"Team Building" - Motivational Speech by RID Dr Bharat Pandya on Oct 4, 2020.

Motivational Speech on Team Building by RID Dr. Bharat Pandya III Meet of SMILE Presidents (RY 2021-22)

“*SMILE* Presidents” I think this is really really apt and fitting name. The best way to connect with each other. I believe Mayuresh that today the most important thing in this crises situation is for us to remain connected to one another and the best way to remain connected to one another is with the means of a SMILE. So that’s a very apt name. Congratulation for choosing such a nice name for your team and for your presidents, the SMILE presidents, and Rotary family of 3142. I just wanted to request you that if you have not, please appoint a district chair for our project “positive health” also, because that is an ongoing project and that is probably you will realize that this pandemic if it has taught us one lesson it is the lesson of good health. So I request to you that please appoint, because that is our ongoing project, not just for this year but for next year and for the years to come.

Let me compliment Governor Sandeep before he goes away for really in this crisis situation providing good leadership to the district 3142. I have been to 3142 on numerous occasions in the last three months and I have found that Sandeep is really providing good leadership. In this situation, I don't want to go into all those achievements, but all those meetings, all those activities, the service project are still on and I think that is the perfect example Sandeep that you always believed that Rotary should not stop working. Rotary cannot stop working and Rotary will not stop working. So, congratulations to you Sandeep for the good leadership that you are providing to the district.

Let me tell all the SMILE presidents, let me reiterate what PDG Venkat has just said. All of you are very lucky. The SMILE presidents, you are very lucky because Page 1 of 12

you are going to lead in the year when the person who is going to be the helm of R otary International is going to be an Indian the President Elect Shekhar Mehta and more importantly or equally importantly your district leader in 2021-22 is going to be Dr Mayuresh Warke.

I have keenly observed Mayuresh Warke now for more than almost 20 years and we started interacting more closely in 2004-05 when Mayuresh was the president of RC Amarnath and I was the District Secretary. So the last 16 years, I have really observed his progress, his journey in Rotary and I can tell you with fullest confidence that Mayuresh is an all-rounder Rotarian. A person who is steeped in Rotary values, who is steeped in Rotary service. I really compliment to you Mayuresh ; hats off to you for remembering Dr Joy Patankar and giving the name of your team as TEAM JOY. That really speaks volumes of your thinking positively and thinking in the right direction and remembering friends. Because ultimately in the final analysis, I think one of the best gifts that Rotary has given us is the friends that Rotary has given us. Mayuresh is the one who has done such outstanding work in so many areas of service, the polio corrective surgeries and many other areas. He is one of the few persons who ‘not being a past governor’ is the recipient of the Service Above Self award from Rotary International. So please believe me that I mean what I say when I say that you all are very lucky that you have Dr Mayuresh Warke as your leader in 3142 for the year 2021-22.

Life is a series of experiences, each one of which makes us Bigger, Better & Bolder. The more varied the experiences the richer is our life … better is our life. One such experience is becoming the President of a Rotary club. It is an honor and privilege to be a Rotarian, friends.

As you all know Rotary membership is by the invitation only, so “it is an honor and privilege to be a Rotarian. But it is a great honor and not so common privilege to be a President of a Rotary club”. A privilege which is only given to 35,000 people out of the 1.12 million Rotarians who are there only 35000 Rotarians have this privilege every year. All of you are here today, because you have been chosen. You are the chosen few. So you are the chosen few chosen by the 91 clubs of RI District 3142. Your club has put its faith and trust in you friends and therefore believe me that each one of you has a special responsibility of fulfilling that faith and trust that the club has put in you.

When I was the president of my Rotary club in 1993-94, Robert Barth was the President of Rotary International and he always used to say that the Rotary pin must show its say about the wearer of the rotary pin.

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The rotary pin should convey to the others that the wearer of the Rotary pin is saying “You can rely on me, I am dependable. I am available. I give more than I take”. These words apply to each and every Rotarian but they have a special meaning for the President of Rotary Club.

