Communicate98_Oct-Dec’22

TOASTMASTERS

EDITORIALS

CHIEF EDITOR

The recently concluded trimester was a period of incredible joy for everyone, mostly due to the contest festival This unique celebration was an incredible experience for me and many of the Toastmasters. It gave us a chance to make deeper connections by bringing together those who rarely get the chance to meet These division contests turned out to be reunions, allowing toastmasters' family members to meet again and create memories

This quarterly newsletter is all about celebrating Toastmasters. The COVER STORY features the inspiring story of the third International speech contest winner, TM Mas Mahathir bin Mohamad and his toast. You can get a feel of the competition between clubs with an overview of the infographics The Division contest winners' success celebrations and a glimpse of the division contest through pictures will captivate your interest Don't miss out on these exciting stories

We’re always looking for compelling stories and images to engage our readers

If you’d like to share a story, or club achievement or provide feedback, write to newsletterteam@district98org

I hope this new year brings each of you much joy and happiness

LEAD CREATIVE MANAGER

What has the experience of designing this n

Conceptualizing the thematic design, finaliz expanding the idea into a full-blown 30 focusing on consumer (readers in our co constantly finetuning to accommodate repe the best possible efforts to the D98 fraternity next quarter!

In this 50 words long process, I am learning value in a collaborative environment within classic trait expected from me (and everyone)

Sheshang Ajwalia

“Celebrations infuse life with passion and purpose. They summon the human spirit.”Terrence E Deal

Chief Editor

Vrindavani Mulik

.

My first corporate stint was with Ernst & Young (EY); the organisation's tagline then was ‘Quality in Everything we do’. And that wasn’t just a tagline but a belief that everyone within the organisation embodied Every document was reviewed multiple times before being submitted. The hierarchy and accountability were clearly defined. They even had protocols on how to staple a paper – presentation skills also had standardisation And in my time there, the learning on how to draft a mail, draft responses, appearing before authorities – all of this was an enriching experiential learning experience.

While the pandemic is mainly behind us, the toastmaster’s world has not returned to how it used to be From Zoom fatigue, we are all moving to a world of Zoom convenience Most of our corporate offices are reopening and our priorities are being reshuffled. And so we knew we had to start from scratch and get people excited to come out and meet each other Most districts in the world opted for online contests at the area and division levels but we at D98 chose to take up the challenge and conduct them in a Hybrid environment. It has not been an easy transition and we had no prior experience running a hybrid setup We wanted to involve all and enhance the member's conference experience so we tried, we failed but tried again till we got to a point to we were able to present the same to you

With almost 32 area conferences and 7 division conferences behind us, I believe the team has delivered by doing a fantastic job With more than 750 registrations, we are happy that the community took up the challenge and has met our expectations for the first half of this program year We may not have had the flawless event that we envisaged, but our experience has helped us set a standard operating practice, and with Hybrid set up here to stay, I am sure we’ll be able to do a fabulous job in the years to come and future club and district leaders will take a leaf out of our learnings.

Members are at the top of the Toastmasters pyramid, which has been the District's focus this year. Innovation and networking have been the key to our term. What is essential for all of us is to define our building blocks and set the right process so that when the baton is passed, we only improve our meeting quality and member experience; retention and growth will be on auto-pilot If we can walk that extra mile for the next 6 months, we’ll make a difference to every Toastmaster in D98

With events like Kahaani and Impromptu Premier League lined up for the next half of the current program year, I am sure the exciting journey is still a long way through. We are also finally going back to having an in-person Annual District Conference - Eloquence in May – the biggest networking platform of D98. Watch out as more details are on the way.

Wishing all of you a happy new year and lots more learnings in 2023.

Hardik Shah

“The race for excellence has no finish line ” - Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, ﻲﺘﻳؤر

NEWLY CHARTERED CLUBS

GLIMPSE OF DEMO MEETINGS

Division B

Division S

L&T Electricals & Automation, Powai on Thursday, 24-Nov2022. It was a hybrid meeting attended by 200+ employees from the organization (180+ participants online and 20+ members physical).

