Leading Edge Advanced Toastmasters Club

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Leading Edge Advanced Toastmasters Club

Leading Edge is a club of toastmasters who love Toastmasters. We are a club of Toastmasters who love Toastmasters.

Advanced Toastmasters Club in Brisbane, District 69.

20/08/2026

It's the small things that make all the difference to club culture.
And it's no small thing.

Heidi offered to supply supper for our last meeting. One of the leftover carrot cakes from her entry into the Ekka baking contest. Then, other members challenged her baking skills 🍰

That quickly evolved into a full Leading Edge Bake-Off. Custom Ekka-inspired certificates. Specially made trophy. Every member gets a vote 🏆

Yes, there was a LOT of cake for supper. Three entrants put their best cake forward, each with a different approach, and dozens of laughs ensued.

President Steve was tasked with tallying the votes, and in a close race, Kate and Clyde received a commendation, and Heidi took home the trophy 🎉

Next question - does this become an annual tradition? What baking contest do we have next August?

30/07/2026

It was great to have Ben McCormick visit us last night.

Ben is a regular visitor to our fifth Wednesday meetings and we're always glad when our schedules line up (our club meetings clash otherwise!)

While he's currently our District 69 Director, we've always appreciated him as a great member, and of course as a past District Evaluation Contest winner, we asked him to step in as a speech evaluator.

This also means we had our Area, Division AND District Director in our meeting last night! 👑

Thanks for spending the evening with us, Ben. We always enjoy having you at the club.

02/06/2026

Seven members have joined Leading Edge, and earned their DTM award while here.

Make that EIGHT! 🎱

This is a club for Toastmasters who are advancing in their Toastmasters career, not those who are already advanced. And our DTM pattern reflects this. So many of us came with no intentions, but being around an enthusiastic, experienced and encouraging group, work out that they're just a few steps from completing the award.

At our first meeting for 2026, on 7 January, we celebrated Brendan achieving his Distinguished Toastmaster award (including party poppers🎉🎉)

He has successfully coached a club, been the Area 37 Director, and run the most epic Speechcraft course in the process to get there. He is not a member of half-efforts or bare minimum. And he certainly always adds a lot of colour and crazy to the world.

Congratulations, Brendan OSullivan, DTM 🏆

11/05/2026

This is what a supportive club looks like.

More than a well-wish at the end of the previous meeting.

💙 It's when a literal majority of the members turn up to the District Conference, 3 hours away, to cheer on contestants.
💙 It's the deafening cheers and hearty high-fives when a fellow member places.
💙 It's the respect, love, and mateship of standing next to a clubmate on the podium.
💙 It's the countless honest conversations and feedback to help every member get to where they want to be.

And all of that is summarised in this candid photo taken on stage. Heidi, having just placed second in the International contest, congratulates Steve as he joins her on stage, having just been announced first placegetter. A goal Steve has been chasing for over a decade.

They weren't the only Leading Edge members in the contests:

Brendan, Kate, Graham were each a Contest Toastmaster.

And our placegetters (a total of six contestants, with three seconds and two firsts):

INTERNATIONAL
🥇Steve (1st)
🥈Heidi (2nd)

TABLE TOPICS
🥇Heidi (1st)

EVALUATION
🥈Heidi (2nd)
⭐Joshua (4th, we believe)

HUMOROUS
🥈Thomas (2nd)

Needless to say, our Boastmaster segment this week went longer than usual.

18/01/2026

✨How Speeches Are Meant to Sound - Masterclass✨

🔊 Speechwriting for Spoken Word
Most speeches are written, then read aloud. That gap between writing and speaking is where many speeches fail.

This masterclass is about writing for the ear, not the page. It is grounded in real-world speechwriting and draws on techniques used at the highest levels of government and executive leadership.

🏃‍♂️‍➡️Shane will cover:
👉 How professional speechwriters structure speeches meant to be spoken, not read,
👉 Practical techniques to make speeches sound natural, confident, and clear when delivered,
👉 When and how AI can support speechwriting, and where it makes speeches worse,
👉 Lessons from political and executive speechwriting that apply directly to Toastmasters speeches.

This session is designed for anyone who wants their speeches to land more cleanly, sound more human, and reflect how communication works outside the club environment.

You will leave with concrete techniques you can apply immediately to prepared speeches, leadership messaging, and high-stakes presentations.

