Joining Toastmasters and speaking in front of members of your club can be intimidating.  So the thought of competing in front of strangers who are judging your performance can be downright terrifying.  Many Toastmasters would never even consider competing.  It is easy to forget that Toastmasters is a safe place to fail, not just in front of your friends in your own club, but in the company of Toastmasters everywhere in any Toastmasters setting.  The value of competing is in stepping further outside your comfort zone, experiencing the success of speaking to perform, and meeting people from other clubs who have the same goals.

It is not that only the best speakers compete, but rather
those who compete become the best speakers.

The following video is a speech I delivered at Willows Voices Toastmasters on 2/1/2019 giving a bit of insight into my experience competing and a few tips on the evaluation contest.  But whether you are competing in the Speech Evaluation, Table Topics, Humorous Speech, or International Speech, there is value in watching this short presentation.

Here are the links referenced in the video:
Judge’s Ballot for Evaluation Contest: http://bit.ly/evaluationballot2020
Judge’s Ballot for International Speech Contest:  https://bit.ly/tmspeechcontestballot2020
July 2018- June 2019 Contest Rulebook: http://bit.ly/2020contestrulebook
3 Toastmasters.org videos on judging contests:  http://bit.ly/judgingspeeches

People often assume that the contests are only for those who are good speakers.  Au Contraire!  It is not that only the best speakers compete, but rather those who compete become the best speakers.