What is your aim as the president of your club? Let me ask you this question. I know in this meeting, it’s difficult to get answers so let me provide some answers. I am sure your aim is to provide good leadership, is to have a good year, is to make your club vibrant and effective. If it is vibrant and effective, then make it more vibrant and more effective in your year. To do better then what has been done before to fulfill all the goals and priorities which you have set for yourself or which you will set for yourself, to be satisfied and contented, and very importantly don't forget that one of your goals should also be, to groom more leaders. The true Hallmark of a great leader is not that he builds more followers but he builds more leaders. So, one of your goals as a President is to groom more leaders.

How are you going to achieve that?

I believe that the secret of achieving all these goals are the 3Cs and 1T. What are these 3Cs? The first C is Commitment.

It is commitment which translates any promise into reality. Commitment means identifying the right thing to do, identifying the job that is assigned to you and then doing the right thing, fulfilling that job in spite of difficulties, in spite of challenges. I always believe that there comes a special moment in a person's life… a moment for which that person joins Rotary. When he or she seizes that moment -that can become their finest hour and let me tell you friends that your finest hour is going to start on 1st July 2021. Today the Rotary is where it is because of the commitment and the perfect example of commitment is our Polio programs. Was it not for the commitment of Rotarians, the Rotary leadership, the family of rotary would now, not have been this close to eradicating polio. So, the first thing you need to have is the commitment to the job which is entrusted to you, which is assigned to you.

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The second C is Competence.

Being a Rotary president requires a certain set of skills. You may have those skills, fine. You may not have the skills- do not worry if you feel that you don't have what it takes to be a successful president. Nobody is born a leader.

Leaders are made they are not born. There is a false notion that leaders are born. The perfect example is Abraham Lincoln. You all know that Abraham Lincoln failed numerous times in his business, in his profession. He ran for Vice President of America and he failed till he became President and today Lincoln is remembered as one of the greatest leaders in the American history or even the world's best President. So successful leaders are learners and that is why this program is there- Your third president-elect meet then there will be a Pre-Pet, there will be PETs and you will wonder why this training again, and again and again friends. The importance of this training is to make each president of each 91 clubs have almost the similar level of knowledge similar level of information and similar level of trainings. Remember do not be ashamed if you don't know something, do not be ashamed to ask questions. There is an old saying as “He who knows others, is Learned-he who knows himself, is truly wise” and I want that all the SMILE presidents of Mayuresh Warke must become wise presidents. If you are competent, nobody can expect …even I can not claim to be competent in each and every field and activity of rotary friends. There is always scope for learning. Put your best foot forward and claim that confidence.

The third C is Confidence.

Commitment is necessary, competency is vital, but the third C is most important… Confidence. Confidence in your abilities, confidence in yourself to provide that leadership which your club deserves. I always believe that if I believe that I cannot do something- I will not be able to do it but when I believe that I can do something, I will acquire the ability to do it even if I do not have the ability in the first place friends. Each one of you needs to develop that “I can & I will” spirit. Your commitment and your competency will give you that confidence but the thing which will give you the most confidence is what I told you about the one T and that T is if your Team friends.

TEAM- It is your team which will really give you the confidence that you can deliver the results, you can reach the goals that you have set for yourself.

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Dr Michael DeBakey, one of the most famous cardiac surgeons that the world has produced was asked by a reporter “Sir, how many hearts you have held in your hands in your 40 years of career?” and he answered “More than 50000!”

Now Mayuresh you will agree with me when I say that 50000 heart operations in 40 years is almost an impossible task. It means that he should have been doing 5 - 6 operations everyday day after day without a single break which is humanly impossible, but we have seen him working. He had a central room which lead into 5 ORs -operating rooms or operation theatres as we call them.

