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Toastmaster's Secret
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Hi Reader Have you ever finished a Toastmasters speech and thought: "That went okay... but I don't feel like I'm improving as fast as I should?" I certainly have. In my early Toastmasters days, I was doing everything right.. at least I thought Attending meetings. This is a part I did regularly. Then, started taking roles. This part was also good as I now started speaking. Speeches? I have a confession to make. It took 4 months to give my first speech! And that too one of the club mentors had to school me. Anyway, the point I'm trying to make is that you make progress when you do the "thing" that moves the needle. Somewhere and sometime, you need to make that decision to take the plunge. The good thing about the initial Toastmasters program that I was part of, had a structure to it. A very seamless structure that tried to improve one key skill at a time. One was about organizing One was about getting to point One was about vocal variety. One was about eye contact. But if you pay attention to all the asks of the project, something interesting will happen. Yes, speeches will not become perfect overnight. I did not realize this earlier, and probably the countless people also might not realize that the transformation is happening along the way! So here's a challenge for your next Toastmasters speech or a non Toastmaster's speech. Before you start writing, answer this question: "If I could improve just one skill in this speech, what would it be?" Write down your answer. Then build your speech around that goal. You might be surprised by how much progress you make. On a related note... Many of the lessons I learned through Toastmasters, speech contests, and years of trial and error eventually found their way into my book, Toastmaster's Secret. If you've read the book and found it helpful, would you consider leaving a quick review on Amazon? Reviews help other Toastmasters and aspiring public speakers discover the book and decide whether it's right for them. Even a short review means a lot to me. Thank you for reading, and thank you for being part of this wonderful community of speakers. Keep learning. Keep speaking. Keep growing. As always, thanks for being awesome! Rama
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PublicSpeakKing
Learn something every week about public speaking, book writing or personal development. Join 1500+ creatives and professionals who receive my action packed yet entertaining newsletter.
Hi Reader, Yesterday, I promised I'd tell you what Jerry meant when he looked at me after that speech contest and said, "Rama... you're not intelligible." At the time, I honestly thought he was talking about my speaking. Maybe my pronunciation. Maybe my delivery. For a moment, I even wondered if he meant I wasn't intelligent! (Thankfully, that's a different story.) I couldn't have been more wrong. It took me almost fourteen years to understand what he was really trying to tell me. And when I...
Hi Reader A few days ago, I got off a coaching call. He's the Vice President of IT Applications at a large enterprise. Brilliant guy. The kind of leader who can walk into a room full of consultants and challenge their recommendations. He's leading a multi-million-dollar transformation program. His job isn't as an individual contributor. His job is something much harder. He has to become the bridge between business leaders and technology. When third party vendor proposes a solution...the CFO...
Hi Reader Have you ever looked around your workplace and wondered... "How did they get promoted before me?" They're not necessarily smarter. They're not always more experienced. And they don't always work harder. So what are they doing differently? After coaching professionals for years and spending nearly two decades in the corporate world myself, I've noticed a pattern. The people who consistently move ahead understand one thing that most hardworking employees completely overlook. Once you...