Rhetoric 2012 - Division Governor Address

April 2012

District Governor DTM Saleem, LGET DTM Nina John, LGM DTM Nirmala Lilly, Brand Ambassador Bosco Abraham,
Division L Governor Pawas,

My dear Area governors, Club officers, Members and Guests

Welcome to Rhetoric 2012.

I would like to recognize the presence of my team members.
- Area Governors
- Club officers
- Mentors
- Past officers at the Division, Area & Club level
- Leaders without title (YLP, demo meetings, promotion of toastmasters, launching membership drives, helping clubs)

I take this opportunity to thank all of you for contributing to the success of Division G. Special thanks to my mentor DTM Lalitha Giridhar. I'm what I'm today, because of her.

"Small things make perfection, but perfection isn't a small thing".

• Today, you are going to witness the performance of some of the BEST speakers in Tamilnadu who paid attention to those small details - that made them the STARS of Division G. 
• Today, you are going to witness the leaders in action, the leaders who skillfully crafted Rhetoric 2012

(Also read: High Performance Leadership - Project Ideas / Requirements)

A leader isn't the one who delegates tasks to everyone and get the tasks done with a WHIP in hand. A leader is someone who leads from the front and supports from the back. The Chief Pilot of Rhetoric 2012 TM Dhanaraj is a true example of this. TM Dhanaraj and his team of volunteers did an outstanding job to make every aspect of TODAY's conference special.

Rhetoric 2012 is special for many reasons:

• YOU! Got up so early on a Sunday morning, and came here
• For the first time ever, the top 3 district officials are attending the conference together in Division G
• This is THE last conference of the combined Division G which includes all the clubs in Tamilnadu
• Last but not the least, Rhetoric 2012 celebrates the success of Division G

Division G is the first division to become President Distinguished in District 82. Division G is the first division to achieve all its district goals.

Being #1 is special... Being #1 in the #1 district is even more special.

Toastmasters, Division G is a huge castle, built with stones, marbles and diamonds taken from various parts of Tamilnadu. Division G is standing TALL and STRONG because of YOU. Every small success of yours is translating into a HUGE victory for Division G. Thanks for making Division G #1.

This is THE last conference of the combined Division G. My term as a Division Governor will be over in 2 months. But remember...

Men may come and men may go ! But toastmasters movement in Tamilnadu will continue to flourish forever.

How do you pick the right speech topic?

"I have so many topics at hand and so much content to talk about. How do I pick the right speech topic?"

This is the question that will come to your mind if you read the article "How to select a speech topic and write a speech script?".

Or, you may be invited to preside over a meeting or function... you may be the chief guest for an event. What are you going to talk about?

This article will provide you some guidance to select the right speech topic for your next speech in toastmasters (for that matter, any speech that you make!).


At a high level, you have to look into 3 key factors when selecting your speech topic.

1. Your Audience
2. The Occasion
3. Your Abilities

Let us look at each of these factors.

1. Your Audience: Any speech that you make is FOR THE AUDIENCE. Normally, you deliver a speech - to inform, to entertain, to persuade, or to inspire the audience. So, you have to always select a topic and prepare a speech with your audience in mind. This will help you to CONNECT with the audience better.  If you are going to deliver a speech at a old age home, you cannot be talking about "how to save money for your retirement". Similarly, if you are going to deliver a speech at a college you cannot be talking about "10 ways of enjoying your retirement". Some of the criteria that you should consider are - what is the average age of the audience, what are their interests, what do they already know, what topic would be interesting for the audience, what is the cultural background etc.,
2. The Occasion: What is the occasion? Selecting a speech topic that suits the occasion is very important. For example, you cannot deliver a humorous speech at a funeral. You cannot deliver a serious speech at a wedding. Your speech topic has to match with the mood of the audience. In a toastmasters meeting, you are recommended not to use topics that are controversial such as Sex, Religion or Politics :) You can still pick topics such as "Corruption in India", without making ugly remarks about any political party or without making any references to any political leaders.              
3. Your abilities: Do I have the conviction to deliver this speech? Do I have the capabilities to deliver this speech? These are the questions that you should ask when narrowing down your speech topic. For example, it will be hard for a member who does not come to the club meetings regularly to persuade others to come to the meetings regularly. Similarly, it will be hard for an obese person to inspire an audience to stay fit and healthy. A school teacher can talk about "How to talk so that kids will listen". An outstanding software professional can talk about "How to develop a defect free software". When you talk from your heart, your passion/conviction shows up and it will in turn keep the audience engaged and motivate them, too. An old person who finds it difficult to even walk is not expected to pick a topic that requires him to jump and do a drama. If you are someone who has difficulty in using good English, do not try to "artificially" include some GRE words or jargons into your speech. There is more likelihood that you'll forget those words during your speech. 

