Yesterday, I presented my 23rd speech at the Millennium Toastmasters Club titled Mastering the Toast from the manual Special Occasion Speeches. It was a very nice feeling of going back to the stage and delivering a prepared speech after a long time. Below is the complete speech that I presented.
As Thomas J. Peter said “Celebrate what you want to see more of”. Tonight we gathered here to experience the spirit of celebration; a celebration of achievements. And it’s my honor to be here to raise the Toast.
Toastmaster of the evening, Wonderful Toastmasters and welcomed guests, good evening to you all.
From its humble beginning in the year 1999, the Millennium Toastmasters have proven to reach new heights year after year. The dedication and commitment of our senior Toastmasters always made sure that the flag of Millennium Toastmasters fly high. And this year is no difference.
The accomplishment of 10/10 points from the Toastmasters International Distinguished Club Program, the club stands to be a President Distinguished Club. Another noticeable accomplishment is the successful release of three issues of The Millennium Marvel, a magazine from the Toastmasters of the Millennium Toastmaster Club.
May this spirit of Toastmasterism continue in the club.
May this club continue to help each individual in bringing out the best in him.
May this club continue to be a platform to unleash the hidden potentials of its members.
May the spirit of Toastmasterism always shine in this club.
May the journey of success continue year after year.
Now let us drink…to the President Distinguished Club and to its good spirit.
Over to you Toastmaster.
PS: I would like to thank my mentor for this project, MTM Shukla Datta for her guidance and support.
Showing posts with label toastmasters. Show all posts
Showing posts with label toastmasters. Show all posts
Wednesday, May 6, 2009
Tuesday, November 25, 2008
Success in one walk of life doesn’t compensate for the failure in other.
As a normal human being we feel ourselves happy and celebrate the moments of success. Ofcourse, a moment for which we have worked hard – day and night, is now bearing results. Yes, it is a moment that goes for a celebration. But many a times we get carried away with this celebration neglecting the other part or responsibilities or commitments of our life which is not the true essence of being a human. Someone said it very correctly “success in one walk of life doesn’t compensate for the failure in other.”
As Toastmasters we always try to strike a balance between the communication and leadership track. As soon as we are about to achieve a milestone in communication track lets say a Competent Communicator we see to it that we also achieve a milestone in Leadership track, Competent Leader as per the example. Truly, what is a communicator who cannot be a leader and what is a leader who cannot communicate!?
Let us also maintain this balance in our personal lives as well. We might get a promotion in our professional life but what is it if our family life is dull!? We might buy a new Mercedes but what is it if we do not have friends who could share it with us!? We might be Toastmasters as per the Toastmasters International membership but what is it if we aren’t practical Toastmasters!? Let us all communicate this enough both verbally and by means of our actions to bring in this change in ourselves and in our society. Let us not make one commitment suffer just because of another commitment. Let us all enjoy success in all walks of life!
Happy Toastmastering!
Best Regards,
Abdul Lateef, ACB, AL
President—Millennium Toastmasters
Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
Mobile No.: +971-50-8206535
E-mail: abdul_lateef_03@yahoo.com
http://millennium.freetoasthost.net/files/Millennium_Marvel_Vol9_Issue1.pdf
As Toastmasters we always try to strike a balance between the communication and leadership track. As soon as we are about to achieve a milestone in communication track lets say a Competent Communicator we see to it that we also achieve a milestone in Leadership track, Competent Leader as per the example. Truly, what is a communicator who cannot be a leader and what is a leader who cannot communicate!?
Let us also maintain this balance in our personal lives as well. We might get a promotion in our professional life but what is it if our family life is dull!? We might buy a new Mercedes but what is it if we do not have friends who could share it with us!? We might be Toastmasters as per the Toastmasters International membership but what is it if we aren’t practical Toastmasters!? Let us all communicate this enough both verbally and by means of our actions to bring in this change in ourselves and in our society. Let us not make one commitment suffer just because of another commitment. Let us all enjoy success in all walks of life!
Happy Toastmastering!
