Step out of your comfort zone! - TM Ilavenil, Mysore Toastmasters

Humorous speeches to me are a bugaboo. I've had two washouts - one before I gave my icebreaker which can be put down to inexperience, and one after I had received the title of Competent Communicator last year. The second time, I was ready to leave Toastmasters, or forever give up my dream of making the audience laugh.

But as this year's contest announcement came, I had an idea - make a few hilarious incidents in my life into a speech. I typed up the script and I started to practice. But there was a BIG problem. The script required me to step completely out of my boundaries, my serious self, let go of all my inhibitions. It wasn't a step out of my comfort zone that was required, it was a launch from the Earth to the Moon.  I did not know whether I could!

Then came one of the most surreal experiences in my life.  My next project (ACS 3) is a story with a moral and I've been struggling to find one that is suitable for a grown up audience. A week before the contest, I was about to drift off to sleep when a speech just came to me, fully written. I felt like I was reading through a written script - I knew when to use voice modulation, what gestures to use, where to stand and when to use emphasis, all in an instant. The speech was based on Tennyson's "Lady of Shalott" written in 1842. A poem I loved, but the speech had a moral that I had not thought of or read anywhere else. I typed it out as it came to me. 790 words. I checked the manual. 5-7 minute time limit. It was perfect. My subconscious had presented me with a fully drafted and timed speech. 

The speech is about a lady who sits in a stone tower, weaving a magic web because she is cursed. A voice has whispered to her that if she looks upon the towers of Camelot, "a curse will befall her." For years and years, she sits, watching the world go by in a crystal mirror. Finally one day, on seeing Sir Lancelot as a flash in her mirror, she leaves her weaving and looks out. She sees Camelot, her web floats out, her mirror breaks. She leaves the tower in a boat. She sings a sad song as the boat moves towards Camelot and dies before she reaches Sir Lancelot.

The moral of the story, according to the speech that popped up in my head - she did not know what the curse is. She spent her whole life locked in a tower because of her fear. The fear of the unknown was so overwhelming that she did not let go even when she left the tower. Ultimately, she died without ever having seen anything but shadows. So, dear Toastmasters, do not let whispered curses rule your life. Do not be satisfied with shadows. Step outside that fortress, leave your comfort zone. Seize opportunities!! That was my conclusion. But before I could deliver this speech, I had to face the humorous speech contest.

On the day of the contest, my hands shook and mouth ran dry when I wrote down the title of the script. I was standing outside the room most of the time. I was not this nervous for my icebreaker - I had not been this nervous since my schooldays.  I was ready to pull out from the contest till the moment my name was announced. It was so far beyond what I was comfortable doing, that my knees shook and hands shivered when I took the stage. The room was suffocating and I was hyperventilating when I finally shook hands with the contest chair, and I ran right out of the room. Only when I left the room and my heart slowed down did I realise, I had made an audience laugh!

My objective on taking the stage was to get through the speech with a few laughs. I ended up winning the contest. 

When I came back home, when I opened up the "Lady of Shalott" script after dinner, I finally knew where the script had come from.My subconscious mind wanted me to leave my comfort zone.  An ordinary subconscious gives you dreams that tell you what to do. A Toastmaster's subconscious? It gives a seven-minute speech!

Erudite Roulette: Needle in a Haystack - TM Swathi, Mysore Toastmasters

It has been such a short time after I have moved into a new city away from my family, everyone and everything seem different, things don’t seem to be the same anymore. To be frank I’m now understanding the concept of evolution and the survival of the fittest. I’m evolving and I’m trying to survive. On this journey, finding people with similar interests as mine is like looking for a needle in a haystack especially because this city is extremely large and crowded. At this point of time, all I can remember is that one lesson which I had learned so far in my life that is - everything that seems to be impossible once can definitely be solved.

The pursuit of that needle in this haystack began; the first thing that came to my mind was Toastmasters. Because of the fact that Toastmasters is present in 142 countries having 345,000 members in 15900 clubs; this is not even close to the fact with my family. So rather than searching for my relatives, I Googled to "Find a Club" in the city; Guess what I found… 119 clubs in Bangalore. Where I’m sure that even if I call every relative of mine, that number is unbeatable for my family. That was a surprise for me, though. Then I planned to visit clubs close to my place, this gave me a sense that I was not away from my family. However now I have found some amazing people who are extremely talented and inspiring; which seems as something that is impossible or extremely difficult to find, In the end, I found my people and I am as happy as finding that needle in the haystack. Cheers to Toastmasters! 
Topic given by TM Ilavenil

Erudite Roulette: The Last Bite - TM Rohit, Mysore Toastmasters

Hunger, love, pain, fear are some of those inner forces

Which rule the individual’s instinct for self-preservation.

