EloQuence Eloquence—The Quarterly Newsletter of Doha Toastmasters Club
SEPTEMBER 2016
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QUARTERLY NEWSLETTER OF DOHA TOASTMASTERS CLUB
CLUB 7128, AREA 28 DIVISION E, DISTRICT 20
ESSENTIAL PEOPLE SKILLS OUR LEADERS KNOW YOUR EXCOM TMs SMILE WITH TMs
TOASTMASTER TRAVELS
KNOW YOUR MENTOR DISTRICT TLI CHAIR ON MENTORING
AREA DIRECTOR’S MESSAGE CHAT WITH TM ADAM
MEMBER’S MUSINGS
EASY SPEAK SOFTWARE
SEPTEMBER 2016
DOHA TOASTMASTERS The First Toastmasters Club of Qatar
Eloquence—The Quarterly Newsletter of Doha Toastmasters Club
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DOHA TOASTMASTERS CLUB DOHA, QATAR
Meeting Venue: Topaz Hall, Holiday Villa Hotel, C Ring Road, Al Muntazah Meeting Time 7—9:30 pm, 1st and 3rd Saturdays
THE TEAM PUBLISHER TM Abdul Nassar P
EDITOR President
TM Niloufer Samal
Abdul Nassar P Vice President Education Sandeep Kinge Vice President Membership
PHOTOGRAPHY TM Sandeep Kinge Internet Sources
Chandrashekhar Dudhe
ART DIRECTION
Vice President Public Relations
TM Niloufer Samal
Niloufer Samal Secretary Sandhya Premchand Treasurer Afajal Ahamad Sergeant –At– Arms Nagaraja Sekar Mannen Immediate Past President Yoosaf Vannarath Visit us at www.dohatoastmasters.org www.facebook.com/groups/dohatoastmasters
SEPTEMBER 2016
GRAPHIC DESIGN TM Niloufer Samal
GUIDANCE TM Yoosaf Vanarath TM Abdul Nassar P TM Sandeep Kinge Eloquence is the newsletter published by Doha Toastmasters Club, Doha, Qatar. This newsletter is published for internal circulation among the members of Doha Toastmasters Club and to promote the ideas and goals of Toastmasters International. The publisher or the editor does not take responsibility for the authenticity of the articles or opinions of the authors published. Toastmasters International and its logos are trademarks.
Eloquence—The Quarterly Newsletter of Doha Toastmasters Club
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From the Editor’s Desk
INTERVIEWS Know your Mentor Know your Fellow Toastmaster
12 ARTICLES
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Essential People Skills
MESSAGES
Let’s not lose sight of things which can wait
From the Area Director From the President From the VP Education From the VP Membership From the IP President
Tired? Learn to rest, not quit Toastmaster and the Brexit
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NEWS Doha Gavels elects Excom Awards and Accolades Our Champions Education Awards In the Print Media SEPTEMBER 2016
FEATURES Our Leaders Know your Excom HUMOR Our New Members Smile Please Toastmaster Travels TMs smile with TMs Members Musings
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Eloquence—The Quarterly Newsletter of Doha Toastmasters Club
DOHA TOASTMASTERS
Felicitations
WHERE LEADERS ARE MADE
Toastmasters International Mission We empower individuals to become more effective communicators and leaders.
Toastmasters International Values
Integrity
Respect
Service
Excellence
Club Mission We provide a supportive and positive learning experience in which members are empowered to develop communication and leadership skills, resulting in greater self-confidence and personal growth.
A Toastmasters Promise As a member of Toastmasters International and my club I promise
To attend club meetings regularly
To prepare all my speech and leadership projects to the best of my ability, basing them on projects in the Competent Communication and Competent Leadership manuals.
To prepare for and fulfil meeting assignments
To provide fellow members with helpful, constructive evaluations.
To help the club maintain the positive, friendly environment necessary for all members to learn and grow.
To serve my club as an officer when called upon to do so.
To treat my fellow club members and our guests with respect and courtesy
To bring guests to club meetings so they can see the benefits Toastmasters membership offers
To adhere to the guidelines and rules for all Toastmasters education and recognition programs.
To maintain honest and highly ethical standards during the conduct of all Toastmasters activities.
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Eloquence—The Quarterly Newsletter of Doha Toastmasters Club
FROM THE EDITOR’S DESK TM Niloufer Samal, Vice President Public Relation.