When it comes to selecting a speech topic for a toastmasters meeting, select from

1. The topics you know
2. The topics you love
3. The topics that interest the audience and of course,
4. The topics that help you to meet the project objectives

Let me explain those 3 circles (i.e., the Venn diagram) with an example. 

If I have to deliver a speech, I can easily select topics from the areas that I'm familiar with 

• my personal experiences, 
• my US life experiences, 
• my personal problems, 
• traveling, 
• blogging, 
• software development/testing, 
• computer networks, 
• politics, and 
• toastmastering. 

Out of these topics, I love to talk about 

• my US experiences, 
• traveling, 
• computer networks and 
• toastmastering. 

However, if I start talking about "computer networks", the diverse set of people in a community toastmasters club may get bored. That leaves me with topics that are of interest to me as well as to the audience.  So, I would end up choosing a topic from my US experiences, traveling or toastmastering. 

If the project expects me to give an entertaining speech, I would very well pick the speech topic from my recent travel experiences. 

Toastmasters project manuals give you the flexibility of choosing your own speech topics. So, to the extent possible, pick topics that are of interest to you as well as the audience. 

Hope you have now mastered the art of selecting the right speech topic for your next speech. Happy speaking !

What kind of speaker are you in a toastmasters club?

What kind of speaker are you?!

We see a number of new members who join toastmasters to become better communicators.   I have carefully observed our members over a period of time and categorized them into 4 types of speakers.



1. Don't know how to load bullets into the gun

"Oh! My God … I have to give a speech this week in my club... and I couldn't think of any topic. I don't have anything interesting to share with others :(". 

These are people who have bullets and a gun in their hand. But, they don’t know how to load the bullets into the gun.



Read:  How to select a speech topic and write a speech script?

2. AIM, AIM, AIM ... type

"I'll sign up for a speaking slot only when I have a perfect speech ready. I will even wait for months together ... to get a PERFECT speech. I will sign-up for speaking role only when I get that impressive speech topic...". 

These are people who continue to AIM, AIM, AIM and NEVER SHOOT.

3. Shooting at the Dark type 

"I just have an hour before the club meeting and I have to speak. Nothing can be done now. Let me blabber something. Anyways, the evaluators in toastmasters meeting are very friendly". 

"I'm already too good at speaking. Why should I prepare for my speech? I just can give an impromptu speech"

These are the ones who just bet on their luck. They try to gamble and get results. They may succeed in the short run, but the strategy may not produce results in the long run. It neither helps them nor the club members.

Read: 5 wives and 1 Husband technique to develop a speech topic into a script

4. Shooting on the DOT

“I’ll sign up for my speech slot a month in advance. I don’t wait for finding one full day of time to write my speeches. I start writing my speech script in increments… whenever I find little time. I get my speech reviewed by my mentor, and rehearse it several times before I deliver at the club. I don’t want to waste the time of other toastmasters by NOT preparing for my speech well”

These are the ones who make use of the available opportunities in the club to discover their real best. They do proper home work and focus on improving their skills in a structured way. Over a period of time, they'll turn out to be extraordinary speakers. If you look around in your club, you can easily spot them.

Now, what kind of speaker are you?! What kind of speaker would you like to become?

Speech Writing - 5 Wives & 1 Husband technique

After selecting a speech topic, you may be wondering "What should I talk about? How do I come up with the content for my speech?". Don't worry! 

There are multiple ways of expanding a speech topic into a speech script.  A simple technique that can be used by beginners is 5 Wives and 1 Husband technique.  

