This is a question that is always a challenge to an individual or a group. When we are at a point in the history of Toastmasters in Nepal where new club numbers trump the old ones, this also means that if you are meeting a Toastmaster, he or she will be less than two years in their leadership journey.
Toastmasters works on empowering individuals in any stage into their leadership journey. I had the pleasure to be the Chief Judge at KU-SOM Toastmasters’ Club Contest. Contests are wonderful opportunities for an individual to be a leader.
Toastmasters Binisha Shrestha and Shripa Mushyachu hosted Table Topics Contest and International Speech Contest. The first message I received from the contest chairs reminded me of my early days in Toastmasters – when I took on any role, I went back to my mentor asking how to do it and while I put on brave face, I was lost, and the guidance I received would do wonders.
Toastmasters Binisha and Shripa were a sport when it came to organizing and taking mentorship. They were asking brilliant questions, which even I had to do some research on with my own mentor. While the initial challenge of being first-time contest chairs was there, they started to get things together. Communication was constant and up to the mark, and the management was done in a flawless manner as per my observation.
The event proceeded in a manner which didn’t require much room for improvement. Both the competitions started in time and finished within the allocated time. I was pleasantly surprised how the team of Toastmasters pulled it off flawlessly.
My learning from the event reinforced my belief that Toastmasters allows an individual to tailor the learnings, which helps to foster leadership. The only thing that needs to be done to cross the tall fence is to throw the hat off that fence, just like Toastmasters Binisha and Shripa did.
Looking forward to pleasant surprises in coming years as Toastmasters in Nepal seeks to encourage more individuals in Nepal to throw the hat off the fence and grow together.
Brijendra R. Joshi, Division A CGD, Founders Toastmasters
Published in Inkspire Issue 3. Click here for the full newsletter