A new book by Jason VanRuler about discovering your communication type

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Back on February 4, 2020 I blogged about how The Toastmasters Pathways Level 2 project on Understanding Your Communication Style says there are four communication styles. Where did they come from?

 

At my friendly, local Ada Community Library I found and am reading a useful 2026 book by Jason VanRuler titled Discovering Your Communication Type: The 5 paths to deeper connections and stronger relationships. He asserts that there are five different types (as shown above), described by the acronym of PATHS: Peacemaker, Advocate, Thinker, Harbor, Spark. There is a brief preview just through page 17 at Google Books.

 

PART 1 has the following eight chapters (and starting page numbers):

 

1] PATHS Overview                03

    Discover Your Type        15

2] Peacemaker                       21

3] Advocate                             31

4] Thinker                                41

5] Harbor                                 51

6] Spark                                    59

7] Attachments and PATHS  67

8] The PATHS Effect               79

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Information about the five types is presented in those separate ~ten-page chapters. I have summarized them via a series of tables. Two-sentence summaries for those five types are shown above.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Four-sentence descriptions of the communication patterns for those five types also are shown above.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

And three-sentence descriptions of the Strengths and Challenges for those five types are shown above.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Also, one-sentence descriptions of the Core Fears for those five types are shown above.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

And finally, how those five communication types are wired relative to the Big Five and the nine Enneagrams are shown above. Jason’s types are different from the Big Five personality traits of Agreeableness, Conscientiousness, Extraversion, Neuroticism, and Openness. 

 

PART 2 is about applications and has the following eight chapters (and starting page numbers):

 

 9] Off-Ramps to Communication         087

10] On-Ramps to Communication          103

11] Conflict                                                  117

12] Saying Hard Things                              131

13] Practicing Communication                147

14] Responding to Hard Things               159

15] Communicating with the                   169

16] Uncommunicative                 

17] Special Circumstances                        181

18] Using the PATHS framework             195

      Conclusion                                             203

 

Jason has a 46-minute Typology Podcast on June 4, 2026 titled The Way You Communicate Is Costing You Connection | Jason VanRuler.

 

The pentagram was adapted from OpenClipArt.

 

 

Ice Breaker speeches for Toastmasters International and four big questions

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The very first project in the Pathways educational program at Toastmasters International is the Ice Breaker, Item 8101. For it you prepare and present a four-to-six-minute speech about yourself. How can you decide what to talk about?

 

Recently I was watching a DVD of the 1999 science fiction television series Crusade, written by J. Michael Straczynski. Its introduction has the following four big questions, one of which can be used to narrow your speech:

 

Who are you?

What do you want?

Where are you going?

Who do you serve and who do you trust?

 

They also appear at AZ Quotes under the technomage character name, Galen.

 

There is an article by Kate McClure in Toastmaster magazine for August 2023 (on pages 24 and 25) titled 6 Secrets for Surviving Your First Ice Breaker. Back on March 16, 2011 I blogged about The joy of listening to Ice Breaker speeches. In that post I listed six big questions from the earlier TV series Babylon 5.  

 

An image of the icebreaker Shirase II came from Wikimedia Commons.

 

 

The toughest task I had to do as a medic in the Air Force Reserve was taking footprints of aircrew

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

At the July 8, 2026 Pioneer Toastmasters Club meeting in Boise I was the Table Topics Master. The meeting theme chosen by our Toastmaster Brian Reublineger was The Toughest Job You Will Ever Love [from the Peace Corps, where he once had been a volunteer]. So, I prepared and used the following job-related questions:

 

What was the toughest job or project that you ever had?

 

What is your current job? What do you love or hate about it?

 

What was the best (or worst) project you ever worked on?

 

What was the best (or worst) job that you ever had?

 

At your current job, what was the best (or worst) day you ever had?

 

At your first job, what was the best (or worst) day you ever had?

 

From 1972 to 1978 I served as a medic in the Air Force Reserve. The clinic I worked at once weekend a month did flight physicals. The toughest task I ever had to do was taking footprints of aircrew. A Student Report, 88-2610, from April 1988 by Gary M. Triplett at the Air Command and Staff College titled Use of a Computer-Assisted Identification System in the Identification of the Remains of Deceased USAF Personnel said:

 

“The DOD has recognized the applicability of fingerprints, footprints, and dental comparison for the scientific identification of deceased active duty personnel for some time. In 1959, the USAF began footprinting of all aircrew members. The footprints are to be used for remains identification to supplement the fingerprints obtained from all active duty members when they enter service.