Wondering, who the 5 Wives and 1 Husband are? 

They are 

• What
• When 
• Where 
• Who
• Why 
• How

Let us take a simple topic “My favorite vacation” and try to ask these questions.

      1.      What am I going to talk about – “My favorite vacation”
     
      2.      When did I take the vacation – “I was leading a hectic life because of my work pressure. I      was hardly able to spend any time with my family. My family members were bugging me to take them somewhere. I decided to take a short break from work and go for a mini vacation from my workplace”
     
      3.      Where did I go for vacation – “I considered going to Kodaikanal, but didn’t chose it because it will be crowded. Moreover, we had been to Kodaikanal several times in the past. We wanted to go to a new place this time… After lots of research, we zeroed-in on Coorg. I heard from my friends that Coorg is a very nice place for vacation”
     
      4.      Who are the people that accompanied for your vacation?
     
      5.      How did you make all the arrangements?
     
      6.      What are the places in Coorg that you visited? How was your experience?
     
      7.      Why is the vacation to Coorg very memorable/favorite for you?
     
      8.      What did you do for dinner/lunch? Where did you go?
     
      9.      Why do you (or) Why won’t you recommend the audience for a trip to Coorg?
    
     10. What are some advices that you’ll give to the audience when they plan for the trip to Coorg?

If you try to answer all the above questions, you can easily come up with a 5 – 7 minutes speech.

You can take any topic and expand into a speech script with the 5 Wives and 1 Husband technique. 

Methods to organize your speech evaluations

There are multiple ways of organizing and presenting speech evaluations. I have outlined some techniques below:

1. Sandwich style – Start commenting about nice things -> areas of Improvement -> nice things
2. Chronological order – Start commenting on Introduction, then Body of the speech, and then Conclusion
3. Speech objectives focused  – Read out your answers to the questions at the end of the project  given in the speech manual (Technique appropriate for beginners in speech evaluations)
4. Theme based evaluations – “Listening to your speech was like watching a movie…”  
5. Acronyms based organization - Your speech had SUPERB ingredients. S  for STORY, U for UNIQUE MESSAGE, P  for PERSUASION, E for ENTERTAINMENT, R  for RHETORICS and B for BODY LANGUAGE.

(Also read: CRISP Speech Evaluations)

Toastmaster of the Day Script - 7th Oct 2012 (Chennai Toastmasters Club)

Toastmaster of the Day Worksheet

    DATE: 7^th Oct 2012 Word of the Day: consummation

    Theme: Miles to go before I sleep

          1.      Accept control from President and thank him/her for the introduction. 

          2.      Introduce theme of the day and word of the day. Encourage the speakers to use them during the meeting. Ask the audience to applaud when the Theme of the day and word of the day is used by the speakers.

Fellow toastmasters and guests! Good evening…

We are going to have a spectacular evening today. Completing your DTM is harder than climbing Mt. Everest.

For every 1000 people who attempt to climb Mt. Everest, only 165 people succeed.

For every 1000 people who attempt to complete their DTM, only 3 succeed.

Very few people have the perseverance to bring their DTM journey to completion.

That leads to our Word of the Day.

WOD: consummation - To bring to completion or fruition

Example: Kartik Srinivasan is going to consummate his DTM journey with his final speech today.

For those of you who are starting your journey…. All you need is extraordinary Determination, Toughness and Motivation… that will get you the DTM. Get started now, because there are miles to go before you sleep. That is our Theme of the day.

TOD: Miles to go before I sleep

         3.      Explain the flow of meeting and the 3 segments (Prepared speeches, Table Topics and Evaluation) for guests.

    Climbing Mt. Everest is done in 3 stages:

·         Climbing Mt. Everest requires lots of preparation, rehearsals, fine-tuning, and mentoring. In toastmasters, similarly we have “Prepared Speeches”. Members come prepared with their speeches according to the objectives given in a speech manual.  

·         When you do the climbing, you may run into situations that you might not have prepared for. For ex., falling rocks from the mountain top – how do you handle them? Similarly, in toastmasters, we have Table Topics. It provides an opportunity for members to sharpen their impromptu speaking skills. It trains them to handle the falling rocks.