-Albert Einstein-

Anu (short for Anushree) is a sweet and pretty little girl.  Her dad used to work in the nearby construction site before a drunken brawl turned ugly. Her brother dropped out of school and ran away with an anti-social gang leaving the entire burden of raising this family now solely on her mother who was a maid in the neighboring households. She and her younger sister had to be pulled out of school since her mother couldn’t afford it with her meager earnings. The condition was so bad that the family could only manage one proper meal a day. Things got worse when Anu’s mother had to repay a few loans borrowed from different people. All the money that she was earning was going only to repay these loans and hardly anything was left for food! 

It so happened one day that Anu’s mother took her children with her to work. Both the little girls sat in one corner of the fancy house playing while their mother did her job. It was at this time that the bread maker of the house was preparing a delicious breakfast for her family. She placed the hot chapatis and curry on the dining table and called for her family. Everyone gathered and started to have their meal, all under the innocent eyes of Anu and her Sister.

It had been more than 24 hours since the girls had their Last Bite. The hunger grew within their small stomachs while gazing at what they saw as the most scrumptious meal in days. The Bread maker’s family finished their meal but some leftovers remained on each plate. She gathered all the leftover chapatis, threw it in the dustbin and continued her work. By now Anu’s mind fell prey to her hunger. A few minutes later Anu’s mother had finished her work and was looking for her children. She searched the house only to find the two sweet little girls near a corner eating those leftovers from the trash! Her eyes filled with tears as she watched her daughters innocently satisfy their hunger. She rushed over, picked her kids up and went home. That night the whole family had a big meal. As Anu’s mother watched her daughters enjoy the Last Bite of the night she vowed to make sure her daughters never have to crave for the Last Bite of someone else’s bite.

Now have you ever been hungry? Think back to the last time you were hungry. How did you feel? What did you do to satisfy it?

In Anu’s story, we saw that hunger can drive a person to do anything in order to satisfy it. It is for the satisfaction of this hunger that people beg, steal and even kill. However, this article isn’t about the hunger for food; although that is a growing concern for the world and it is my humble prayer that no one has to ever feel this hunger again. No, this article is about the hunger we feel after our Last Bite.

We are all hungry for something or the other in this life. Some are hungry for food, warmth and shelter while others are hungry for money, sex and power. Irrespective of what we are hungry for we crave for the satisfaction of that hunger. How we get there is another matter but getting there is what we yearn for. However, once we have our Last Bite of this hunger it is not over, there is always another bite around the corner. Don’t get me wrong here; being always hungry is a good thing. No matter what you crave for be it money, power, fame, education, sex, status etc., once you are hungry the only thing that you want is to satisfy this hunger and you will do whatever it takes usually to do so just like if you were hungry for food. 

Having that fire in our bellies is what makes most of us reach great heights in this world. And once we reach this height we are again hungry to go higher. This ongoing tug of war between our hunger and our satisfaction goes on throughout our lives. Yet none of us ever seem to be truly satisfied once our hunger is fulfilled. So my question is when will you have your Last Bite?
My dear readers, be hungry to do more, be hungry to have more & be hungry to achieve more in this life. Let your hunger spread to everything that you desire and do whatever it takes to satisfy that hunger. Because only when we satisfy our hunger for everything on the outside do we start getting hungry for what is inside which is You. It is only then do we get truly satisfied with the Last Bite of this Life.

The Day hunger disappears, the world will see the

Greatest spiritual explosion humanity has ever seen.

-Federico Garcia Lorca-

Topic given by: TM Pujashree

Erudite Roulette: Doorway to Heaven - TM Srihari, Mysore Toastmasters

"Doorway To Heaven"

There's a story I wrote all that mattered was told

And I was building a doorway to heaven.

When i got there I knew, if the stores are all closed

With all empty thoughts i came for.

There was a sign on the wall but i wanted to be sure

'Cause you know sometimes words have two meanings.

In a tree by the stall, there was a hobo who sang,

Sometimes all of our money was meaningless.

There was something I felt when i looked to the west,

And my spirit cried for delaying.

In my thoughts I had seen rings of smoke through the doors,

And the voices of those who stood looking.

my head hummed and it wouldn't go, in case you didn't know,

The bikers called me to join them,

Dear lord, can you hear the wind blow, and did you know

my doorway lies on the whispering wind?

And as i wound on down the road

Our shadows taller than our soul.

There walked a legend we all know

Who shines white light and wants to show

How everything still turned to gold.

And when i listened very hard

The tune came to me at last.

When all are one and one is all

To be a rock and not to roll.

And i built a doorway to heaven!

