What is Nishinomiya TGIF Toastmasters Club?
The Nishinomiya TGIF Toastmasters Club was launched in October 2015 and officially chartered in December 2016. We have regular meetings in English on the 2nd and 4th Friday nights around Hankyu Nishinomiya Kitaguchi Station. We hold our meetings on FRIDAY NIGHTS with a “Work and learn on Weekdays and Enjoy fully the Weekends” mentality.
Our club has a strong culture of "GIVE-IT-A-TRY, LEARN-BY-DOING" mind and QUALITY FEEDBACK.
The club name, TGIF, literally stands for "Thank God It's Friday! means to have fun on Fridays, but it also means "Try, Grow, and Innovate for the Future."
If you are interested in upskilling your communication and leadership with a stimulating atmosphere and big fun, you found the right place. We will give all the guests a big welcome anytime!!
Come join us to INVEST your Friday night to Try, Grow, and Innovate for the Future together.
Our club has a strong culture of "GIVE-IT-A-TRY, LEARN-BY-DOING" mind and QUALITY FEEDBACK.
The club name, TGIF, literally stands for "Thank God It's Friday! means to have fun on Fridays, but it also means "Try, Grow, and Innovate for the Future."
If you are interested in upskilling your communication and leadership with a stimulating atmosphere and big fun, you found the right place. We will give all the guests a big welcome anytime!!
Come join us to INVEST your Friday night to Try, Grow, and Innovate for the Future together.
Member Testimonial
Pad
As a Sales Manager for an Engineering Services company, In 2016, I got transferred to the Kansai area, Sanda in Hyogo ken, I was looking for a Toastmasters Club similar to the ones in the Tokyo area: an energetic, young club that meets on a weekday. I found Nishinomiya TGIF, thanks to Facebook posts of Nishinomiya TGIF which was well discussed in the Tokyo area. I decided on Nishinomiya TGIF after visiting 3-4 clubs in the Kansai area. Nishinomiya TGIF welcomed me with great smiles and kindness with members varying from nascent public speakers to experienced Toastmasters. A good environment to brush up on my public speaking and leadership skills.
As a charter member and secretary of the club, I can see the growth of the club from 10 members to 30 members club. The club was founded with a vision of "Try, Grow, and Innovate for the Future" by five great Toastmasters. What I could see in our club is that no one hesitate to take up any role. Yes, I was referring to volunteering. Some thing which we need in real life to help the needed persons in our work and personal life. Sometimes, some of the members cannot join the meeting or do the allocated role due to work pressures, when members volunteer for the unallocated role on runtime just before the meeting. At times, I need to skip meetings because I am in sales and some of my activities cannot be predicted. I may need to take clients or colleagues to drink or attend urgent meetings with India members. Club members treat me well in those situations and don’t blame me for the happening. This is what gives me the motivation to stay with the club. On the latter half, I became more committed to the Toastmasters' activities, speech, and leadership by working with the committed members of the club. Creative, Fun and Learning Club who want to send members for the speech contest are my good impression of the club!!
As a Sales Manager for an Engineering Services company, In 2016, I got transferred to the Kansai area, Sanda in Hyogo ken, I was looking for a Toastmasters Club similar to the ones in the Tokyo area: an energetic, young club that meets on a weekday. I found Nishinomiya TGIF, thanks to Facebook posts of Nishinomiya TGIF which was well discussed in the Tokyo area. I decided on Nishinomiya TGIF after visiting 3-4 clubs in the Kansai area. Nishinomiya TGIF welcomed me with great smiles and kindness with members varying from nascent public speakers to experienced Toastmasters. A good environment to brush up on my public speaking and leadership skills.
As a charter member and secretary of the club, I can see the growth of the club from 10 members to 30 members club. The club was founded with a vision of "Try, Grow, and Innovate for the Future" by five great Toastmasters. What I could see in our club is that no one hesitate to take up any role. Yes, I was referring to volunteering. Some thing which we need in real life to help the needed persons in our work and personal life. Sometimes, some of the members cannot join the meeting or do the allocated role due to work pressures, when members volunteer for the unallocated role on runtime just before the meeting. At times, I need to skip meetings because I am in sales and some of my activities cannot be predicted. I may need to take clients or colleagues to drink or attend urgent meetings with India members. Club members treat me well in those situations and don’t blame me for the happening. This is what gives me the motivation to stay with the club. On the latter half, I became more committed to the Toastmasters' activities, speech, and leadership by working with the committed members of the club. Creative, Fun and Learning Club who want to send members for the speech contest are my good impression of the club!!
Hide-chan
I joined another Toastmasters club in January 2016. Eleven months later, I visited Nishinomiya TGIF and instantly fell in love with the efficiency of the meeting and its signature culture of mutual feedback. I decided to join on the very day I visited and later volunteered to serve as its President.