Division D

We

Division M

We conducted a successful demo meeting at NMIMS Navi Mumbai on 13th Oct. The session was held in hybrid mode and More than 100 students of the organization attended the hybrid demo meeting

Demo meeting at Rajiv Gandhi Institute in Mumbai on 17th November. More than 150 students and faculty of the institute attended the offline demo meeting

conducted a successful demo meeting at NPCI on 7th October. More than 40 employees of the organisation attended the offline demo meeting

Division M NMIMS college Demo meeting

ACHIEVER CLUBS OF DISTRICT 98

Hello Smedley Award

Bombay Toastmasters NMIMS Mumbai Toastmasters Club (NMTC) Santacruz Speakers Toastmasters Club Jaipur Toastmasters Club

Retention Champ Award

Reliance Vadodara Toastmasters Club Mumbai Orators Toastmasters Club

Silvertongues IIM Udaipur

Worley India Toastmasters Synergy Mumbai Toastmasters Mumbai Speakers Toastmasters Club TYHO SDA Bocconi

Torchbearer

DESIGN OF THE MONTH

The experience of participating in multiple rounds of ISC and ESC not only brings transformation to a shy or reluctant individual but also a seasoned speaker. That's why I wanted to capture the spirit of this transformation in my poster design. The geometric shapes represent the speaker's progression from shyness to confidence, from reluctance to eagerness. The layers of abstract shapes merge into one another to become a butterfly, the graceful embodiment of metamorphosis.

The motive of the meeting was to be able to talk about our insecurities freely and that it's all right to feel vulnerable sometimes I wanted the theme to reflect in my Poster so I came up with all insecurities we deal with in day-to-day life and how most of the time it's just a social construct and no real problem "Everything is in our head" haunts us now and then.

Christmas holds all the time together I realised my gifts were right in front of me - a club that accepts you, a community that welcomes differences, and a tightknit millennial group that is always there for each other. My poster was inspired by how I see my club

CELEBRATION WITH TOASTMASTERS

TM MAS MAHATHIR BIN MOHAMAD

Toast at the celebration

To me, a toast is a form of apprecia mentioning of gratitude, or simply a for informing the guests about some related to the theme/celebration of event

"It's easy for us to take "giving a toast" for granted like giving a Table Topics Speech, but turning it into a prepared speech would do wonders".

THIRD PLACE WINNER

WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP OF PUBLIC SPEAKING 2022

Toast for celebration

Giving a toast may be as simple as tapping the glass with a spoon Ting Ting Ting and saying what's on your mind, but of course to make a toast more effective it has to be structured and planned out It's easy for us to take "giving a toast" for granted like giving a Table Topics Speech, but turning it into a prepared speech would do wonders. Typically you can start giving a toast by Thanking the guests for their presence, Stating the purpose of your Toast, Sharing your message, and Ending by getting everyone to raise their glasses with you

My name is Mas Mahathir bin Mohamad, I have been a Toastmaster since 2016 from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

WINNING 3RD PLACE IN THE WORLD CHAMPIONSHI PUBLIC SPEAKING 2022

The format varies from place to place, culture to culture, but one thing remains the same and that is a toast should be a prepared speech instead of an impromptu one

Funny incident while raising a toast

I am blessed that there were no embarrassing moments when giving a toast, but there was a funny incident before giving the toast. You see, as a new emcee in 2017, I had the opportunity to emcee a wedding of a friend. His name is Eric Yeoh and his bride, Yen Fun As the walk of the bride and groom began, I said with all my confidence "Please help me welcome the bride and groom Mr, and Mrs Yeoh!" At that moment my co-emcee looked at me funny and played along to ensure that we looked professional. The thing is in our culture we don't call them Mr and Mrs (insert parent name), in this case, Yeoh is the name of Eric's parents So calling Mr and Mrs Yeoh meant I'm calling his parents. It was embarrassing, I know, but it's great speech material now!

Toastmasters

Toastmasters gave me the confidence to speak up and continue learning and growing Although I have not reached the celebratory speeches yet, learning from others who attempted this project gave me an understanding of how it should be run It's a great platform to keep learning, and improving

SEMIFINALIST IN THE WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP OF PUBLIC SPEAKING (2020)

helped you in improving your celebratory speeches

FEAST FOR CELEBRATION ARTICLES

TM KALPANA KISHORE

SPEAKERS COMMUNITY TOASTMASTERS CLUB

I recall the first moment when I virtually sauntered into a zoom platform. Zoom meetings were babies of covid. And I took our virtual baby steps into the reality of Toastmasters and its learnings.