🚹About Shane Doherty:
He is a former journalist with expertise in political reporting and news coverage. He went on to work as a speechwriter for the Queensland Premier, where he wrote speeches designed to be delivered live, under pressure, and scrutinised by the public, the media, and political opponents.

Today, Shane consults with CEOs and senior executives on speechwriting and strategic communication. His work focuses on clarity, authority, and impact.

📍When and Where:
Leading Edge meets in the Carindale Library. This session will be on Wednesday 21 January. We meet at 6:45 for a 7:00pm start and will be done by 9:00.

21/12/2025

Another end-of-year meeting, and that means for us it's our annual Secret Santa!

What a big year the club has had - contests, new members, loads of themed meetings and many, many pub chats. It's a place to feel a strong sense of belonging.

And our annual Secret Santa showcases that.

Each year we pick a theme for gifts. We've done second hand, a snack, a drink, a donation.. but this year we had to buy a special someone socks! 🧦

But each gift is given with a Table Topic for why we chose those socks for that person.

Everyone feels seen, and there's many moments reflected upon.

We'll catch you for our annual BBQ and Stick Game in the park. Until then, have a great break, stay cool and hold loved ones close.

27/11/2025

A member said recently, "When I visited this club, I knew I'd found my group of weirdos".

We take it as a compliment to be called as such. We're all friends here, and compatible kinds of weird.

Case in point: a new meeting theme for us; "Tin Foil Hat" 🎩

All four speakers were given a whimsical conspiracy theory, and tasked with researching and convincing the rest of the club that their conspiracy is actually real! 🛸

The only defence? A sheet of foil for every member to fashion their own tin foil hat for the meeting.

Did they work? Are we convinced Avril Lavigne was replaced by a body double, birds are government spies, and Michael Jackson is alive and well.. somewhere! 🤔

24/10/2025

How do you celebrate your club's 250th meeting? 🤔

By making it a Black Tie dress code 👔 Wear the best you've got or that thing you never have a good reason to wear.

And in usual Leading Edge style, everyone just got into it. A meeting of wedding dresses, tuxedos, formal gowns, patent leather and high heels 👗

Plus, Brendan in a penguin suit! ..There's always one 🐧

250 meetings mean 500 hours together. Not including after-meeting pub chats, countless conferences and a few group chats.

The club that has consistently for 9 years elevated members, supported leadership journeys, launched District-finalist contestants (and winners).

In that time, we have only missed a single 1st, 3rd, or 5th Wednesday meeting. Not during cyclone 🌀, not during pandemic 🩺, (we went online for both) not even on New Years Day 🎉. Just that one time we were nearly all at International Convention!

Which gives a great basis for the reflective end-of-night segment "Have You Been Paying Attention.. To Leading Edge".

That included questions such as "how many members has the club had, ever?" and "how many members are currently District Officers?"

Next meeting is 29 October; right near Halloween. I can guarantee at least a few will come along in an entirely different fancy dress. And that the meeting will be another excellent collection of incredible people 😍

01/10/2025

Have you met Sebastian?

A member of Leading Edge for just a couple of years, but has made a HUGE impact. Every person who joins us brings something to the club, and Sebastian brought loads to learn from.

🔥 One of the fastest and sharpest senses of humour
🔥 Highly intellectual speech topics made simply fascinating
🔥 Unbelievable skill in answering a Table Topic cleverly

Plus, he was our VP Education last year, adding vitality and variety to our already varied programming.

And we're super proud that he won the District 69 Table Topics Contest - the third Leading Edge member in a row to do so.

How much of a loss then that he's had to move away for work. The rest of us have a void to fill. But also, the constant trickle of new members, personalities and energy will continue to keep this club a vibrant and aspirational environment.

24/08/2025

Did you watch the World Championship of Public Speaking live?
We did.

It's a tradition our club has had for nine years now - to livestream the WCPS regardless of what time of the day it is.

For 2025, we were all seated with snacks by 3:00am thanks to our hosts Darryl and Leanne. Evaluations and discussions done in the minute silences. By the time the contest was done, it was breakfast, coffee and off for the rest of Sunday.

The speeches aren't what makes this event special, it's the vibe of hanging out with people we like, doing silly things around our common tragic hobby.

Join us for 2026?

Address

Carindale Library
Brisbane, QLD
4170

Opening Hours

7pm - 9pm

Website

https://www.leadingedgetoastmasters.com.au/

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