·         Edmund Hillary was able to climb Mt. Everest successfully, because of the support from the Sherpas. Similarly, in toastmasters, we have Evaluators who help the speakers to identify their strengths and areas for improvement.

The Chief Sherpa in a toastmasters meeting is called the General Evaluator

         4.      Introduce the General Evaluator (based on the meeting theme) and ask the General Evaluator to introduce     his/her team:

    Introduction:

1) She is a software professional working for Amazon

2) Her hobbies include dancing

3) Her biggest achievement is becoming the state level badminton winner.

    Please join me in welcoming the General Evaluator for today    TM Manvi Mehta

         5.      Regain control from General Evaluator. 

         6.      Inform the audience that you are starting the prepared speeches segment.

         7.      Prepared Speeches

Speaker #1	Mamatha
Project Details	Manual:  CC Project #:  #1 Project Title:  Ice Breaker Speech Title:  Ice Breaker
Introduction of the speaker (based on the meeting theme)	1)  She is a home maker 2)  Her hobbies include reading and listening to music 3) She is actively preparing for her IAS exams.

Before I call ____________ Mamatha _________to the stage, may I request the evaluator of the speech TM Prasanna V. to read the project objectives?

Speaker #2	Unnikrishnan
Project Details	Manual:  CC Project #:  #1 Project Title:  Ice Breaker Speech Title:  Who am I?
Introduction of the speaker (based on the meeting theme)	1)  A software professional working at HCL Technologies. 2) He loves Chennai, but hates Chennai traffic 3) His biggest achievement is learning to speak in Tamil.

Before I call TM Unnikrishnan to the stage, may I request the evaluator of the speech TM Rajesh Natarajan to read the project objectives?

Speaker #3	Arumugam
Project Details	Manual: CC Project #: 2 Project Title:  Organize your speech Speech Title: 24 Hours
Introduction of the speaker (based on the meeting theme)	1)      He is a software professional working for HP 2)      His hobbies including reading self-development books 3)      His biggest achievement is receiving the Best Employee Award in his office

Before I call ____________Speaker #3_________to the stage, may I request the evaluator of the speech TM ______________________________ to read the project objectives?

Speaker #4	CT Thomas
Project Details	Manual:  Special Occasion Speeches Project #: 5 Project Title:  After Dinner Speech Speech Title:
Introduction of the speaker (based on the meeting theme)	1)      He used to be a weather man 2)      He loves to eat and sleep 3)      His biggest achievement is celebrating his 89th birthday

Before I call CT Thomas to the stage, may I request the evaluator of the speech TM Ravi Baskaran to read the project objectives?

Speaker #5	TM Kartik Srinivasan
Project Details	Manual: Speaking to Inform Project #:  10 Project Title:  An Abstract Concept Speech Title:  Don’t Trust Me
Introduction of the speaker (based on the meeting theme)	1) Freelance trainer 2) He loves globe trotting 4)      His biggest achievement is producing his Son J

Before I call TM Kartik Srinivasan to the stage, may I request the evaluator of the speech TM Deepa Bharatkumar to read the project objectives?

         8.      Ask the timer if any of the speakers are disqualified due to time. Ask the audience to vote for the Best Prepared Speaker.

         9.      Introduce the Table Topics Master (based on the theme of the meeting):

    Introduction:

1) He is a software professional working for TCS

2) He loves to spend time in Facebook.

3) His biggest achievement is becoming the club level humorous speech contest winner

     Please join me in welcoming the Table Topics Master for today TM Pramodh G

        10.  Signal the Table Topics Master to end the session when the time limit is reached / exceeded.

        11.  Regain control from Table Topics Master.

        12.  Ask the timer if any of the speakers are disqualified due to time.  Announce eligibility. Ask the audience to     vote for the Best Table Topics Speaker

        13.  Invite the General Evaluator to conduct the evaluations segment

        14.  Regain control from General Evaluator.

        15.  Final remarks (try to end with a BANG). Not exceeding 1 minute.

This is indeed a special meeting. Was it remarkable? Rhetorical? Resonating?