The first few meetings were a whirlwind of awestruck, wide-eyed learnings as pathways, roles, executive committee’s roles, and responsibilities were unfurled enveloping us Theory and practicality are like doing an engineering degree at college vs having first-hand experience as an apprentice.

And as the practical practice of our first ventures. I delivered many speeches and took many roles, Then I discovered my strengths and weaknesses in what seemed an easy feat

It was soon time for the most awaited event ISC, ESC, TT Competitions.

As we were a newly chartered club, all of us were eligible for participation and the rule of level 2 completion didn’t apply

I found myself preparing for ISC I like those moments of writing, thoughts, ideas forming shape, and the emergence of incidents coming alive through mere words. To top it you have an audience listening to you raptly. For me, that was all my soul needed to express itself.

As I prepared for ISC, my VPE asked me to participate in table topics I froze Like I am someone who freezes when it comes to onthe-spot ‘say something’ moments You see, my overactive brain sends in millions and zillions of thoughts and ideas. Selecting which one to utter first leaves me speechless. And by the time I conclude, the moment has moved on

At first, I refuted it She persisted I refused She persisted Ah!!! What do I do?

A part of me told me this is turning into a ping-pong situation. Say Yes. You, anyways aren’t going to make it beyond the club level. Moreover, it doesn’t need preparation. Speak if something comes to your mind. Else, fizzle out And I agreed to be part of the Table topic round at the club level.

D-day dawned. My prepared Speech was promptly delivered in what I thought was a great pomp and ceremony.

Part two TT round followed I, smugly waited my turn yapping away in the breakout room Someone confident enough, ready enough, sure enough, to lose

It was my turn. I went and spoke. Ya. I managed to speak coz I was ready to lose No erratic heartbeats, no nervousness, no nothing

Contests ISC and TT rounds were complete We eagerly waited for the results. My eyes were on ISC results. I was that sure of a win. (Immature me) Please, please, I prayed Results were announced. Third, secondplace winners were announced I sat with my heart in my mouth for my name.. and it wasn’t announced I didn’t feature in the top 3 list. It was a smack. I was trying to understand what and where it went wrong ? I sat lost in thought

And suddenly there were claps and congratulations. Dazed I tuned in to CC trying to make sense of applause But, didn’t I just lose..?

I looked blank. And CC repeated that I stood first in TT What ? How ? I shook my head vigorously albeit, mentally. Physically, I was nodding and acknowledging the congratulations.

That night I sat trying to make sense of the revelation that was brought on with my win - courtesy of Toastmasters With a masterstroke within a few months of joining toastmasters, the competition unveiled the hidden potential. I can speak extempore

I felt gratitude. I went on to win the Area competition and stared at Division contestants. I came 3rd. Two steps away from a win. But, it was fine. For there’s always a new year, new competition, and a new chance.

What I watched and felt as a contestant was the feeling of flattery that was extended to all participants. The organizers assured a well-oiled, hold your breath contests that were like an on-the-edge-ofyour-seat thriller. It was a new high. My perception and my performance underwent a somersault. I fell in love with the platform Toastmasters

Once you learn to articulate, you will be able to express yourself ISC, TT, or ESC I am loving the shiny facet that TM has polished. Thank you, Toastmasters!

TM NEHA DESHPANDE UBS MUMBAI TOASTMASTERS CLUB

I am a Toastmaster...

I am here, to create my identity, Marked with perseverance and dignity!

I am here, to learn, care and celebrate, There is so much in life to orchestrate!

I am here, to grow and reach my goals, In my journey trying to touch a lot of souls!

I am here, to experiment with myself, With challenges that would otherwise be put off to shelves!

I am here, to share my experiences, Full of mysteries and nuances!

I am here, to contest with my friends, To build the culture of growing together with some amends!

I am here, to have many roles to play, In each of which there is a discovery ray!

I am here, to have an experience for a lifetime, By learning about myself each day in the meantime!