Dear Toastmasters, It is with immense pleasure and pride I present before you the first issue of “Eloquence” for the term 2016-17. “Eloquence” the newsletter of Doha Toastmasters Club, carries a long and illustrious history on its shoulders. Right from the days it was printed on paper to its current digital form, it has enjoyed a steady and loyal readership. Not only members of Doha Club, but toastmasters all over Qatar, eagerly await its release. So it is with a deep sense of responsibility to fulfil my duty as a toastmaster, I put forward my maiden foray in the world of newsletters. At Toastmasters we believe in learning ---learning public speaking and leadership skills – And the best part is we learn by doing. An added blessing in this learning process are the committed guides and mentors. And I was lucky to have not one or two but three accomplished toastmasters to guide me every step of the way. I express my special thanks to IPP TM Yoosaf Vanarath, President TM Abdul Nassar P and Vice President Education TM Sandeep Kinge for their help and support in making this newsletter. A club is nothing but a group of members with similar goals and objectives. It is the individual member that is the heartbeat of the club. I have endeavoured to give every member a value-added newsletter experience. The cover story of this issue is the interview with Dr Sampath Sowrirajan, DTM. His insights into mentor-mentee relationship are enlightening. Another highpoint of this issue is the article by District Finance Manager and mentor to our club Rajeshwar Sundaresan, DTM. His tips on people skills will be a ready guide for aspiring leaders and managers. Also we have an article contributed by Kim Barrit, the maker of Easy Speak Software. And of course, a dash of humour is always welcome. Flip through the pages and a surprise awaits you. Dear Readers, if you want to upgrade your personal skills and accelerate your career, become a more effective leader or a more powerful communicator, discover new opportunities or simply find more inspiration DOHA TOASTMASTERS CLUB IS YOUR DESTINATION. Wherever learning flourishes, so do people!
SEPTEMBER 2016
Eloquence is the painting of thoughts. -Blaise Pascal
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Eloquence—The Quarterly Newsletter of Doha Toastmasters Club
Felicit ations
Area Director’s Message Ja In the past two decades, Toastmasters in Qatar has seen numerous changes, one of which is a recent increase in the number of Divisions from the solitary one of 1996 when it all began, to a quaternion as of today.
The Doha Toastmasters Club holds the uncontestable position of being the first Toastmasters Club of Qatar. And what’s equally uncontestable is the fact that year upon year upon year, Doha Club has been winning accolades and attention from aspiring as well as established toastmasters. Reason enough to pat your back. Accomplishments of such magnitude are only possible with the support of members and the leaders who ‘motivaluate’ them. Here comes the action (of the executive committee) that pros-
Motivalute
Team spirit
pers into success. Member success contributes to team success. Take a cue from that. And the flag shall continue to fly high. I take this opportunity to congratulate the members of Doha Club for having selected a prime set of leaders for the ensuing year who are already showing the required bent to reach the pin-
nacle. Together. I also take this opportunity to urge the ExCom to identify untapped talent in the club, nurture them to keep the legacy going and growing. As Area Director, my strategy will be to work closely with the club leaders and keep them motivated at all times and remain a via media with the District leadership through the Division Director.
In other words, I shall pass on all commendable exploits of the club to the Division and District leadership and in turn delight in the added jewels in your crown.
SEPTEMBER 2016
Quality over quantity
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Eloquence—The Quarterly Newsletter of Doha Toastmasters Club
PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE Abdul Nassar P, ACB, ALB Dear Fellow Members of Doha Club, ‘Excellent Firms don’t believe in excellence only in constant improvement and constant change’ Tom Peters, Management Guru.