Best Regards,
Abdul Lateef, ACB, AL
President—Millennium Toastmasters
Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
Mobile No.: +971-50-8206535
E-mail: abdul_lateef_03@yahoo.com
http://millennium.freetoasthost.net/files/Millennium_Marvel_Vol9_Issue1.pdf
Sunday, August 10, 2008
The Goodwill Speech
After completing 10 speeches at Toastmasters I continued doing speeches from Technical Speeches and Speeches by Management manuals. Then an elongated gap followed. And after taking up the position as President of the Millennium Toastmasters Club, I decided to continue doing my speeches. Thought of starting with Story Telling manual which I believed would be a fairly easy job. But somehow it did not excite me to prepare and deliver my speeches. I went through a few other manuals and finally got hooked to the objectives presented in the Public Relation manual. I called up the Vice President – Education, CC Devlal of our club and requested him to include my name in the agenda as a speaker for the coming meeting. And below is the speech that I presented at our club.
“People may lie in a coffin than to give a sermon at a funeral.”
Is public speaking some kind of a disease, may be, they call it – Speak phobia!
Toastmaster of the evening, fellow Toastmasters, and perspective guests, a very good evening to all of you!
Is public speaking such a difficult task!? Can something be done to overcome this false fear of public speaking? Is there any forum which helps us in developing the art of public speaking?
Tonight let me share with you a few tips on preparing and delivering a speech.
1. First, identify the purpose of your speech. What is the purpose of my speech, is it to motivate or persuade the audience? Is it an informational speech? Call to order?
2. Have two to three main points directly supporting the purpose of your speech.
3. Have a definite opening, body and conclusion of the speech. It is recommended to memorize the opening and conclusion of the speech so that the impact can be created.
By saying impact, I remember, recently one of the speakers had to discontinue his long talks on account of his throat. Several people threaten to cut it!
4. Try to include some humor; a speech sprinkled with subtle humor is well received by the audience.
And while delivering the speech
1. First thing to remember is when you are here on the stage, feel like a king. Audience is here investing their time to listen to you.
2. Your body speaks – include appropriate gestures and body movements.
3. Incorporate some vocal variety. This will give some kind of variety to your speech and will improve and hold audience attention.
4. Most importantly, be yourself! Do not try to over act.
Well dear friends, just by reading or listening how to prepare and deliver a speech will not make us a champion speaker. What it takes for a man to be perfect!? Practice, yes practice! Thus, we need a forum which helps men and women learn the arts of speaking, thinking and listening vital skills that promote self actualization, enhance leadership potential and foster human understanding and thereby contributing to the betterment of mankind.
Toastmasters is such a place where we learn all these.
In conclusion let me use the words of Robert McKenzie “Success to you may mean many things, if you could given a wish today, what would you do?”
Over to you, Toastmaster of the evening!
And these were the valuable comments which I received from fellow toastmasters.
“A masterpiece speech, wonderful.” – CC Shajahan
“Amazing speech and useful tips. I like your self – confidence.” – TM Hessa
“Excellent – congrats. You need to consider slowing down the pace of speech – for a great speaker.” – CC Mohammed Shafeeque
“Could have used some personal experiences on how you started out as a Toastmaster to encourage the guests here tonight to take the first step.” – CC Roy Jacob
“People may lie in a coffin than to give a sermon at a funeral.”
Is public speaking some kind of a disease, may be, they call it – Speak phobia!
Toastmaster of the evening, fellow Toastmasters, and perspective guests, a very good evening to all of you!
Is public speaking such a difficult task!? Can something be done to overcome this false fear of public speaking? Is there any forum which helps us in developing the art of public speaking?
Tonight let me share with you a few tips on preparing and delivering a speech.
1. First, identify the purpose of your speech. What is the purpose of my speech, is it to motivate or persuade the audience? Is it an informational speech? Call to order?
2. Have two to three main points directly supporting the purpose of your speech.
3. Have a definite opening, body and conclusion of the speech. It is recommended to memorize the opening and conclusion of the speech so that the impact can be created.
By saying impact, I remember, recently one of the speakers had to discontinue his long talks on account of his throat. Several people threaten to cut it!
4. Try to include some humor; a speech sprinkled with subtle humor is well received by the audience.
And while delivering the speech
1. First thing to remember is when you are here on the stage, feel like a king. Audience is here investing their time to listen to you.
2. Your body speaks – include appropriate gestures and body movements.
3. Incorporate some vocal variety. This will give some kind of variety to your speech and will improve and hold audience attention.
4. Most importantly, be yourself! Do not try to over act.
Well dear friends, just by reading or listening how to prepare and deliver a speech will not make us a champion speaker. What it takes for a man to be perfect!? Practice, yes practice! Thus, we need a forum which helps men and women learn the arts of speaking, thinking and listening vital skills that promote self actualization, enhance leadership potential and foster human understanding and thereby contributing to the betterment of mankind.
