Member, Simon Katende, shares how persistence has made the difference in his Toastmasters Journey:
Toastmasters Take-Two, Action!
I’m back at it, facing my fears again, five years later.
I came pretty close on the last take, joining Centurion Toastmasters Club. It was close to work and on my route home.
I had no excuses.
I took the leap and signed up right away, hoping that the monetary commitment I made would push me through – It didn’t. Even introducing myself was nerve-wracking, let alone giving an entire speech!
I attended a few more meetings and was hesitant to do my Icebreaker. Back then it was referred to as CC1. I continued procrastinating doing my speech and I didn’t participate in any roles. I slowly stopped attending, rationalising that I was busy or tired. Eventually, I relocated and that was the end of Toastmasters for me, or so I thought.
As the years went by, I picked up other skills through hard work, discipline, and consistency. I came full circle to the one skill that magnifies all my attained skills – effective communication.
I needed a playground, a safe space, that would allow me to experiment with my craft and find a style that compliments my authentic self. The answer was staring at me all along – My long-lost friend, Toastmasters.
Persistence is the Key
I did some virtual window shopping (currently meetings are held over Zoom) and visited various toastmasters clubs around my area.
I stumbled upon a club that I felt comfortable being vulnerable with – Mariswe.
A diverse, yet intimate group that made me feel at home. Once again, I charged in and signed up without hesitation.
Something had changed on this second take.
Instead of running away from my fears, I charged at them. Now equipped with an iron sword of self-belief, a shield of compassion, and acceptance of my imperfections. A philosophy of gradual progress, meeting after meeting.
I have come back with vengeance and made the most of every single meeting even if I’m not in the mood. A table topic speech is mandatory if I’m not participating in other roles.
And weirdly enough, every meeting becomes less frightening.
The nerves are there, those will never go away, but with every meeting, it becomes less robotic – reading less of my speech and slowly adding my flair, not to mention a sprinkle of best speaker awards which is always a nice treat.
So, what was I scared of all this time?
Well, in the words of Marianne Williamson;
“Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure”
I was afraid of my greatness, but not anymore. Now I embrace it!
Persistence is the way forward
The two upcoming challenges that I am looking forward to conquering are :
1. Doing it all with actual people and not in front of a screen, and
2. Doing it in with a bunch of strangers in a completely different club when I visit
In life, we always hope we can nail it the first take, but sometimes it requires a second, third, or even a twentieth take.
Just don’t lose hope in yourself.
Forget about nailing it! Do enough to make it through the cut!
Your performance will improve over time, and most important – you’ll enjoy the scenery while you’re doing it.