5 surgeries would go on simultaneously. Dr DeBakey would go from room to room, performing the most critical part, and leaving the rest to his team and he always used to say that my team is not just my assistant cardiac surgeons it's not the junior doctors it is not theatre assistants and the nurses alone even the sweeper who sweeps the floor of my theatres or operating rooms …that person is also an important part of the team because if he/she does not do a good job, then there would be infection and my results would not be good friends and the surgeries would not be successful.

You as the Presidents have to go from committee to committee, do the most critical part and delegate the rest of things to your team members, friends and therefore it is very very important and this is the perfect time when Mayuresh asked me to talk something about “team building” because come November and December you will all be forming your teams.

Who is your team friends?

The club secretary, the Treasure, the directors, the board of directors, the directors of the club, the committee chairman who else the past presidents of your club all the members of your club your extended Rotary family , Rotaract interact who else the community you serve is also a part of your team your partner organizations, the beneficiaries they are all part of your team who else? The district team led by your district Governor Mayuresh Warke, the assistant governor, the trainer, the secretary, the service chairs, the Avenue chairs… they are all part of your teams.

So let's divide them into two. The secretary, treasure, board of directors, and the chairmen are Part I and the rest are Part II. Your part II you do not have much control; you do not have much say. The past presidents are already there in your club, the members are already there in your club, the community is already there, the district team is already formed by Mayuresh and his advisers and the people close to him…. but you will definitely have a say in the part I so choose your team carefully because choosing the right team Page 5 of 12

can make a critical difference between average success and great success. I have no doubt in my mind that with Mayuresh’s leadership and direction and guidance, each president will be successful but I want each president of all the 91 clubs to have great success and not just the average success. Believe me friends, that I mean it when I say that the success of your district 3142 in 2021-22 does not depend on what the board of directors sitting in Evanston or President Shekhar Mehta will do and Mayuresh with apologies to you, it also does not depend on what Mayuresh Warke or his team is going to do at the district level… the success depends on each one of your presidents are going to you in your 91 clubs friends.

Therefore, choose your team with care.

Remember, there are so many different committees, activities and avenues in the club. There are two types of avenues or committees which we can call them. I call them the “Must Work” committees and the “Can Work” committees.

“Must work” and “Can work” What are these “Must work” committees? The secretary is “Must work”, the treasurer is “Must work” your 3 or 4 people who are close to you, you want to call them “Core Team” or “Apex Team” whatever you want to call them, whom you look to for guidance ..they could be past presidents, they could be somebody else, they are “Must work”. Your membership is a “Must work”.

Foundation is a “Must work”. Service projects is a “Must work” committee friends and of course fellowship committee is a “Must work” committee.

This does not mean that the other committees are not important friends but if these committees. “Must work” committees do not function …then you are heading for trouble for your club and for yourself.

These “Must work” committees have got to functions.

Your aim is to choose the right people for these must work committees and in a minute we will come to whom do you look for when you want to choose your teammates. To choose the right people for these “Must work” committees of course, choose also the right people for the “Can work” committees and what is your aim and what should your aim be.

Your aim should be to make the “Can work” committees into the “Must work committees. If out of the other 5 or 10 “Can work” committees, even 25 or to 30% of the committees can be converted into “Must work” committees, I assure your success of the year will be beyond comparison.

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Remember the Pareto principle which applies to every organization including Rotary, the 20/80 or 80/20 principle. 20% of the people do 80% of the work 20% of your priorities will give 80% of your results. So choose your team with care.

Your aim should be to convert the “Can work” committees into the “Must work” committees.

Where will you find this? Of course in your club! Where else will you find the people to man the committees and the avenues of services. When you identifying people, look for leaders “L E A D E R S” What do I mean by LEADERS ?

“L”- Rotarians who have demonstrated LEADERSHIP in a particular field.

A person who has brought in some new members into the club in the last two, three, four years and demonstrated outstanding leadership in certain avenues… get them as Membership Chair.

“E”-Rotarians with professional EXPERTISE in the field. I know it sounds a cliché.. but maybe a doctor for your medical service, may be a lawyer for your Legal Aid committee, who have professional expertise in a particular field, a person who is expert in water & sanitation could be your water and sanitation chair.

