Dale Carnegie course

[Fakesmile]

Could anyone who has taken the Dale Carnegie's Effective Communication and Human Relations course share their experiences? I am considering to take it, which runs from Sept to Nov. I am socially shy/timid and I lack presentation/public speaking skills, and this is why I'm interested in it. The course's "textbook" is the famous book by Dale Carnegie, titled How to make friends and influence people, which I'm sure many people heard of. I've long known that the book is a classic, but I also heard good things about the course, and I watched a Youtube video where Warren Buffet says that the course benefitted him when he took it in the 1950s. Dale Carnegie often mentions his name in their promotion/marketing. I've previously considered Toastmasters but I thought it was too corny, and I was advised it'd be better to take Dale Carnegie first and then take Toastmasters because Dale Carnegie has a better teaching of core skills, while Toastmasters lacks solid teaching but occurs regularly thus giving good platform for consistent practice.

The only downside for me is that it's expensive (~$1,800) so I'm not perfectly sure if it will be worth the investment. When I asked about the structure/style of the course, the course manager/sales associate told me that it'll be based on the book by Dale Carnegie and the course time will be spent on practicing the skills described in the book, etc. The weekly assignments will involve putting into practice the human relation principle learned each week and preparing a 2 minute talk about how you used it and the results you had. There is also recommended reading on the book.

I am thinking that if I read the book and manage to make practical use of it on my own without taking the course, then the course won't be necessary, but I'm not sure if this would still not give me the same benefits as taking the course.

I would appreciate any wisdom or insights into this.

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[Musclemass]

Try Toastmasters first. It isn't corny, it's welcoming and fun. More importantly, it's very effective and VERY INEXPENSIVE. Toastmasters participation has done wonders for people I know who got involved in the program.

You've described a timid and introverted way to try to improve being timid and introverted - you want to read a book quietly on your own and not challenge yourself in a public venue. Trust me, that won't work. You need to experience some discomfort or you won't change your patterns. At Toastmasters, you can do that in an environment that you will find enjoyable and supportive. If you don't like it, you won't have even spent $20 to find out and then you can try something else.

Or, you can take the Carnegie salesman's advice.

 

[Fakesmile]

Try Toastmasters first. It isn't corny, it's welcoming and fun. More importantly, it's very effective and VERY INEXPENSIVE. Toastmasters participation has done wonders for people I know who got involved in the program.

You've described a timid and introverted way to try to improve being timid and introverted - you want to read a book quietly on your own and not challenge yourself in a public venue. Trust me, that won't work. You need to experience some discomfort or you won't change your patterns. At Toastmasters, you can do that in an environment that you will find enjoyable and supportive. If you don't like it, you won't have even spent $20 to find out and then you can try something else.

Or, you can take the Carnegie salesman's advice.

Thanks for the post. In the original thread, I said I've initially considered Toastmasters. To be more accurate, I should've said I've considered AND tried it. Back in 2008, I've been a Toastmasters member for like 5 months, but I didn't participate in any capacity due to excessive fear. Now I feel less cowardly so as you suggested, maybe I can try Toastmasters again instead..... But it'd be nice to hear from people who have taken both Dale Carnegie and Toastmasters.

 

[jdok]

$1800 to learn how to talk to people? Please don't do this.

 

[Fakesmile]

$1800 to learn how to talk to people? Please don't do this.

LOL... I think I will not do it then. Many people who take the course are business people. I heard that most of them get to take the course for free because their companies usually pay for them. In contrast, I'm not a member of any company who can subsidize the fee, nor will I likely be part of any company if I stay in the premed/medicine route.
I think I should just forget about it. Or not. I don't know.