 

The footprints of USAF personnel performing flight duty recorded as a permanent part of the member’s medical record on AF FM 137, Footprint Record, are reviewed for accuracy and currency during each flight physical.”

 

Both footprints were taken on a single record card using printers ink rolled onto a glass plate. But the Air Force manual describing footprinting was vague about how to get the inking right. Luckily I found out that the United States Secret Service had a publication, a 14-page Guide to Taking Palm Prints published in 1972, with the following succinct explanation:

 

“STEP 1: PREPARATION OF INKING PLATE

 

In order to obtain clear, legible palm-prints, fingerprint ink must be spread on the inking plate in a thin, uniform coat. This can best be accomplished by placing a daub or two of ink on the plate (Figure 2). The ink can be spread evenly over the entire plate by rolling the ink roller back and forth over the plate until the desired consistency is obtained. (Figures 3 and 4.) The proper thickness of the ink may be judged by placing a slip of white paper under the inked glass plate. If the ink is of the desired thickness, the outline of the paper will be barely visible.”

 

An image of soles came from Wikimedia Commons.

 

 

A misty morning at Shoshone Falls

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

In a post on May 18, 2026 I discussed Attending the 2026 District 15 Conference of Toastmasters International in the Salt Lake City suburb of South Jordan.

 

During my drive back to Boise on May 17th I stopped at the impressive Shoshone Falls on the Snake River, which has a height of 212 feet – 45 feet higher than Niagara Falls. There is a nominal fee of $5 for admission to the city park.  Recent TV news reports had noted that the falls was at peak flow.

 

I stopped around noon, and took the misty soft-focused image shown above from over the fence by the parking lot. At the lower left you can see a viewing platform reached by taking steps down. It was soaking wet, so I didn’t try going down there.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Another shaper image from April 25, 2018 shows a similar view when the flow was lower. Then that viewing platform was nice and dry.

 

 

Attending the 2026 District 15 Conference of Toastmasters International

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

On Friday May 15th and Saturday May 16th I enjoyed attending the 2026 Toastmasters District 15 Conference in the Salt Lake City suburb of South Jordan, Utah. The theme was The Power of Our Past - The Promise of Our Future. You can find a pdf file of the agenda.

 

The district Humorous Speech Contest was on Friday Afternoon and the International Speech Contest was on Saturday Afternoon. Friday evening Ron Chapman conducted a workshop titled The Elephant in the Room: Leading Change. On Saturday morning he gave a keynote speech titled Becoming a Transformational Leader. In the afternoon he led another workshop. There were five other excellent workshops with speakers and titles as follows:  

 

Dana Jones – What Our Past Tried to Teach Us.

Christine Campbell – The Power of P.O.S.I.T.I.V.E.

Ben Hunt – How to Ethically Use Artificial Intelligence in Speechwriting

Bart Merrell – Mining Your Stories

Kelly Kaye Walker – From Awkward to Awesome: Building Club Culture That Members Can’t Wait to Come Back To.

 

I know how much effort goes into creating a workshop. On May 15, 2024 I had blogged about My workshop presentation at the 2024 District 15 Toastmasters Conference on May 18, 2024 about Creating or Finding Great Table Topics Questions.

 

This is the last conference for District 15. A reorganization will put us into a new geographically larger District 207 that also includes most of Oregon (except the northeast corner).

 

My Garmin GPS got me through the Salt Lake City traffic to the motel and meeting. But when I got into the car on Sunday morning that GPS was dead. I had a Utah road atlas with me, so it was easy to get on I-15 and then to I-84 back to Boise. Later I found the GPS still worked, the power adapter for the car was dead, and the internal battery for the GPS also was dead. It was my second Garmin GPS, so I had a spare power adapter.  

 

 

Toastmasters International went back in time by reviving their Competent Communication manual

 

 

 

 

 

In July 2020 Toastmasters International discontinued use of their hard-copy Competent Communication manual, and the 15 Advanced Communication manuals described here at District 5. There is an online-only one-page news article by Paul Sterman in the October 2025 Toastmaster magazine titled Pathways Additions Arrive that includes:

 

“Vintage Paths: Two vintage paths are scheduled to be released in 2026, including one featuring foundational content designed by Toastmasters founder Dr. Ralph C. Smedley. One path will include the Basic Training Manual with original content from Smedley. The manual will be available on Base Camp with its original vintage look. The other path will consist of the Competent Communication manual and two Advanced Communication manuals, also accessed on Base Camp. The vintage paths will give members additional flexibility in the Pathways program while providing a window to the organization’s past.”