It is with great humility and a sense of responsibility, I accept the prestigious post of the President of Doha Toastmasters Club, the first and the oldest club in Doha. It is also a matter of great pride for me. I joined the toastmasters fraternity four years ago and I have gained immensely from this movement. I would like to acknowledge TM Girish Jain who introduced me to toastmasters and TM Anil Nair who persuaded me to join Doha Club, my very first mentor, the sweet evaluator, TM Eswaran Natarajan, and my current mentor, DTM Rajeshwar Sundaresan. It is with their guidance and support I have been able to reach where I am today. As the President, I am committed to serve all members of the club and share and give back all that I have gained. Let me share my thoughts on vision, mission and values for the club for the toastmaster term 2016-17. I believe in going back to the basics, strengthen ourselves from the roots. Every member joins the club for their own reasons. We are here to support and encourage every member achieve their self set goals for improving their public speaking and leadership skills. We want to see every member turn into a good, confident public speaker and leader, but more importantly we want every member happy and contended. This better member experience will be achieved by continuous improvement of the club climate, the way the club functions. Our Mission is to support members to achieve their educational goals. 1. We plan to open a two way communication channel with the members. We will get to know your one year goals 2. The club in turn will be preparing a meeting calendar with educational modules, themes and events. 3. We will be scheduling meeting slots and roles in advance for the next 3 months. This will be done thru google forms until we implement TMI Easy Speak software, which is in the pipeline and expected to roll out by mid of this term. 4. The key strength of Doha Club is identified as the vast pool of experienced and proficient DTMs and veteran members. Members will be encouraged to engage continuously with their mentors in order to get maximum benefits. We
SEPTEMBER 2016
Support Members Goals
Open two way communicati on channel
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Eloquence—The Quarterly Newsletter of Doha Toastmasters Club
PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE Abdul Nassar P, ACB, ALB will be strengthening the mentoring program further this year by various new initiatives. 5. Also another area identified is the induction and orientation of new members. In addition to the formal induction ceremony new members will be gently guided to take their first steps in the club.
I would like to share the 10 areas we have identified to continuously improve our club climate. 1. Guidance Committee has been already formed. DTM Rajeshwar has kindly agreed to chair the committee. The members are DTM Virendranath, TM Jayakumar Menon and TM Yoosaf Vanarath. 2. We will also form a subcommittee to enable smooth and uninterrupted functioning of the club. 3. All your valuable suggestions in the Member Survey will be acted upon. 4. Development of standard forms and templates for day to day functioning of the club. 5. Ensuring full compliance with the Constitution and TMI rules. 6. Professional setup of meeting room. 7. Encouraging diversity in the club by enrolling members from different nationalities. 8. Actively promote the club and toastmaster movement in the Print Media and Social Media. 9. Prepare a realistic budget for the coming year. You will be glad to know, ExCom would try best not to increase the fees for the current term. 10. Celebrate the 20 th anniversary of the club. Also, I firmly standby the CORE values as enshrined in Constitution of Toastmasters International. The first and foremost is INTEGRITY which means living up to the toastmasters promise. Next, RESPECT which means understanding that each member is unique with their own skill sets, abilities, goals, strengths weaknesses and ambitions. SERVICE which means stepping up when required to help the club and its members. EXCELLENCE means performing assigned duties to the best our ability every single time. You will be glad to know that the slogan for EXCOM 2016-17 is to RISE UP for CONTINUOS IMPROVEMENT of our club. Expecting your continuous support and feel free to provide your suggestions for further improvement of OUR club to new heights. Wish you all the best to achieve your toastmaster goals set for this year
SEPTEMBER 2016
Implementation of Easy Speak software
Strengthen Mentoring
Promote Multicultural Diversity
RISE UP for continuous Improvement
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Eloquence—The Quarterly Newsletter of Doha Toastmasters Club
VICE PRESIDENT EDUCATION’S MESSAGE Sandeep Kinge CC,ALB Dear Fellow Club Members, I remember my first few days of early morning walk. I used to set my alarm at 3:30am. While getting up at 3:30am, I used to hear a voice “Sandeep, take rest today, you can start walking from tomorrow”. This was not my wife; it was my mind. I used to succeed in blocking these thoughts from my mind and listen to only positive thoughts instead. I continued morning walk since last 3 months without any break and I started enjoying energy filled days and lighter body with lot of confidence. This is what happens when we take every day decisions in our life. Most of the times, we tend to accept the negative thoughts which become barrier to our growth. When I went to first toastmasters meeting as a guest, there were many such negative thoughts in my mind that made me hesitant to join the club, especially my fear of public speaking. I ignored all of those thoughts and immediately joined toastmasters club in Vashi, Navi Mumbai. I still remember, I had 35 Ahs in my Ice Breaker speech however I improved a lot in the next project speeches which built my confidence towards continuous improvement. Each meeting build confidence in me that helped me improve my career and social life. In fact, toastmasters helped me challenge myself to be different and taught me how to conquer the negative thoughts by listening to others experiences. It is an outstanding learning experience and I believe you all must be thinking on the same lines. Now, when my alarm beeps, I get out of the bed and go for walking, making sure not to miss a single day. No negative thought can stop me from doing my duty – a great lesson learned from toastmasters. Similarly, you can also start taking various roles in our club meetings proactively and keep learning in the toastmasters’ journey. Wishing You All the Best!