“A”-Rotarians who have a history of ACTION. As a told you about the Pareto Principle, 20% of the people will be active and 80% will be inactive…. I think Rotary is fortunate that we don't have the 20/80 but we have at least 40/60.

40% of the Rotarians are active and 60% or not active. So, look for people who have history of action, who will just not keep on talking and make empty promises but who will also deliver the results. I always believe that “A well done is always better than well said”.

“D”-Rotarians who are DECISIVE and innovative. Who know what needs to be done and will take charge innovate and implement it. Of course they will you at the President in the loop but for small things they will not keep on running to the President. They will take the decisions themselves and implement.

“E”-Rotarians who have past experience. Here we will talk about the past presidents who have past experience.

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“R”- Rotarians who are RESOURCEFUL and RELIABLE. Every president needs this type of Rotarians who are resourceful and who are reliable Because without resources you cannot implement the work of rotary friends and reliable- that means if I tell Ashish Ganguly something or Mayuresh Warke something.. or Mohan Chandavarkar something; I know that I can go back home and sleep because I know that it will be implemented when the task is given to them. Rotarians have to be reliable.

The last one “S” is most important- Rotarians who are SELF-MOTIVATED. You motivate them once and that is enough. You don’t have to keep on motivating them again and again and again. Remember the most selfmotivated people, most self-motivated person in your entire team is Yourself as the President friends.

So choose your team with care. Don't appoint only people who are friendly to you to important positions. When you are the president of a club, you are leader of the club. The whole club is your team and not just your friends. Of course, it is important to have your friends with you because you know you can rely on them but don't just appoint your friends to the key position if you feel that otherwise they are not suitable.

Remember to give opportunity to newer members. Don't pack your board with past presidents and I can say this with the fullest confidence because when I become my past president after became IPP of my club and I am not taking credit, my club decided …and I am talking about 1994-95 …from that time my club decided ..there will be no president who will serve as the board of director of my club- the Rotary Club of Borivali. For last 26 years, no past president served as director of Rotary Club of Borivali. Unless you give newer people an opportunity to come in the leadership position, how will you groom leaders? Remember, it is very important to groom leaders and followers as I said.

The past presidents- so many times you will criticize them and complain about them but remember they too have served your club with dedication and devotion over the years. Treat them with respect. Give them little bit of recognition and appreciation. Recognize their commitments which they have given to the club. Treat them with tact as we say TLC, tender loving care.

Treat them with tact and tender lover care and I am sure they will become an asset to you, and they will advise you in the right manner.

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If still doesn't work out, then ask Mayuresh then ask Mayuresh to take them in district.

Remember in the next 20 months, you are going to join the rank of the past presidents. So at the end of the 20 months, somebody is going to complain about you. So, you stop complaining..3 you start this process of stopping complaining about the past presidents and I am sure that process will carry on over the years.

Of course having chosen the team it is not enough just to choose the team, it is important for you to evaluate them whether they have the knowledge to do the task which you have assigned to them, whether they have the skills and expertise and weather they have the desire to that ad how do u make them knowledgeable, give them the skill and expertise, and ignite that desire and this is only possible by training friends.

Therefore I recommend that of course encourage all your team members to attend the district training programs but more importantly, you must have your “club training program�.

My request to you Mayuresh and to you Ashes as the district trainer, that one of the issues for Rotary is that training in rotary remains at the international level. There is training for the president elect also of the Rotary International. I mean when I say this. There is orientation and training for board of directors; 3 full days, whole days at Evanston is done. There is training for the governor elects. There is training for the presidents. There supposed to be training for the chairs; but somehow it does not filer down. Of course it happens at some places at the club level but it has to go down to the club level.