 

More detail is mentioned at the Pathways Updates web page:

 

April 2026 – Vintage Paths

 

“Two new Pathways paths are now available, allowing members to step into Toastmasters history. Basic Training for Toastmasters features a version of Toastmasters content first introduced by Ralph C. Smedley in 1943. The Communication Series: Entertaining + Storytelling includes the beloved Competent Communication manual along with The Entertaining Speaker and Storytelling Advanced Communication manuals. Both paths are available for purchase in English on the Choose a Path page after the completion of Level 1 in any other path. Members working on a vintage path will access the classic content on Base Camp, where they can navigate through the manual on Base Camp or download and print a copy. Members will earn Distinguished Club Program credit, along with new credentials and badges for every level in these paths.”

 

The revival reminds me of this song shown in a four-minute YouTube video titled The Rocky Horror Picture Show “Time Warp” (1975).

 

 

How to have a conversation with difficult people

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The cover for the April 2026 issue of Toastmaster magazine describes it as having Top Tips for Effective Conversations. There is a Featured Article by Jefferson Fisher on pages 14 to 17 that is titled How to Talk to Difficult People and subtitled Tips for handling people with challenging personality traits. He describes seven types and how to handle them:

 

The Insulter and Belittler

The Interrupter and Talker-Over

The Always-Has-To-Be-Right

The Passive Aggressor

The Gaslighter

The Narcissist

The One-Upper

 

Also, back on page 26 there is another article titled 5 Questions with Jefferson Fisher, which logically should have appeared right after it on page 18. It is not linked to under Related Articles though. You have to download the pdf file of this issue to find it. That is a very curious editorial omission.

 

On March 1, 2026 I blogged about how The Next Conversation is a thoughtful book by Jefferson Fisher.

 

The image of a 2017 BMW press conference was cropped from one by Matti Blume at Wikimedia Commons.

 

 

Be aware of speakers and audience members with mobility challenges

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

There is a useful post by Rich Hopkins at his Speak & Deliver blog on February 27, 2026 titled A Plea to Meeting Planners. He had his left leg amputated below the knee. Rich says to plan inclusively:

 

 “Ask speakers about mobility needs in advance - Ensure ramps are visible, safe, and easy to use - Provide seating options on stage - Reduce unnecessary distances when possible - Think about attendee navigation, not just speaker logistics.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

As shown above, on stage there preferably should be a chair with arms rather than a high stool.

 

Rich made it to the semi-finals (top eighty) of the Toastmasters World Championship of Public Speaking seven times and the finals (top ten) three times, as was discussed in an article by Joe Rubino in the Broomfield Enterprise on August 17, 2011 titled Broomfield man aiming to be the roast of Toastmasters.

 

You can watch an 8-minute YouTube video of his speech titled What We Knew Then at Rich Hopkins 2006 Toastmasters World Championship of Public Speaking Third Place. (At 6 – 1 /2 minutes he sits down in a chair). And you can watch his Top Ten speech from 2008, Unthinkable.

 

Most of us don’t think much about mobility challenges either for speakers or the audience. I only did after I broke my fibula, which I blogged about on November 24, 2016 in a post titled What I’m thankful for today – recovering from a broken fibula.

 

There also is an article by Dane Cobain at speakerHUB on September 26, 2023 titled How to Make Your Public Speaking Events More Accessible.

 

Images of an amputee, a chair and a stool were adapted from Wikimedia Commons.

 

 

Botched statistics on fear of public speaking from an article in the March 2026 Toastmaster magazine

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

There is an article by social psychologist Jennifer Fidder on pages 10 and 11 of the March 2026 issue of Toastmaster magazine titled Fix Your Fear of Speaking. She begins with these three paragraphs:

 

“If you’re afraid of public speaking, have no fear – it’s one of the most common phobias. You’ve probably heard the saying that most people fear public speaking more than they fear death. And that’s true to an extent – nearly everyone has an impending fear of death; however, public speaking is something we all face having to do on a regular, even daily, basis.

 

Estimates suggest that around three-quarters of the general population report some level of anxiety about public speaking. An estimated 15 – 30% of them have a formal diagnosis of public speaking anxiety.

 

That fear of public speaking is called glossophobia, and it can prevent you from participating in activities, receiving promotions at work, and even being able to converse individually.”