SEPTEMBER 2016
For Every Positive Thought, there is an Equal and Opposite Negative Thought
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Eloquence—The Quarterly Newsletter of Doha Toastmasters Club
VICE PRESIDENT MEMBERSHIP’S MESSAGE TM Chandrashekhar Dudhe “To communicate effectively, we must realise that we all are different in the way we perceive the world and use this understanding as a guide to our communication to others” -Tony Robbins It is with immense pleasure, I welcome you all as VP Membership for new term 2016-2017. I feel that Toastmasters is a remarkable place not only to improve your communication and leadership skills but also to improve your attitude and approach towards personal and professional life. At every meeting of Doha Toastmasters, we experience the fascinating advancements in our learning process. It is possible only because of friendly, professional and healthy learning environment as well as outstanding & caring mentorship programme in the our club. I joined Toastmasters International only a few months ago. When I took charge as VP membership, I felt, before completion of my training and probation period the organisation had promoted me as VP. This can happen only in Toastmasters. One month experience as VP membership was amazing and even more amazing was the learning. I am enjoying my responsibility by not only following up inactive members, potential members and guests but also motivating them to join the Toastmasters. My general observation is that everyone wants to be a good leader and best communicator, and that’s why it does not take many efforts to convert a guest into a member as soon as he visits the club and understands the mission of Toastmasters. Whenever I talked to inactive members, I realised that they all felt they are missing an important element in their life which majorly contributes to their personal and professional growth. They again want to resume their wonderful journey at Toastmasters.
During this term our main focus is to expose our members to a multicultural environment. This can be best achieved by including members from different nationalities and diverse ethnic backgrounds. Of course our goals can only be achieved with the contribution and coordination of all existing members. I would request all members to invite your friends and colleagues to join the club and give them the opportunity to benefit from this noble organisation. I am personally committed and dedicated to providing the best possible direction and assistance to all guests and members to achieve their goals in Toastmasters. Together, we will create a vibrant, diverse, outstanding club environment for all members. Let’s invite our friends to our next Toastmasters meeting !
SEPTEMBER 2016
Encourages positive attitude
Diversify membership
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Immediate past president’s message TM Yoosaf Vannarath, CC, ALB
Felici
And just in the blink of an eye, another year has passed ! We witnessed the end of another Toastmasters year. Stepping down from the post of a President of one of the most honoured Clubs in Qatar; I realize what a lucky man I am. The journey that began just as a member and then the entry to the ExCom as Sergeant at Arms and finally as the President, it was an exhilarating experience. During the term, the club received many accolades and achievements and if I have to begin thanking, there are many. I particularly though would like to thank many leaders of the club starting with DTM Manzoor Moideen who inspired me to join Toastmasters in the year 2011. DTM Rajeswar Sundaresan, DTM Dr. M S Babu, DTM Sampath Sowrirajan, TM Jayakumar Menon, TM Anil Nair, TM Deepak Shivankar, TM Eswaran Natarajn, TM Hari Raghavan, TM Rangamani Ravi, TM Sandeep Kinge, the list continues……. for their continued support. It was great year for Doha Toastmasters club. In the beginning, we formed an advisory committee with all DTMs of the club and past presidents’ as its members. Their views were taken up in the excom minutes and an effort was made to implement the best possible methods.Doha Club has done exceedingly well at both Division and District level during 2015-16 and they are: We were able to add 36 new members to the club this year. Our VPPR did an extra mile performance and attracted many guests to attend the club meeting. Then our clever VPM converted majority of them as members. Thanks to both of them. Also our senior members were very much sincere, wherever they went they tried to bring many guests. Kudos to all! The club achieved a perfect 10 DCP on 16th Jan 2016, probably the first club in Qatar achieving the perfect 10 DCP. Doha Club was lucky to have the first runner up of World championship of public speaking, DTM Aditya Maheswaran to attend club contest and address the audience. Thanks to VPM TM Rangamani for the initiative and Area 28 Director TM Dinesh Kumar & Division E Director for the support. The sweep victory in area 28 contest and TACE winning of first runner up in Hum speech, Second runner up in Intl speech both by TM Deepak Shivankar. Thank you TM Deepak for your hard work Doha club received the best club award and membership award in TACE 2016. Also received the Best website award in TACE 2016 . First time after many years, Doha club received the following D20 PR, PQD and CGD awards PR Awards : . Captivating Communique Award.