Toastmasters is such a place where we learn all these.
In conclusion let me use the words of Robert McKenzie “Success to you may mean many things, if you could given a wish today, what would you do?”
Over to you, Toastmaster of the evening!
And these were the valuable comments which I received from fellow toastmasters.
“A masterpiece speech, wonderful.” – CC Shajahan
“Amazing speech and useful tips. I like your self – confidence.” – TM Hessa
“Excellent – congrats. You need to consider slowing down the pace of speech – for a great speaker.” – CC Mohammed Shafeeque
“Could have used some personal experiences on how you started out as a Toastmaster to encourage the guests here tonight to take the first step.” – CC Roy Jacob
Sunday, September 2, 2007
Digital Enemies
In today's world most of us are living two kinds of life everyday! One with family, friends, colleagues....and the other with the most invincible "E-Box" - the computer.
And how we have someone poking in unwontedly in the real world, here too, in the digital world we have someone called Digital Enemies coming in unwontedly and trying to destroy our beautiful world. The following presentation is to make ourselves aware of these enemies and how can we be safe from them.
Together Towards A Safer Tomorrow
And how we have someone poking in unwontedly in the real world, here too, in the digital world we have someone called Digital Enemies coming in unwontedly and trying to destroy our beautiful world. The following presentation is to make ourselves aware of these enemies and how can we be safe from them.
Together Towards A Safer Tomorrow
Wednesday, August 15, 2007
News letter article
A very Happy Independence day to all our members.
Dear Members,
Freedom of any kind is only possible when we struggle towards achieving it. Struggle here means fighting back against the forces which are denying our own freedom. And many a times we see that the true struggle is not against the external forces, it is actually against our own self – yes, against our own beliefs, perceptions, and self ego. A country might get the freedom due to the struggle of their freedom fighters, but what if the citizens are still under the control of their self ego? To be called as a good citizen of our nation and the world as a whole one should be free from the control of his self ego. It is then we can give our best and be a valuable asset to the nation.
In Toastmasters, we learn the same concept of freedom. Getting freedom, over our fear of public speaking, which is considered to be the next to death. Now, this doesn’t mean that just by joining Toastmasters we become a better speaker. Imagine a person who wants to be the best Salsa dancer and just by joining Salsa classes will he become a dancer he wants to be? No, obviously not. He has got to practice it and dance as often as he could. Never leaves an opportunity to shake his legs. Same thing applies to Toastmasters! We joined Toastmasters to be a better speaker, and then what, if, we do not speak at the meetings, do not present the projects, and do not take up the roles? It will just be a mere wastage of time and money – vital and scarce resources. Toastmasters, fight against our own fear of speaking, take up roles, do projects, come forward and face it. Someone rightly said that “avoid it and it grows; face it and it goes.” Believe in this concept and march ahead, coz what you believe in can certainly be made possible.
Wish you all good luck along your journey to be a better speaker!
Best Regards,
Abdul Lateef
VP – Education
(Published in the monthly newsletter of Millennium Toastmasters "The Mirror")
Dear Members,
Freedom of any kind is only possible when we struggle towards achieving it. Struggle here means fighting back against the forces which are denying our own freedom. And many a times we see that the true struggle is not against the external forces, it is actually against our own self – yes, against our own beliefs, perceptions, and self ego. A country might get the freedom due to the struggle of their freedom fighters, but what if the citizens are still under the control of their self ego? To be called as a good citizen of our nation and the world as a whole one should be free from the control of his self ego. It is then we can give our best and be a valuable asset to the nation.
In Toastmasters, we learn the same concept of freedom. Getting freedom, over our fear of public speaking, which is considered to be the next to death. Now, this doesn’t mean that just by joining Toastmasters we become a better speaker. Imagine a person who wants to be the best Salsa dancer and just by joining Salsa classes will he become a dancer he wants to be? No, obviously not. He has got to practice it and dance as often as he could. Never leaves an opportunity to shake his legs. Same thing applies to Toastmasters! We joined Toastmasters to be a better speaker, and then what, if, we do not speak at the meetings, do not present the projects, and do not take up the roles? It will just be a mere wastage of time and money – vital and scarce resources. Toastmasters, fight against our own fear of speaking, take up roles, do projects, come forward and face it. Someone rightly said that “avoid it and it grows; face it and it goes.” Believe in this concept and march ahead, coz what you believe in can certainly be made possible.
