club.

This club has been named “Covent Garden Speakers” (details can be obtained from the Toastmasters International website). The mission of Toastmasters International is impressive indeed: “Toastmasters International helps men and women learn the arts of speaking, listening and thinking – vital skills that promote self-actualisation; enhance leadership potential; foster human understanding; and continue the betterment of mankind”. Now that I have got my stuttering well and truly in the dormant phase thanks to the McGuire Programme, I can take an active part in this mission.