Project 10: My Toastmasters Journey
By Ramana Boyani
On 23rd March 2010, I started my Toast masters journey, with my Project 1 Ice breaker. On that day I spoke about my 4D principle.
DESIRE…. DECISION……….DETERMINATION …and…….. DESTINATION……
A splendid good evening to my fellow Toastmasters and Guests…
Today I have reached my first milestone in the Toastmaster’s journey. My 4D rule really worked, in achieving this goal.
Because, I had a very strong DESIRE to overcome the fear of public speaking… I took a DECISION to join the Toastmaster club. On my first day itself, I signed-up as a member. I took the challenge of completing 10 projects in 12 months with a strong DETERMINATION…. With a blink of an eye, 12 months have passed. Today, I am at my DESTINATION of completing my final project to become a Competent Communicator.
Many people think that, they are not good at speaking …. They feel shy to talk to others. But I feel that every person has got a talent. Every person is like a diamond. Some are kept on the show like our US President Obama, and some are lying in the mud like us. The more you polish the diamond, the more it shines. Toastmaster is the best mechanism to polish your communication skills.
Toastmaster’s journey has changed my life in 2 aspects. :
1) Personally
2) Professionally
Personally… To do projects we have to read lot. Through that, we will gain knowledge. By giving speeches consistently, we can correct our mistakes with the help of, our excellent evaluators. Apart from that, we also learn time management and leadership skills
Professionally… Few months back, I attended a seminar on Construction law. During the tea break, I had a chat with the speaker Mr.Jonathan Choo, who is one of the leading Arbitrators in Singapore.
After few days, I sent an email to him asking whether he was willing to visit our office, to conduct a seminar on construction law. I know he is very busy man and a very expensive lawyer. To my surprise, he accepted my invitation and agreed to conduct the seminar at our office without any charges. I sent an invitation to all my colleagues, including our CEO.
With my Toastmasters experience, I arranged the meeting successfully. I did all roles like Toastmaster of the Day by introducing the speaker, Timer to help the speaker on his timing, Sergeant at Arms to arrange snacks for my colleagues, and Vice President Education, arrange the program,. I was very glad that my busy CEO attended the seminar.
Because I was very proactive, I secured more points in my Appraisal and received a big bonus during this Chinese New Year. I take this opportunity to give a big ‘Thank You’ to my Toastmaster club.
I strongly believe that, to achieve something you must be with the right people. The people around you must be very positive, supportive and have a lot of initiative. If you are with pessimistic people, you will never grow. Even if you want to improve yourself, the people around you will not encourage you.
There is an interesting story about this.
One day, a boy found an eagle egg, and put it into the nest of a prairie chicken. The eaglet hatched with the brood of chicks, and grew up with them.
Thinking he was a prairie chicken all his life, the changeling eagle did what the other prairie chickens did.
He scratched in the dirt for seeds and insects, to eat. He clucked and cackled. He could fly a little height from the ground with thrashing wings. After all, that’s how prairie chickens were supposed to fly.
Years passed, and the changeling eagle grew older. One day, he saw a majestic bird flying in the sky, with its golden wings.
“What a beautiful bird…What is that? He asked his neighbor.
“That’s an Eagle, the chief of birds”… “But don’t give a second thought. You could never become like him” advised the neighbor chicken.
The changeling eagle listened to his neighbor and never gave it a second thought. After some years, he ends his life thinking he was a prairie chicken.
What about you? Are you content to scratch in the dirt, or would you rather soar in the sky? If you would prefer to soar, you have to be with the right people. If you stay with successful people, you will become successful.
To conclude, I suggest our guests to join us and be part of this wonderful Toastmasters journey. Dear my seniors, please continue your projects and polish your speaking skills by attending the toastmasters meetings regularly and consistently.
Friends… I assure you… you are with the right people at the right place…that is….our Kowloon Singapore Toastmasters Club.
Back to Toastmaster of the evening….
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You are welcome to visit our Kowloon-Singapore Toastmasters Club (KSTMC) if you are living in Singapore.