Therefore Mayuresh and Ashes please ensure this training because there is so much change which is happening in Rotary. The new Vision statement of Rotary, the new strategic plan of Rotary. the grant structure of Rotary. Everything is changing, every six months things are changing. The DEI - Diversity, Equity, and Inclusiveness statement of Rotary international; the harassment policy which Rotary has‌I think all of us need to know about this and that is only possibly by training friends.

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Keep an open mind my friends. To president, I am telling you ”keep open mind”. All things will be good if we keep an open mind. So train your team. Give them responsibility and authority. Do not keep all the authorities to yourself. Give your team responsibility and authority and also give them responsibility, authority, and appreciation in front of your team. If somebody does a good job do not wait for the Governor’s visit to appreciate the good job. Appreciate it at that time also, but appreciation done at the right moment is the best recognition which you can give to the people friends. So appreciate and recognize the efforts which your team members put in.

You know Lao Tzu used to say “The wicked leader is he who the people despise. The good leader is he who the people follow but the truly wise leader is the one who when his/her work is done, the people will say, 'We did it ourselves.'

That is the true measure of a leader, and I want Mayuresh that all your SMILE presidents should truly be known as the wise presidents. And that is possible if they build a good team. If you have some issues, not issues per say but some questions, some doubts about team formation, I know the district team headed by Mayuresh, Ashes, your Vice Governor Mohan and everybody, they are ready to help you in whatever each and every way you require their help. So build a good team and I think you are on the way to success. Of course you have to encourage your team to attend all the training events but the most important thing friends, when a person wants to join the team, he looks for one thing and he looks for the leader of the team. As a leader, as a president, what do you need to develop for yourself?

You know friends, if you really want to be good in something, you need to have a PHD in that subject. If you want to be a good president, an outstanding president, you also need to have a PHD in leadership and PHD in Rotary.

What is this PHD? The “P” is Passion. Passion for the job that you have got friends. Do things with energy, enthusiasm, and passion. Give yourself that one degree more advantage.

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What is that one degree more advantage I am talking about?

Let me give you an example. Take two bowls of water. In one, the water is at 990 and another bowl is at 1000. If I put my finger in either of them, my finger will get burned; but there is a crucial difference between the two. At 990 water is water; at 1000 it is converted into steam and that steam is powerful enough to run a steam engine which can put a whole train moving people. So that is the 10 advantage I am talking about and passion will give you that 10 advantage.

The “H” is Hunger. Hunger to be successful, that I want to become the best president in district 3142. I want my club to be the best club in district 3142. That hunger is necessary if you want to become successful.

The “H” also stands for Humility. Remember, you are a leader of other people who are also leaders. Let me share with you lines from ancient texts, the tree which bears the most fruits is one whose branches are bent to the ground. So lead people with humility, courtesy, and kindness.

The “D” stands for Discipline. You have to have the discipline to stay the course during the year, to keep doing things again, and again, and again.

So remember that PHD-Passion, Hunger & Humility, and Discipline.

If you inculcate that PHD, then you become leader of the team and your team become successful and you become successful.

So, let me end with the words of Ella Wheeler Wilcox, American writer and poetess.

“There are two kinds of people in this world: Not the good and bad. Cause it is well known that the good are half bad and the bad are half good” The two kinds of people in this world are people who lean on others and people who lift others” I know, Mayuresh is a lifter and under Mayuresh’s leadership all of you are going to be lifters.

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Lift yourself little high, lift your team a little higher, so that you leave behind a legacy of a great year a SMILING year.

The torch of leadership my fiends is going to be passed on to your hands, on 1st of July 2021 and it is going to be your turn to write a new chapter in the history of your club. Make that chapter a good chapter, hold the torch a little bit higher, let it burn little bit brighter. I always believe that you can only live once but if you live well and if you live right, once is enough. You are going to be the president only once. Do it well, do it right, and once is enough.

--<All the very best all of you. Thank you very much>-(Extract as spoken by RID Dr. Bharat Pandya)

-Edited & Published by Team GML & Publications for SMILE year (RY 2021-22)

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