We are so lucky to have 6 out of 10 DTMs from Tamilnadu (Nina, Aditya, Sastha, Oommen, Saro, & Kartik). Climbing Mt. Everest is difficult. But, if you have the Determination Toughness and Motivation, you can be a DTM too and reach the mountain top.

I thoroughly enjoyed the meeting and looking forward to the future meetings.

Mentoring a new member - Checklist

If you are mentoring a new member, here are some guidelines to follow:

First meeting with new member

New member profile and objectives

·         Establish the objectives the new member hopes to accomplish in this club

·         What is the current skill level of the new member?

·         Any specific fears of public speaking?

·         Why did you choose to join a Toastmasters Club

·         What can this club do to help you accomplish your goals?

Meeting Structure

·         Discuss the different kinds of meetings and what occurs during each.

·         Business Meeting / General Meeting

·         An overview of what happens in a meeting

o   An overview of the structure of a meeting

o   How we show encouragement (ex: applause)

o   Show them the various meeting role player templates

o   The toastmaster meeting layout for the meeting

o   Roles of each meeting (please discuss the duties of each role in detail)

§  Ah Counter/Joke Master, Grammarian, Timer

§  Table Topics Master and Speakers

§  General Evaluator, Speech Evaluators

§  Toastmaster of the Day

·         How to address the podium. Discuss how we formally address the member at the podium.

o    ‘Madam/Mister General Evaluator and fellow Toastmasters’ …. And guest’

Agree upon basic codes of conduct

·         Mutually agree upon convenient time for sync-ups

·         Mutually agree upon how much in advance speech scripts have to be sent for review

·         When to reach your mentor?

o   When you are assigned a newer or bigger role

o   Whenever you have a question about Toastmasters as an organization

o   When you need some ideas for upcoming speeches

o   When you want your speech scripts to be reviewed

o   ????

(Also read: Mentoring - Speech review checklist)

Second meeting with new member

Club Details

·         Club goals for the year

·         How to sign-up for various roles / speaking slots

·         Details about club mailing list / website / facebook page etc.,

·         Reference the Distinguished Club Program Goals

·         State the Club Mission

·         Two paths to take to achieve awards.

o   Communication Path / Leadership Path

o   Toastmasters International. Describe what that is and explain how there are different levels.

·         Other cubs in the locality

·         Briefly talk about the Toastmasters Magazine

Third (or future) meetings with new member

Roles inside/outside the club

·         What are the different officer positions in the club and what do they do? (Also read: 10 ways of identifying role players for club meetings as VP Education)

·         Briefly talk about the levels that Toastmasters can take i.e., Area Governor , Division Governor etc.,

·         Discuss the different types of Manuals

o   Competent Communicator / Competent Leadership / Advanced

o   Discuss how the speeches in the manual build upon each other to enhance speaker’s abilities

·         Toastmasters’ events outside our club. Example: Speech contests.

    (Also read: Mentoring - Speech review checklist)

Mentoring - Speech Script Review checklist

As a mentor, you'll be helping your mentees in preparing for their speeches. You may be reviewing their speech scripts to suggest improvements and for making maximum impact on the audience. Here is a checklist that you can follow when reviewing your mentee's speech scripts.

When you review a speech script, look for the following things:   

1.     Speech script organized?

a.      Introduction- Interesting or attention grabbing? (How to write attention grabbing speech introductions?)
b.      Body - Two or three key points substantiated with examples or stories?
c.       Conclusion - Memorable? Powerful?

2.      Speech appropriate to the audience?

a.      Topic relevant to the audience?  (Speech Topic selection Ideas)
b.      Content appealing to the audience?
c.       Content is interesting? (informative or entertaining or educative or persuading)

3.      Speech meets the project objectives stated in the manual?

4.      Speech can be delivered within time?

5.      Presentation of the material

a.      Grammatical errors?
b.      Long sentences?
c.       Unwanted statements? Statements affecting the flow?
d.      Written to “speak” (instead of being written to “read”)?
e.      Organized into different sections? Preferably with a sub-heading
f.        Emphasis of appropriate words in the speech (for ex., statements that have to be spoken with high volume should be in BOLD or CAPS… I saw a HUGE ELEPHANT in the forest)

6.      Think from your mentee’s shoes and also from the audience shoes

a.      How will or how can the mentee deliver this script?
b.      How will the audience receive this material?

