“If I have seen further, it is by standing on the shoulders of giants”- Isaac Newton.
Have you ever stopped to consider why great leaders are able to leave any form of cocoon? Toastmasters is one place with many giants offering their shoulders for others to stand on, and stay there as long as they need, before they too can offer their own shoulders to others.
I was afforded the opportunity to serve as a Club Officer two months after joining Toastmasters International. I learnt immediately and started the process of growth. My growth was what I refer to as an arithmetic growth, my confidence increased in a linear manner. More was added to me.
You might be reading this and thinking to yourself, “When is he getting to the point?”
The point is, there is arithmetic growth and there is geometric growth, a jump. Imagine being promoted from a cleaner to a director of a company. Please stop imagining, let me share something about myself. I was promoted from Club President to Division Director, the role I know very well even today that I was not ready for. I am not different from you, the first time I had the courage to take on a leadership role was in Toastmasters. I am a very reserved person who would never greet a beautiful lady in public though it is not a bad thing to do.
What then made the difference? I learnt from the best. David Preece DTM PDG was my mentor when I joined Toastmasters International and that is why I was my Club’s Vice President of Public Relations within two months of joining the club. Having a mentor worked for me and it will work for you too. Trust me!!!
SHARE-sion provides a platform where we learn from the best and get connected with potential mentors. In the month of September alone we had three SHARE-sion sessions hosting Mohammed Qahtani, Ramona Smith and Elizabeth Nostedt. Feel free to contact District 74 Social Media Team on socialmedia@toastmasters74.org to learn more about SHARE-sion. The next time you see SHARE-sion advertised, RSVP to get login details and brace yourself for some amazing growth through the learning sessions.
As a Club Leader, don’t learn alone, learn with your team, learn with your club, let us learn together as People Making History.
Gaoretelelwe Molebalwa- ACS, ALB
Social Media Team Lead