             How did I wind up like this? Why wasn’t I able to see the signs that I missed and tried turning tables? I wish I could unclench my fists, and unpack the backpacks. Lately there's been too much of this but don't think it's too late. Nothing was wrong; just as long as I knew that someday I would somehow gonna make it all right but not right now. Now the story's played out like this. Just like a paperback novel Let's rewrite an ending that fits Instead of a Hollywood horror. (You're the only one who knows that)
                        I know you're wondering where I am going with this. But the doorway just kept opening in my face. Loss of words that would describe all this but I was capable in bringing back home the glorious road trip stories. An Enfield ride to the far out southwest with the monsoon thunders. Geared up and a flag of faith for the charm of the ride. The doorway to heaven was at the feet of my bike. All I had to do was sit on it. The journey seemed so endless but still the journey for the right sight was an intimate adventure to my soul. The booming thumps with the sound of traffic were an epic combo. Making way like a king on his chariot I drove off into the hearty depths of the forest covered harsh Western Ghats. Savage roads and the cold-blooded weather was a challenge to the brave heart. The ride started with the sun at my back and the moon in my sight, practically left the city during the twilight hour. The ecstatic feel of the light hiding the moon from our sights was a mystery to solve. Later the sun engulfed skies darkening by the minute giving a strong monsoon chill. At the height of a cloud I flew on my bike for few miles. Eating clouds like cotton candies the mist was sober. Rain poured like an endless applause when the nature glowed green. I had to stop for the moment but like the wind the day also moved on. At the heights of Mother Earth's tall shoulders laid a sight no man could describe. Maybe that was the sight of heaven I could relate to the nearest. But I can’t relate it to the only place where I found maybe just a shadow of it. That Royal Enfield of mine is truly the doorway to heaven.

Topic given by: TM Rohit

Erudite Roulette: Breaking News - TM Shriya, Mysore Toastmasters

BREAKING NEWS….BREAKING NEWS!!!!!!!!

Is what flashed on the screen in bold along with a violent background. Violent enough to come out of the screen and punch the viewer.

“BREAKING NEWS”-Is news which is currently happening, and revealed at that very moment. But, these days, don’t you think the word “breaking news” has lost its significance? There is exhaustive use of the word “breaking” in today’s media. On an average the phrase “breaking!!!” is used over 4000 times across a variety of media platforms in a span of 24 hours. This over-usage of the word leads me to wonder if this word will ever be taken seriously! If this continues, very soon we will see a future where:

An individual eats food - “Breaking News!”
Or
An Individual has received so many likes” - “Breaking News!”

These days, the media uses the phrase “Breaking News” to just sell their content and make money. Selling news has become a new money making business. Even if the news is valuable, meaningful or not, the media has to merely sell its story to make money. And this is done by just attaching the tag of “Breaking News!” to every story.

Well, this is one side of the media. The other side is where in you can find a handful of genuine news disbursed by certain media. This is done by those who are interested in making the current news available to common people. Such news should be called “Good News” as they provide the current affairs and which are genuinely true.

There should be some criteria to consider news “Breaking news” which should be strictly followed and abided by. If the media doesn’t do so, very soon no one would be interested in checking what’s the breaking news.

Unlike in earlier times, wherein "breaking news" was considered something as very significant, the phrase has lost its significance over time and in the near future it will never be taken seriously.

So let’s use this phrase wisely and not deprive it from it’s meaning.

Topic given by: TM Kavitha

Erudite Roulette: Just an Ambivert - TM Manoj Guru, Mysore Toastmasters

Hey You! You are an ambivert man.
When I used to hear the comment above, I started to think about types of personalities, Personalities can be categorized in many ways. Psychological theories say that it can be categorized into three types.  Extrovert, Introvert and Ambivert.
Extroversion tends to be manifested in outgoing, talkative, energetic behavior. Extroversion is the state of primarily obtaining gratification from outside oneself. Extroverts tend to enjoy human interactions and to be enthusiastic, talkative, assertive, and gregarious. They take pleasure in activities that involve large social gatherings, such as parties, community activities, public demonstrations, and business or political groups. They tend to be energized when around other people, and they are more prone to boredom when they are by themselves.
Whereas introversion is manifested in more reserved and solitary behavior. Introverts are typically perceived as more reserved or reflective.
Introverts often take pleasure in solitary activities such as reading, writing, using computers, hiking and fishing. The archetypal artist, writer, sculptor, engineer, composer and inventor are all highly introverted. An introvert is likely to enjoy time spent alone and find less reward in time spent with large groups of people, though they may enjoy interactions with close friends.