 

Her first sentence mixes up fear and phobia. As shown above via a Venn Diagram, a phobia is a fear that also is intense, persistent and interfering. Back on December 11, 2013 I blogged about a previous article in a post titled Spouting Nonsense: July 2013 Toastmaster magazine article fumbles fears and phobias.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

When we discuss fears and surveys, it is important to ask when a survey was done, where it was done, and what level(s) of fear were examined. We don’t need to hear stale old statistics again! There have been eleven Chapman Surveys of American Fears done from 2014 to 2025. They examined four levels of fear, as shown above via a bar chart for public speaking in the 2025 survey.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Another bar chart looks at the fear of dying at any level (Very Afraid + Afraid + Slightly Afraid), which only applies to from 49.7% to 66.8% of us - with a mean of 60.5% or about 3 out of 5 of us, and is not anywhere near everyone. But fear of people I love dying (shown in a similar chart) ranges from 73.3% to 86.9% - with a mean of 82.1% or more than 4 out of 5 of us.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Still another bar chart looks at the fear of public speaking at any level - which ranges from 57.9% to 69.2% (with a mean of 63.0%) and quite a bit less than the three-quarters (75%) Jennifer claimed. Yet another bar chart shows the fear of public speaking for the levels of Very Afraid plus Afraid used in Chapman’s press releases (with a mean of just 28.5.%). Back on February 3, 2014 I blogged about Busting a myth – that 75% of people in the world fear public speaking. That ~75% (really 73%) came from back in 1977!

 

And the estimated 15 – 30% for public speaking anxiety appeared in a 2012 review article. I blogged about it in a post back on January 19, 2013 titled A recent review article on public speaking anxiety.

 

Also, Jennifer’s saying that most people fear public speaking more than they fear death is not right. There were two surveys long ago that instead found that more people (but less that 50% of them) feared public speaking than feared death. One was done in 1973, and I blogged about it on October 27, 2009 in the most popular post on this blog titled The 14 Worst Human Fears in 1977 Book of Lists: where did this data really come from? Another was discussed in a post on May 19, 2011 titled America’s Number One Fear: Public Speaking – that 1993 Bruskin-Goldring Survey. 

 

What about in the Chapman surveys? More people feared public speaking (at any level) than dying in 2015 (60.0% vs 49.7%), 2016 (60.2% vs 50.8%), 2017 (57.9% vs 55.0%), 2022 (69.2% vs 66.8%), 2023 (65.0% vs 59.8%), 2024 (65.75 vs 65.0%), and 2025 (68.5% vs 62.3%) while less did in 2018 (58.3% vs 64.4%), 2019 (64.1% vs 66.3%), and 2020/21 (61.7% vs 65.0%).

 

Finally, I don’t think it is useful to refer to the fear of public speaking by the word glossophobia. On May 6, 2022 I posted on Who popularized the word glossophobia? What is a better Plain English alternative? I suggested instead using the term speech fright, as a specific type of stage fright.

 

Tips for tackling wordiness

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

There is a brief article by Barbara Bashein on page 28 in the November 2019 Toastmaster magazine titled Shed the Dread of Business Writing. Her tips are to:

 

Eliminate wordiness. For example, change ‘at the present time’ to ‘currently’ or ‘now’.

 

Use clear and concise words. For example, change ‘utilize’ to ‘use.’

 

Use active rather than passive sentence structures. For example: ‘The team wrote the report,’ rather than ‘The report was written by the team.’

 

And there is a web page by Margaret Procter at University of Toronto: Writing Advice titled Wordiness: Danger Signals and Ways to React with tips about how to change:

 

Doubling of Words (choose one)

 

Intensifiers, Qualifiers (omit or give specific details)

 

Formulaic Phrases (use a one-word form or omit)

 

Catch-all Terms (can sometimes omit)

 

Padded Verbs (use a one-word form)

 

Unnecessary ‘to be’ and ‘being’ (omit)

 

Passive Verbs (change to active voice, if possible with a personal subject)

 

Overuse of Relative Structures (‘Who,’ ‘Which,’ ‘That’) (omit when possible)

 

And a four-page pdf article by Barb Every in Medical Writing magazine for March 2017, pages 17 to 20 (Volume 6, Number 1) is titled Writing economically in medicine and science: Tips for tackling wordiness. She says to avoid repetition, eliminate redundancy, and minimize purposeless words. Barb’s Table 1 on omitting redundant words is as follows:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The cartoon was modifed from this one at OpenClipArt.