Charlotte Square Club - a review

The wedding day arrived, the adrenalin and nerves kicked in as my time to speak approached. ‘Just remember what you learned at the Charlotte Square Club’ I thought. The speech is the best it could ever be thanks to the trainers who taught me and I know that I can deliver it well because I have practiced it before. I stood up, I started, everything slotted into place. The audience laughed in all the right places, they cried, they sighed and they ooohed and aaahed. The applause was thunderous and the compliments free flowing and I have to say. It’s all thanks to the Charlotte Square Club.

I was a little nervous when I attended the first session and there were a lot of new names and faces to take in but we soon got settled and the purpose of the club was explained. We were asked to jot down why we were attending and what we were hoping to achieve from the course of training and this helped to identify some areas which might need improvement. As each session progressed we were introduced to different trainers, all with their own specialism’s and training styles which keeps things fresh at each session. Some of the sessions involve listening whilst the trainer imparts their knowledge, others have you moving around and interacting with each other. One of the sessions, which I really enjoyed, asked us to think of a short story we could tell about something that had happened to us in our childhood. Don’t worry, we were split into pairs so that we didn’t have to speak in front of the group! As we told our stories, we were then given hints on how to improve it and make it more engaging. Imagine starting the story half way through or starting with the end and then explaining how you got there. All of a sudden our stories sounded like speeches and I realised how easy this was.

Each session builds on the last and at no time was anyone forced to stand up and speak in front of the group, although towards the end I couldn’t wait for the opportunity. My wedding caused me to miss a few sessions but fortunately the nature of the club is that you don’t have to attend every week if you can’t. It is still possible to drop in and drop out and still gain a huge benefit. In the last few sessions of the club we got involved in debating. I have to admit, this was the part I was most apprehensive about. I had never done any debating before, I didn’t know how it worked and when I found out there were rules to follow I felt a little out of my depth. The training however, was delivered with a lighter note and a bit of fun and once we tried it out at the end of the session I couldn’t wait to have another go. It’s fast, it makes you think on your feet and you can get away with a little bit of friendly banter!

For anyone thinking of attending this years club then I would encourage you to come along for the first few sessions. It is a relaxed, fun environment with some top quality trainers and speakers. You will meet lots of other JCI Members and develop some solid friendships as you all face your public speaking fears. You can work at your own pace, no pressure and you don’t even have to go every week. I enjoyed it and on Wednesday 30th March I will get the opportunity to show you all what I have learned as I stand and present the speech to surpass all others in the Edinburgh Public Speaking Competition. So come along, listen to the speeches and maybe this year you will be inspired to get involved yourself.

Review by Stuart Pownall