The psychological character in between extroversion and introversion is Ambiversion. Although many people view being introverted or extroverted as mutually exclusive, most contemporary trait theories measure levels of extroversion-introversion as part of a single, continuous dimension of personality, with some scores near one end, and others near the half-way mark. An ambivert is moderately comfortable with groups and social interaction, but also relishes time alone, away from a crowd.
Below are some signs to identify oneself as an ambivert.
1. Your friends have a hard time classifying you as an introvert or an extrovert
2. Your energy isn’t drained when you’re alone, nor do you feel exhausted after lots of socialization (or maybe you tend to be drained by both equally)
3. You are usually satisfied with your weekend plans
4. During conversations you know when to keep quiet and when to talk, and you do them both relatively easily
5. You are emotionally stable during a concert, a yoga session and everything in between
6. You don’t relate completely with posts about introverts and extroverts
7. You can’t empathize with people who are not able to sit through loud social gatherings or are uncomfortable with time spent alone
8. You meet more people who are like you
9. You are shy or stable and hence mistaken about your introvert or extravert status.
When I am called as an ambivert, I went through the test with all the above questions. I could see myself in all of the above, except the fourthlh one. So far I have never able to shut my mouth…. LOL
Being an ambivert I have always enjoyed togetherness, fun with people, loved reading into the personalities of people, found it exciting to lead a team, have been comfortable sharing my thoughts and feelings with fellow members. During travel, I have guided and supported teammates.
Nevertheless, I am not taken aback when I don’t see soulmates around me. I even enjoy reading a book alone in a dense forest, going on a trek to the top of a hill alone, playing a video game, thinking deep and being a researcher. During travel alone, I learnt a lot as a wanderer.
So to summarize I could engage my body and mind equally both when I am alone and when I am with company.
Enjoy both being public and being alone.

Thanks to:
Wikipedia, Forbes.com, The psychology-Influence of persuasion by Robert.

Topic by TM Shriya

Erudite Roulette: Winter is Coming - TM Ilavenil, Mysore Toastmasters

“Winter is coming!” Papa Hamster shouted at his children. “Be quick with that food, Anka! Quick, with those feathers, Cobb!” Little Anka hurried to him and handed her over her load, and Papa Hamster put it in their food storage hollow. Mama Hamster was getting feather beds ready for the family. As soon as the ravens announced winter, the family would snuggle into their little den. But till then, Anka had to endure her father! “Anka, don't just stand there,” he said, right on cue. “Winter is coming!”

They worked till nightfall, and were back the next morning. But to their surprise, some of the food in the hollow had disappeared! Mama and Papa Hamster paced the floor, wrung their hands and scurried all over the den! But there was nothing to do, except fill it again!

Little Anka wanted to find out what had happened to the food. That night, she slowly slipped away from their summer home to the winter den, and kept watch. Suddenly the Earth began to shake! As Anka watched, the food in the hole started to disappear! She ran out to investigate. She could see lights far away, and there was a huge thing moving ponderously. As it moved away, the shaking stopped.

Anka went back into the den and pulled out the food from the hollow. There was a little hole in the bottom! Anka had solved the case!

When Anka told her parents, they were cross, but they were also impressed.

“Father, what was that thing?” Anka asked. “You were born in the summer, you've never known anything else.” her father said, stroking Anka's head. “In the winter, the humans drive huge trucks. And sometimes, the humans from them come into the forest!” The childrens' eyes grew wide in horror.

“You know,” Mama Hamster added, “before they built the wall? The humans used to come here all the time. And animals used to get hit by their big trucks!”

The children were scared, and when the ravens finally came to announce Winter, were more than glad to go into a torpor. Anka awoke one day to eat, and heard a strange noise. She carefully crept out of the den, carrying a stick in her mouth. If anyone harmed her, she could “stick them with the pointy end,” as her cousin Lon had told her.

To her horror, she found a group of humans sitting around a fire very close to the den. One of them had something glowing on its lap. Anka crept close to it, and saw that the box on the human's lap had more tiny humans inside!

And as she watched, one of the little humans in the box said something! Anka ran back to the den in shock. Later that winter, when she and her sister Tansa were both awake, Anka told her the whole story. “What did the little human say?” Tansa asked, her voice a low whisper. Anka whispered back, “Winter is Coming!”

Topic given by: TM Arjun

Erudite Roulette: Being Super Awesome - TM Kavitha, Mysore Toastmasters

I don't need to tell you that writers and Toastmasters sometimes get ideas which practical-minded individuals regard as chimerical.

Aaah! ..... The Meta Mind!

The one place when you rise above all. YES! That's what it is to be Super Awesome..... literally humbled by the vastness you perceive from that perspective position.

That state which lets you be all inclusive and all exclusive. Well, being super awesome is beyond words....it's an experience! 

Awesomeness is an abstract noun....subjectively expressed as an adjective in superlative.... a momentary figment of connect that we make with someone. An ability to identify ourselves with someone or identify someone with ourselves. That point when no barriers exist in the expression of admiration. 

"Hey ! You are awesome.... Indeed Super Awesome!!"

I receive this compliment as often as the Sun rises in the east. How do I feel!? I instantly hear the bubble of ego go POP! 

Well, It is just the connect that matters then.

Topic given by: TM Nawab