While peer feedback is one of Toastmasters' four growth principles (Experiential learning, Peer feedback, Mentoring, and a Self-paced program), not every Toastmasters club embodies it as thoroughly as Nishinomiya TGIF. Through providing and receiving feedback, I've learned a lot about effective speaking. We used to have in-depth discussions about the speeches we listened to that day during the "After-parties." Even when we meet online due to the COVID pandemic, we have what we call "Speaker Breakout" after the meeting, where participants go into the breakout room of each speaker to discuss their speech in detail. After we started hybrid meetings, where in-person participants work together with online participants through Zoom meetings, it became difficult to get both in-person and online attendees to discuss after the meeting, most of the venue participants including our guests go to a nearby izakaya place for a "Feedback dinner." That's where even more learning takes place than during the meeting. This is what I love about this club and the reason I invite you to join us.
I joined another Toastmasters club in January 2016. Eleven months later, I visited Nishinomiya TGIF and instantly fell in love with the efficiency of the meeting and its signature culture of mutual feedback. I decided to join on the very day I visited and later volunteered to serve as its President.
While peer feedback is one of Toastmasters' four growth principles (Experiential learning, Peer feedback, Mentoring, and a Self-paced program), not every Toastmasters club embodies it as thoroughly as Nishinomiya TGIF. Through providing and receiving feedback, I've learned a lot about effective speaking. We used to have in-depth discussions about the speeches we listened to that day during the "After-parties." Even when we meet online due to the COVID pandemic, we have what we call "Speaker Breakout" after the meeting, where participants go into the breakout room of each speaker to discuss their speech in detail. After we started hybrid meetings, where in-person participants work together with online participants through Zoom meetings, it became difficult to get both in-person and online attendees to discuss after the meeting, most of the venue participants including our guests go to a nearby izakaya place for a "Feedback dinner." That's where even more learning takes place than during the meeting. This is what I love about this club and the reason I invite you to join us.
Yukarin
I have desired to be a good English speaker for a long time, but I had so many excuses not to take the time and make an effort for it, such as my job, parenting, and socialization. “But is it really uncontrollable?” I asked myself, and then I thought. “No, I can make it better. Instead of envying someone very skilled at English, I should just start to do what I can even if it’s a tiny thing.”
In addition, as an English teacher, I want my students to learn English not only for the purpose of taking exams or for their knowledge, but also as a means of communicating their ideas to people from different standpoints and cultures, and of accepting and understanding each other's ideas as well. For this reason, it is necessary for them to know that English is fun. Here, English expressions and humorous stories that cannot be encountered in textbooks are exchanged. I would like to give back to my students what I have gained here.
I still feel nervous when I speak English in front of the members. However, with each passing session, I have grown to enjoy it more and more, and I am able to speak with more confidence.
Finally. All members here encourage each other to try without being afraid of failure. I love the warm atmosphere that accepts people who take on challenges so much.
I have desired to be a good English speaker for a long time, but I had so many excuses not to take the time and make an effort for it, such as my job, parenting, and socialization. “But is it really uncontrollable?” I asked myself, and then I thought. “No, I can make it better. Instead of envying someone very skilled at English, I should just start to do what I can even if it’s a tiny thing.”
In addition, as an English teacher, I want my students to learn English not only for the purpose of taking exams or for their knowledge, but also as a means of communicating their ideas to people from different standpoints and cultures, and of accepting and understanding each other's ideas as well. For this reason, it is necessary for them to know that English is fun. Here, English expressions and humorous stories that cannot be encountered in textbooks are exchanged. I would like to give back to my students what I have gained here.
I still feel nervous when I speak English in front of the members. However, with each passing session, I have grown to enjoy it more and more, and I am able to speak with more confidence.
Finally. All members here encourage each other to try without being afraid of failure. I love the warm atmosphere that accepts people who take on challenges so much.
Hiroshi (Hiro-Pea)
In 2015, I got transferred to Japan from Sydney. 4 years later, I joined another Toastmasters club in September, 2019 because I felt less opportunities to speak English. Furthermore, my junior high school friend strongly recommended that I should enjoy making English public speeches in the Toastmasters club.
2 years later, I made a decision to move to Nishinomiya TGIF Toastmasters club, which enables me to get the more educative and effective feedback about my speech from the highly-motivated members.
I found it that It was so beneficial to obtain useful English phrases for different situations from them. As a vice-general manager who leads 3 business offices, TGIF inspired me to brush up my leadership skill.
At this fiscal year, I work as a SaA (Sergeant at Arms) whose role is like school janitor. I give them the comfortable environment in the regular meeting with the strong help of the club officers. During the COVID-19 era, I sometimes work as a Zoom host. Depend on spread of infection, we held the Hybrid meeting (face-to-face and on-line). Accordingly, I would like to organize the Zoom host practice session for the beginner so that the more members enjoy working as a Zoom host.
Today we can obtain many opportunities to study English via social media or Zoom.
Many of them are unplanned(enjoyable but non-educative) or too expensive. Nishinomiya TGIF is a non-profitable organization created by the ambitious members so that the cost is relatively inexpensive.