Wish you all good luck along your journey to be a better speaker!
Best Regards,
Abdul Lateef
VP – Education
(Published in the monthly newsletter of Millennium Toastmasters "The Mirror")
Wednesday, August 8, 2007
When was the last time...
If you have noticed me doing something unusual these days then that’s probably because I was trying to find an answer for "when was the last time i did something for the first time!?" :)
This question kept me doing some weird things for quite some time now, but nothing of what I did give me a convincing answer. it was that evening when I was coming out of Carrefour doing some shopping that Mr. Anil Kumar called me and asked, whether I could be the Toastmaster of the evening for a joint meeting? well, it was this kind of opportunity that could be a good answer for which I was looking for from a long time.hesitantly I replied, that’s a difficult job, i am not sure if I will be able to deliver my best, but I will take it up if you people are helping me. Well, that was the starting point of doing "something for the first time".
TM Chandresh was co-toastmaster of the evening and we both started preparing the script and PowerPoint presentation based on the theme for the meeting - "Learning by Sharing". The whole process starting from contacting the role players, preparing their intros, deciding who will do what, rehearsals and everything else...till the end of meeting, was a unique and completely a learning by sharing experience. At the end of the meeting i felt that this evening I found a convincing answer to the question "when was the last time i did something for the first time!?"
This question kept me doing some weird things for quite some time now, but nothing of what I did give me a convincing answer. it was that evening when I was coming out of Carrefour doing some shopping that Mr. Anil Kumar called me and asked, whether I could be the Toastmaster of the evening for a joint meeting? well, it was this kind of opportunity that could be a good answer for which I was looking for from a long time.hesitantly I replied, that’s a difficult job, i am not sure if I will be able to deliver my best, but I will take it up if you people are helping me. Well, that was the starting point of doing "something for the first time".
TM Chandresh was co-toastmaster of the evening and we both started preparing the script and PowerPoint presentation based on the theme for the meeting - "Learning by Sharing". The whole process starting from contacting the role players, preparing their intros, deciding who will do what, rehearsals and everything else...till the end of meeting, was a unique and completely a learning by sharing experience. At the end of the meeting i felt that this evening I found a convincing answer to the question "when was the last time i did something for the first time!?"
===========================
Below are the slides that we shared during our learning process.
Thursday, May 17, 2007
Blogging – A means of Communication
Well, before we proceed to the main presentation let me first give you the details of this project.
Manual Name: Technical Presentation
Project 2: The Proposal
Speech Title: Blogging – A means of Communication
Time: Eight to ten minutes for speech; three to five minutes for question period.
Objective: 1. To prepare a technical presentation advocating a product, service, idea or course of action 2. To present your viewpoint logically and convincingly, using an inverted-pyramid approach 3. To effectively use a flip chart to illustrate your message 4. To effectively handle a question-and-answer period.
Gone are the days when we used to write a letter and it used to get delivered after 6 days, 7 days or even after 15 days depending upon the destination it has to reach.
Now, we are in the time of technology and advancements. And this technology has also influenced the way we communicate.
The below presentation proposes “Blogging” as a modern means of communication.
(Click the below image to view a larger size)
Below are some questions which were asked during the Question-and-answer session.
Q. How do I find a blog of my interest, let’s say, if I am interested in swimming? - TM S. P. Gowda
A. With the use of labels/tags. Every blogger gives an appropriate label to its blog entry. You can also find related blogs at www.bloglines.com
Q. Is there any governing body who governs the authenticity of information presented in a blog? - TM Roshan Rajan
A. No. You have the liberty to write whatever you want, but the consequences might be fearful. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blogs#Political_dangers
Q. How does a blog differ from a chat room? - TM Salahuddin Khan
A. Interesting question! As we have mentioned that visitors to our blog have the option of posting their comments and we too can reply to their comments. The difference here is that the whole communication is being saved on your blog and anyone can anytime refer to it. And moreover your main topic of discussion is always there for the world to read.
Now, the most interesting part of giving a speech at Toastmasters – getting feedback from the audience. And here are some…
Very informative and presented in a very interesting way. A lively speech.
TM Shajahan
I felt that it wasn’t like a proposal – but was too technical.
You were a bit fast, delivering more than 120 words per minute.
There were a few grammatical mistakes, may be because you didn’t draft your speech before presenting.
TM Gowda
Could have used a bit bolder fonts. Otherwise the speech was very good.