When giving feedback on the script:

1. Give specific feedback (instead of just saying “make the introduction interesting”… suggest them an interesting speech introduction… tell them “this is how, I would’ve done it”)
2. Give constructive feedback (Also read: CRISP Speech Evaluations)

• appreciate the nice things about the speech script… don’t just comment about the items that aren’t written well
• Use words such as “I recommend”… instead of “You should”…
• User statements such as “Consider changing this introduction…” instead of saying “This introduction is boring”…
• Use track changes in Microsoft Word… it helps the mentee to understand the changes that you’ve done to the script

Spice up your speeches with "Quotes"

This is a collection of quotes from various sources :)

Quote Author When i say SORRY, It doesn't mean that i'm completely wrong and you are right,but it means that i value our relationship more than my EGO...! Anonymous If you do something and turns out pretty good, then should do something else wonderful, just don't dwell on it too long. Just figure out what's next" Steve Jobs In a day when you don’t come across any problems, you can be sure that you are traveling in a wrong path Swami Vivekananda Focus on the Small Hinges and the Big Doors Will Open Wide Do not go where the path may lead; go instead where there is no path and leave a trail Anonymous It is not titles that honor men, but men that honor titles Niccolo Macchiavelli Leadership Is Not About the Leader Anonymous Volunteers are not paid – not because they are worthless, but because they are priceless. Anonymous “It’s been said that a good leader inspires others with confidence in him while a great leader inspires others with confidence in themselves.” Anonymous You can't do good if you don't feel good. Plato The dream is not what you see in sleep… dream is which does not let you sleep Abdul Kalam You are the same today as you’ll be in five years except for two things; the books you read and the people you meet.” Charlie Tremendous Jones You can’t fire a volunteer Anonymous You will become as small as your controlling desire; as great as your dominant aspiration You don’t have to be great to start, but you’ve to start to be great Zig Ziglar You can achieve everything in life that you want, if you can help others achieve what they want Zig Ziglar The ignited minds of the youth is the most powerful resources on the earth, under the earth and above the earth Abdul Kalam Small things make perfection, but perfection isn’t a small thing Anonymous I refuse to lower my standards to accommodate those who refuse to raise theirs Steve Gamlin "Dont share Ur Top Secrets with any 1 because,if U Urself cant Keep Ur Secrets Don't Expect Somebody Else 2 Keep it" Adolf Hitler No one in this world is perfect, if you avoid people for their mistakes, you’ll be ALL Alone Appreciation is a wonderful thing: It makes what is excellent in others belong to us as well. Voltaire The one who follows the crowd will usually get no further than the crowd. The one who walks alone is likely to find himself in places no one has ever been Albert Einstein Do not go where the path may lead, go instead where there is no path and leave a trail Ralph Waldo Emerson if you have one child, you are a parent. if you have two, you are a referee ! If egg is broken by force outside, life ends.  If egg is broken by the force inside, life begins Title is for a year, relationship lasts longer Saro Velrajan Title comes and goes, relationship stays forever Saro Velrajan Your trophy goes to the shelf, but the experience stays with you forever Saro Velrajan Small people use big words, big people use small words, servant leaders use the right words Saro Velrajan “I fear not the man who has practiced 10,000 kicks once, but I fear the man who has practiced one kick 10,000 times !!” Bruce Lee Focus on your members and follow the numbers Saro Velrajan ‎'I' is the smallest word in the dictionary. Don't make it the biggest in your vocabulary! Management is efficiency in climbing the ladder of success… leadership determines whether the ladder is leaning against the right wall Stephen Covey You will never reach your destination if you stop and throw stones at every dog that barks Winston Churchill Most people don’t listen with the intent to understand, they listen with the intent to reply back Stephen Covey Change small, change often Difficulties in your life do not come to destroy you, but to help you realize your hidden potential and power. Let difficulties know that you too are DIFFICULT APJ Abdul Kalam If you judge people, you won’t have any time to love them Mother Teresa If you find this yet another place to work, you should find another place to work Anonymous Great spirits have always encountered violent opposition from mediocre minds Albert Einstein Never play with the feelings of others, because you may win the game but