In 2015, I got transferred to Japan from Sydney. 4 years later, I joined another Toastmasters club in September, 2019 because I felt less opportunities to speak English. Furthermore, my junior high school friend strongly recommended that I should enjoy making English public speeches in the Toastmasters club.
2 years later, I made a decision to move to Nishinomiya TGIF Toastmasters club, which enables me to get the more educative and effective feedback about my speech from the highly-motivated members.
I found it that It was so beneficial to obtain useful English phrases for different situations from them. As a vice-general manager who leads 3 business offices, TGIF inspired me to brush up my leadership skill.
At this fiscal year, I work as a SaA (Sergeant at Arms) whose role is like school janitor. I give them the comfortable environment in the regular meeting with the strong help of the club officers. During the COVID-19 era, I sometimes work as a Zoom host. Depend on spread of infection, we held the Hybrid meeting (face-to-face and on-line). Accordingly, I would like to organize the Zoom host practice session for the beginner so that the more members enjoy working as a Zoom host.
Today we can obtain many opportunities to study English via social media or Zoom.
Many of them are unplanned(enjoyable but non-educative) or too expensive. Nishinomiya TGIF is a non-profitable organization created by the ambitious members so that the cost is relatively inexpensive.
Izumi
I joined the Nishinomiya TGIF Toastmasters Club for a simple reason: I knew I was not a logical person. When I tried to explain something, I often had a hard time getting my point across. My sister got annoyed and said, "So, what’s your point?" I realized that this is hereditary when I read a booklet that contained my father’s speech. It was a long speech he gave at some business association, and at the end, my father said, "Oh, I didn't get half of what I wanted to say across." That's exactly right! I felt hopeless. I have to do something about it. I want to speak logically. That's why I joined this club.
Although I have only delivered three speeches so far, I already feel that making speeches is a great way to practice logical thinking. I especially like the evaluation sessions at meetings where members evaluate each other's speeches. Through this process, we can
look at our speeches more objectively and notice areas that need improvement. The evaluators can also learn a lot by analyzing other members' speeches, so this system is beneficial for both parties.
My goal is to improve my writing skills by thinking more logically, and after hearing the great speeches from the senior members of the club, I am confident that I will achieve my goal one day if I continue on this path.
I joined the Nishinomiya TGIF Toastmasters Club for a simple reason: I knew I was not a logical person. When I tried to explain something, I often had a hard time getting my point across. My sister got annoyed and said, "So, what’s your point?" I realized that this is hereditary when I read a booklet that contained my father’s speech. It was a long speech he gave at some business association, and at the end, my father said, "Oh, I didn't get half of what I wanted to say across." That's exactly right! I felt hopeless. I have to do something about it. I want to speak logically. That's why I joined this club.
Although I have only delivered three speeches so far, I already feel that making speeches is a great way to practice logical thinking. I especially like the evaluation sessions at meetings where members evaluate each other's speeches. Through this process, we can
look at our speeches more objectively and notice areas that need improvement. The evaluators can also learn a lot by analyzing other members' speeches, so this system is beneficial for both parties.
My goal is to improve my writing skills by thinking more logically, and after hearing the great speeches from the senior members of the club, I am confident that I will achieve my goal one day if I continue on this path.
Rina (Former Member)
Why Nishinomiya TGIF? : I love the uplifting atmosphere, highly motivated members and strong feedback culture both in speech and leadership, of this club, Nishinomiya TGIF. やる気、やり方、やる仲間。大事な３つの要素が揃っている刺激的なクラブだから。
What I gained : 突然の「スピーチよろしく！」の一言にビビらなくなった。英語でも日本語でも。Being confident for sudden speech requests, Got to know my leadership style, Learned how to give effective feedback to the team and more..!
Toastmasters especially helped in my career at a trading company in my mid twenties. That time I didn’t have much opportunity to serve as a leader and learn to be a leader in my workplace. However, thanks to the experience of being a leader of the club and many projects, and organizing events with 100 people in Toastmasters, I became confident in leading a group of people towards a goal and organizing project and event in my work too. 5 years at TGIF, gave many opportunity to learn & grow, and gave me a lot of “Wow! Now I can do it!”
Why Nishinomiya TGIF? : I love the uplifting atmosphere, highly motivated members and strong feedback culture both in speech and leadership, of this club, Nishinomiya TGIF. やる気、やり方、やる仲間。大事な３つの要素が揃っている刺激的なクラブだから。
What I gained : 突然の「スピーチよろしく！」の一言にビビらなくなった。英語でも日本語でも。Being confident for sudden speech requests, Got to know my leadership style, Learned how to give effective feedback to the team and more..!
Toastmasters especially helped in my career at a trading company in my mid twenties. That time I didn’t have much opportunity to serve as a leader and learn to be a leader in my workplace. However, thanks to the experience of being a leader of the club and many projects, and organizing events with 100 people in Toastmasters, I became confident in leading a group of people towards a goal and organizing project and event in my work too. 5 years at TGIF, gave many opportunity to learn & grow, and gave me a lot of “Wow! Now I can do it!”
