Opening Address –  Commitment

Good Evening!
Fellow Toastmasters and Friends!
Welcome to our  Toastmasters Club!

Do you remember Edward used the word “commitment” as the word of the day at the last chapter meeting?  The word “commitment” means “something that you have promised you will do or that you have to do.”

Do you sometimes find that no matter what you do, no matter how hard you try, nothing really changes?  Whether it’s losing weight, earning more money, breaking a bad habit or improving your social life?

Quite often you think it’s the right time to make the change. You make another New Year Resolution.  For instance, you want to lose weight and so you join the gym and buy the latest diet book. You know that’s good for you. But a few days later you may slip right back to square one again!

What’s wrong? It’s because we have missed out a vital step in the process. We are not committed to making the change. We are not willing to give our time and our energy to do something that we believe in.

Commitment helps us sustain the decision to make changes in our life.It is important to our success.  Now, I’d like to share an article about commitment written by Lynne Schulze.

——–

Commitment
By Lynne Schulze

A true commitment is a heart felt promise to yourself, from which you will NOT back down, no matter what the circumstances may be!

Many people have good intentions and dreams, but only a few are willing to commit to what is necessary to achieve them. Do a review on your commitment level, ask yourself these questions and be honest with the answers.

• How badly do I want to achieve my dreams?
• What will achieving my dreams mean to me?
• What price am I willing to pay to make this happen?
• Do I believe I can?

The ability to achieve your goals and dreams will be determined by the level to which YOU are willing to commit. NOTHING is as important as this fact!

There is a huge difference between interest and commitment. When you are interested in something you only do it when it is convenient. When you are committed to something you accept NO excuses.

The enemy of commitment is resistance. Anything you wish to achieve that is worthwhile, will meet with resistance. This can take the form of, family friends, advisers, self-doubt, self-defeating habits, lack of money, regulations, peer-pressure and many other unforeseen difficulties, such as illness etc.

This can leave you questioning your dreams or even your sanity! Take some comfort in the fact that you are not alone. All those who wish to make a better life for themselves, will meet with resistance

Think of athletes or performers in any field. The endless hours of practice and learning. The lack of a social life. The defeats . The huge amount of sacrifices and challenges these people have to meet so they can fulfill their dreams. Only YOU can decide whether the rewards you look forward to are worth your effort.

A serious commitment to a goal does not mean you have to take all the joy and fun out of life. Laughter and humour are an integral part of the human make up. Integrate fun into your daily goals.

Learn the difference between giving up and giving in. There may be many times when giving up a certain direction or idea, would be wise. Giving in, on the other hand, should never even be considered.

Life presents itself one day at a time. Take your commitments in daily bite-sized pieces. You can do without mental indigestion! One brick at a time, a house is built. One stroke at a time, the artist paints!

About The Author

Copyright (c) Lynne Schulze. Lynne is webmaster of www.cashstyle.com and a member of the international association of home business entrepreneurs www.ezinfocenter.com/8583674/iahbe

jensschulze@bigpond.com

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Lynne_Schulze
http://EzineArticles.com/?Commitment&id=28346

——-

I hope that you enjoy the article. For me, the most important lesson I learn is commitment. And commitment is hard as we have too many distractions. But we do need to be committed to Kowloon-Singapore Toastmasters Club in order to achieve our dreams as a competent public speaker.

Toastmaster of the evening!

Yetti
Club President 2007-2008