the risk is that you’ll surely lose the person for a life time Shakespeare The world suffers a lot. Not because of the violence of bad people – but because of the silence of good people Napolean I am thankful to all those who said NO to me. It is because of them I did it myself Albert Einstein If friendship is your weakest point then you are the strongest person in the world Abraham Lincoln We must learn to live together as brothers as we will perish together as fools Martin Luther King The weak can never forgive. Forgiveness is the attribute of the strong Mahatma Gandhi It is very easy to defeat someone, but it is very hard to win someone APJ Abdul Kalam If you buy things you do not need, soon you will have to sell things you need Warren Buffett Never depend upon single income, make investment to create a second source Warren Buffett Do not save what is left after spending , but spend what is left after saving Warren Buffett Never test the depth of river with both the feet Warren Buffett Do not put all your eggs in one basket Warren Buffett Honesty is very expensive gift. Do not expect it from cheap people Warren Buffett Successful people have all had to do things they didn’t feel like doing in order to get where they are. Rory Vaden You always get paid for how hard you work, but it’s not always right away. Rory Vaden Are we going to give up, or are we going to be the kind of people who stand up and do what it takes, even if we don’t feel like doing it? Rory Vaden When it comes to making commitments to other people, sometimes one of the hardest things to learn to say is no when we mean no. Rory Vaden We need to stop spending so much of our time trying to make the right decisions and instead start spending our time making decisions and then making them right. Rory Vaden The foundation of a disciplined life is integrity and doing what we say we’re going to do. Rory Vaden Procrastination is one of the most expensive invisible costs in business today. Rory Vaden In the absence of disciplined focus, we become strangely loyal to performing daily acts of trivia. Rory Vaden Success is more a matter of choice than of circumstance. Rory Vaden We always pay a price for success. We either pay it now or pay it later with interest Rory Vaden Success is never owned. It is only rented and the rent is due every day Rory Vaden Be not afraid of greatness. Some are born great, some achieve greatness, and some have greatness thrust upon them Shakespeare Never be proud for what position you hold, because after a game of chess the king and the soldiers go into the same box Anonymous What is success? When your signature turns into autograph. APJ Abdul Kalam A great marriage is not when the 'perfect couple' comes together. It is when an imperfect couple learns to enjoy their differences Dave Meurer The good news is I'm fast. The bad news is I'm walking alone If you want to do everything to everybody than trying to do something to somebody, you won't be able to do anything to anybody Anonymous The difference between the right word and the almost right word is the difference between lightning and the lightning bug Mark Twain There is a difference between interest and commitment. When you are interested in doing something, you do it only when it is convenient. When you are commited to something, you accept no excuses only results. Kenneth Blanchard Contests are NOT meant to differentiate a bronze from a silver and a gold. Contests are meant to transform a golden ore into a golden ornament. Saro Velrajan The greatest leader is NOT necessarily the one who does the greatest things. He is the one that gets the people to do the greatest things. Ronald Regan When you have the commitment, capability can be built. Commitment is much more important than capability Saro Velrajan Don’t just delegate a task to a super star, create a super star by delegating a task. Saro Velrajan Let us also remove the word "negative" from our dictionary… the digital photographers have already removed it from theirs. Saro Velrajan Take the first step in faith. You don't have to see the whole staircase, just take the first step Martin Luther King Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover Anonymous Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming 'WOW What a Ride!' Anonymous If you don't know where you're going, any road'll take you there Anonymous Every role in Toastmasters has a purpose. If you are not learning anything by doing a role, you are not doing your role right Saro Velrajan Judges should be like God. People should believe in them and trust them, but should not see them. Saro Velrajan If you have to pick the best contestant as winner, you'll have to first pick the best judges. Saro Velrajan Leadership is not hunted, it is harvested Saro Velrajan When you harvest leadership, people will hunt for you Saro Velrajan

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