TM Abraham Raju
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I aspire to be a Key Note Speaker one day
Manual Name: Technical Presentation
Project 2: The Proposal
Speech Title: Blogging – A means of Communication
Time: Eight to ten minutes for speech; three to five minutes for question period.
Objective: 1. To prepare a technical presentation advocating a product, service, idea or course of action 2. To present your viewpoint logically and convincingly, using an inverted-pyramid approach 3. To effectively use a flip chart to illustrate your message 4. To effectively handle a question-and-answer period.
Gone are the days when we used to write a letter and it used to get delivered after 6 days, 7 days or even after 15 days depending upon the destination it has to reach.
Now, we are in the time of technology and advancements. And this technology has also influenced the way we communicate.
The below presentation proposes “Blogging” as a modern means of communication.
(Click the below image to view a larger size)
Below are some questions which were asked during the Question-and-answer session.
Q. How do I find a blog of my interest, let’s say, if I am interested in swimming? - TM S. P. Gowda
A. With the use of labels/tags. Every blogger gives an appropriate label to its blog entry. You can also find related blogs at www.bloglines.com
Q. Is there any governing body who governs the authenticity of information presented in a blog? - TM Roshan Rajan
A. No. You have the liberty to write whatever you want, but the consequences might be fearful. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blogs#Political_dangers
Q. How does a blog differ from a chat room? - TM Salahuddin Khan
A. Interesting question! As we have mentioned that visitors to our blog have the option of posting their comments and we too can reply to their comments. The difference here is that the whole communication is being saved on your blog and anyone can anytime refer to it. And moreover your main topic of discussion is always there for the world to read.
Now, the most interesting part of giving a speech at Toastmasters – getting feedback from the audience. And here are some…
Very informative and presented in a very interesting way. A lively speech.
TM Shajahan
I felt that it wasn’t like a proposal – but was too technical.
You were a bit fast, delivering more than 120 words per minute.
There were a few grammatical mistakes, may be because you didn’t draft your speech before presenting.
TM Gowda
Could have used a bit bolder fonts. Otherwise the speech was very good.
TM Abraham Raju
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I aspire to be a Key Note Speaker one day
Friday, April 27, 2007
The Technical Briefing - VoIP
Do you spend too much on your phone bill?
Do you prefer an International roaming facility on your phone with “no extra cost”?
Or is your traditional telephone overdue a replacement?
If the answer is yes to any one of these question, then the following presentation is just for you!
(Click the below image to view a larger size)
The above Technical Briefing on VoIP was presented by me as the 11th speech at Inner Universe Toastmasters Chapter.
Below are some of the audiences' comments about this presentation which are of immense value to me.
“A wonderful presentation. You made the technical subject more enjoyable by making it very simple. A power point presentation could have added more value.” – TM Anil Kumar
---I had my power point slides and laptop ready, unfortunately projector wasn’t available at meeting hall. I had to manage with a flip chart.
“Excellent technical know – how. Well presented. Wish you had more time – for its worth listening such speeches. All the best for your next speech/project” – Madam Sylvia
---The speech requirement was that I should finish it in 10 mins.
“An excellent introduction of VoIP. We have been using this since last 6 yrs in India & UK.” – TM Bharat
"Very nicely presented a subject which is of technical nature. Best of luck for all future projects." - ACB Sudha Datta
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
I aspire to be a Key Note speaker one day.
Do you prefer an International roaming facility on your phone with “no extra cost”?
Or is your traditional telephone overdue a replacement?
If the answer is yes to any one of these question, then the following presentation is just for you!
(Click the below image to view a larger size)
The above Technical Briefing on VoIP was presented by me as the 11th speech at Inner Universe Toastmasters Chapter.
Below are some of the audiences' comments about this presentation which are of immense value to me.
“A wonderful presentation. You made the technical subject more enjoyable by making it very simple. A power point presentation could have added more value.” – TM Anil Kumar
---I had my power point slides and laptop ready, unfortunately projector wasn’t available at meeting hall. I had to manage with a flip chart.
“Excellent technical know – how. Well presented. Wish you had more time – for its worth listening such speeches. All the best for your next speech/project” – Madam Sylvia
---The speech requirement was that I should finish it in 10 mins.
“An excellent introduction of VoIP. We have been using this since last 6 yrs in India & UK.” – TM Bharat
"Very nicely presented a subject which is of technical nature. Best of luck for all future projects." - ACB Sudha Datta
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I aspire to be a Key Note speaker one day.
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