RIL TOASTMASTERS CLUB)

I joined RIL Toastmasters Club on 01-102020 (during Lockdown) when all the club meetings were online. During the initial days, I felt that I need to work more on my communication and public skills, which would help me progress in my career Earlier, I used to feel nervous while drafting emails and communicating official matters (both, within and outside my organization). However, as time passed by, I started taking-up roles within my club as AhCounter, Grammarian, Timer, and so on. This helped me understand how to improve my spoken skills.

On 01-07-2021, I joined my club’s Executive Committee (ExCom) as a Club Secretary.

During my term as a Club Secretary (01-072021 to 30-06-2022), I came to know how a club secretary works, I advised the Club President about various club matters, and so on. During my term as a Club Secretary, I presented my Ice Breaker Speech (Pathways: Visionary Communication) and completed my L1 project. This encouraged me further towards soaring great heights in my journey as a toastmaster. As time passed by, I also began working on my Evaluation and Impromptu Speaking skills, which encouraged me to participate in the Evaluation Speech Contest (ESC) twice (2021 and 2022) and in the Table Topics Contest (TTC) once (2021)

TM SHREY JAIN

Alongside my journey with RIL Toastmasters Club, I have also participated in various club meetings outside my home club, such as GSC Toastmasters Club, Palava Toastmasters Club, Parliamentarian Toastmasters Club (USA), and many more. This encouraged me further towards working on my leadership and communication skills Currently, I’m serving as a Sergeant At Arms (SAA) to RIL Toastmasters Club and am working on my L2 project I also participated in various Area and District level contests and events like Ebullience’2022, Inspire’2021, and Eloquence’2021.

I aspire to become a great leader and an effective communicator during my upcoming journey as a Toastmaster, over the years to come. Also, I would like to express my sincere gratitude towards all those Toastmasters, who have and will continue to help me progress in my upcoming journey as a Toastmaster.

WINNERS

Sneha Sharma International Speech Contest Winner

I embraced the chaos in my life Managing multiple frontswork, family and also a wedding at home close on the heels of the contest was giving me indigestion. I decided to be proactive, identified four important focus areas and cut down on time suckers - people, situations and conversations and practised as much as I could. It gave me the confidence to perform and assurance of a splendid performance.

I will celebrate my success by taking time out with family and my mentors, and sharing the experience over coffee!

Sanchita Sarkar Evaluation Speech Contest Winner

By taking an evaluator role in different meetings Special thanks to my club members for helping me prepare. Also, much credit goes to my mother for constantly giving me feedback for improvement.

I celebrated success with a special payesh (Bengali for kheer) made with Date jaggery.

WINNERS

Juzer Udaipuri International Speech Contest Winner

My hard work has paid off - Public speaking has been a goal of mine for some time now, I've read anything and everything, even a bus ticket to expand my horizon. Exploring History, Philosophy, Geopolitics, Biographies, Literature, and Current Events to gain more knowledge - like a helium balloon. Cultivate the habit of reading - it has the best returns!

My Division Level mini-success will be celebrated with a family dinner nearby. I'll buy an anthology of great writers that I've been eyeing.

Tandon Evaluation Speech Contest Winner

It was never a one-man show for me. Efforts and support of family, friends and club members became instrumental in translating dreams into reality!

By taking a deep breath, letting the moment sink in and then moving on !!

Shivi

WINNERS

Aarti Bandekar International Speech Contest Winner

I have great people around me at Sobo Toastmasters which gave me the strength to share my story

I've realized success is best celebrated by sharing my experience, providing opportunities to others and helping them spread their wings and fly. This journey has helped me realize how much more I can do

Amit Dudani Evaluation Speech Contest Winner

One of the key factors in my doing well at evaluation was my keen desire to develop my listening and observation skills. I took up evaluator roles at various clubs, online and offline, in India and abroad There is a distinct benefit in taking up roles at clubs other than our own because we are not influenced by our past impressions of the speakers

I also received great feedback and encouragement from all my club members, especially DTM Ranjini Rao and Division Director, TM Akshay Singh who would provide immediate feedback on my evaluation and help me get better I will celebrate by sharing my joy with my family and friends and also go on a coffee date with my wife

WINNERS

TM Amit Nandan International Speech Contest Winner

Winning Division Contest in ISC was no less than a dream for me. Two years ago I used to think that winning in contests must be God-gifted and blessed with special abilities but after achieving my success I realised that it is hard work to acquire the skill and the strategy to deliver what matters the most in the contest

