8th November 2017 was a day particularly close to the heart of every Toastmaster and distinguished guest who attended the remarkable 19th meeting of SCBNL Toastmasters Club. The meeting was extra special with the presence of our former CEO Joseph Silvanus, the then HR Head Bina Rana, the then Area 41 Directors – TM Suman Shakya and TM Ranjit Acharya, and most of all because of the company of CEO of Toastmasters International (TI), TM Daniel Rex, who was on his maiden visit to Nepal in his 25 years of association with TI.
The meeting started when SAA TM Renuka Silwal called the meeting to order and TMoM Shraddha Joshi presented her theme “Ctrl+Alt+Delete” with many interesting facts and figures. TM Kusum Lal Shrestha led the table topics session encouraging all attendees especially guests to practice their “thinking on feet” skills. His amazing topics allured speakers to speak without any hesitation and awkwardness. Similarly, the featured speech session was equally mesmerizing with fantastic speakers. TM Rujal Lal Joshi told us his life story in his first-ever speech, indeed a memorable one, while TM Umesh Joshi took us all on a canoeing journey describing how he tied his shoes for a thrill in Pokhara. The session’s winning speech, bold and beautiful, was delivered by TM Smriti Gurung who humorously explained how after having a baby, she discovered a wonderful father in her husband but lost the lover. Undeniably, a chucklesome speech.
Finally, the moment arrived when the man himself – TM Daniel Rex held the floor expressing his appreciation of the efforts of the bank in establishing a Corporate club. He also mentioned numerous benefits that employees can grab from the unbridled platform of the club by intensifying the leadership and communication skills, applying those skills back to our career resulting in better self-confidence and professional growth. Our club also earned a special accolade. TM Rex handed over a certificate from Toastmasters International to Joseph Silvanus (Former CEO) of the bank in commemoration of the first anniversary of the club. He concluded with a beautiful, reminding everyone of the power of communication – “If we can communicate, we can influence, and if we can influence, we can change the world”.
The striking speech from TM Rex was followed by constructive feedback for the featured speakers by seasoned evaluators TM Atul Shrestha, TM Pranu Singh and TM Ranjit Acharya, and the award distribution. The 19th meeting ended with zeal and ardor.
Prativa Neupane, Standard Chartered Bank Nepal Toastmasters