I am truly indebted to TM Priyanka, TM Aditya (Both from Matrix toastmasters club), and TM Samridhi ( TCS BEAT) for polishing my speech. Heartfelt thanks to my mentor AD TM Meghana, and DivD TM Jyoti for keeping faith in me

I celebrated this achievement with my few toastmasters friends and family members by having dinner together on a split payment basis��

Aditya Balya Evaluation Speech Contest Winner

I'd like to attribute all my successes in Toastmasters' speech contest to my Mentor and my super-amazing co-founders, Amit Nandan and Priyanka Panigrahi. It's their conviction, belief and support that energise me to unleash my best I've learnt that it's very important to internalise learnings from your experiences and those of others. Being your true self always strikes a chord with the audience and helps your stand out. Before any contest, practise in groups, exchange ideas and be open to feedback This is my secret recipe to winning contests ��

WINNERS

Meenakshi Ranganathan

International Speech Contest Winner

I am extremely euphoric about my first-ever Division win!! My mantra in life has always been: Life’s greatest challenges do not always go to the strongest or the fastest man, But sooner or later the man who wins is the man who thinks he can!!”

I am extremely thankful to Agnel Toastmasters Club members for their constant support and encouragement. It is very rare in life you find such a crazy bunch that can be your harshest critics as well as your biggest cheerleaders

First thing I did to celebrate my win: Treated me to a chocolate chip pastry!! (wink emoji)

Joane Joseph

Evaluation Speech Contest Winner

This success was a complete surprise as this was my first contest ever I am delighted and feel honoured to have come this far. I owe this success to my brother Joel who pushed me to join Toastmasters and my mentor TM Mahesh who encouraged me to enter the contest

I am celebrating my success with gratitude. More than reflecting on the win I am reflecting on the learnings that I got by attending the Division level contest and I consider myself lucky to meet and learn from some of the best people in my District

WINNERS

Cyril Paul International Speech Contest Winner

The access that the Toastmasters platform provides to some amazing mentors is mind-blowing The Club and Area level speeches were last-minute' rush jobs'. Special thanks to IPDD Mukta Nadkar & DTM Shireesh Nadkar for responding to my SOS a week before the Division Contest, and for helping with suggestions to refine the speech An "evaluation" by DTM Sameer Naik was a key comfort factor to ensure that the speech was true 'ISC Class'.

As the saying goes, 'when you stand on the shoulders of giants...', the rest is history. Celebrate?? This early? Naaah

Sai Ramachandran Evaluation Speech Contest Winner

I won the Division S Evaluation Speech Contest at Ignite 2022it was filled with incredible speakers and leaders.

Not sure if my success was hard work-induced Zarine's usually voted best at the club level. I won the Evaluation because Zarine couldn't compete

This time I wrote my evaluation instead of relying on my extempore speech.

Wanting to make it special, we headed to Paan Kulture but couldn't celebrate our way; it was closed. We made the most of it and simply enjoyed each other's company on the stroll there and back.

WINNERS

Avinash Singh, DTM International Speech Contest Winner

This is my 5th time at ISC I've been a 1st runner-up in Division for the last 3 years. I prepared a lot, got help from my wife (mentor) and son, and had support from Readers and Debaters TMC and Mulund TMC. To make my speech better, I studied and analyzed many World Championship Speeches I came 2nd runner-up in Division for Evaluation Contest. I watched and analysed many World Championship Speeches to improve my speech This is the highest level I have reached for both ISC and ESC. I need to work harder to be better. My wife celebrated with chocolates and chicken curry When I visit my home club (MTC), we will go out for a small party. Wishes poured in from my loved ones and Toastmasters - that was heartwarming. That's why I love Toastmasters.

Gandhar Rajeev Joshi Evaluation Speech Contest Winner

The success at the division contest included the contributions of many - My mentors through their guidance, members of my home club for their encouragement & pointers given by them for improvements..and lastly the effort from my end to practice and hone my evaluation skills

By Offering Gratitude to my club members for their support & honing my evaluations skills even more and preparing hard to win the D98 Championship!��

CAPTURES FROM DIVISION CONFERENCES

CAPTURES FROM DIVISION CONFERENCES

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