(For news letter) . Platinum Web Byte Award (For web site) Club Growth Directors Awards: Top 10 Club Award.(For membership) Three New Members (in May 16) Program Quality Directors Excellence Awards: The Club DCP Achievers Award The Perfect Ten Club Achievers Award The Club Super 7 COT Award Triple Crown (TM Rangamani Ravi) I am grateful to all the club members, senior members and especially ExCom members for taking keen interest in developing communication and leadership skills which in turn lead to these achievements. The significant support and contribution of each of the ExCom member and other members of the club are highly appreciated. Special gratitude to the Gavel counsellor TM Anil Nair who selflessly spared his valuable time in developing our future generation, yes, The Doha Gavels and Birla Gavels. This year we recognized the best contributors of the club by awarding them the Doha club President’s excellence award to encourage the club members to be engaged in the club activities and to improve mentor-mentee relations, advisory activities. Our aim through all of this was to inspire members to attend all the meetings, and also to improve team work among ExCom members. The following awards were given out during the installation ceremony on 18th June 2016 1. Doha Club President’s Excellence award for attending maximum club meetings with signature in the attendance register for the year 2015-16 : TM Mustafa Ali Sayed 2. Doha Club President’s Recognition for the mentee who best utilised the mentor for the year 2015-16 : TM Nagaraja Sekar Mannem 3. Doha Club President’s Recognition for value added service as Mentor for the year 2015-16 : DTM Dr M S Babu 4. Doha Club President’s Recognition for value added service as Club Advisor for the year 2015-16 : DTM Rajeswar Sundaresan & DTM Manzoor Moideen 5. Club President’s Excellence award for extra mile performed ExCom member in 2015-16: VPPR TM Sandeep Kinge A special thanks to the club treasurer TM Kamarudeen for making it possible to hand over a balance amount to the new exam to run few club meetings. Last but not the least, I am thankful to all the ExCom members for their relentless support and dedication to fulfil my duty as the President of the prestigious Doha Toastmasters club. Wishing the new team all the best to take the club to further height.
SEPTEMBER 2016
Eloquence—The Quarterly Newsletter of Doha Toastmasters Club
ESSENTIAL PEOPLE SKILLS Rajeshwar Sundaresan, DTM “Give the other person a fine reputation to live up to” Dale Carnegie With the advance in technology and speed of business, those who master interpersonal skills not only are a greater asset in today’s workplace but achieve greater success. Interpersonal skills include people skills as an important ingredient. What better place to improve people skills than toastmasters! Let us examine these in detail. People skills starts with assertiveness. Assertiveness means speaking up, making reasonable requests and generally insisting that individual rights be respected as significant. It is the middle ground between the two extremes of aggressiveness and passivity. To implement assertive behavior in individuals, the required elements are: 1) Summarize the facts 2) Express thoughts and feelings 3) State wants and needs including benefits to other party. Process of development of people skills The above process of development of people skills synchronize with the learning objectives we assimilate during toastmaster journey as better communicator and leader. The essential people skills: Rapport building explains what it takes to connect with another individual. Rapport is bond or relationship based on mutual liking or trust and a sense that wants, needs and concerns are mutually under-
stood. The two elements are self- confidence and ability to build interpersonal rapport. Self-confidence comes from preparing facts and figures, elicit opinions and views and be able to quote sources. Anticipating other people behavior, preparing effective questions,
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Eloquence—The Quarterly Newsletter of Doha Toastmasters Club
ESSENTIAL PEOPLE SKILLS reconditioning reactions and having faith in own abilities add to confidence. Tactics to build rapport include knowing what you want to accomplish, self-evaluation of progress to adjust own action, knowing that words are imperfect representation of experience and having high degree of flexibility Curiosity is an inborn human characteristic to be nurtured. It is an intellectual experience. It is more about passion by seeing oneself as a student and purveyor and by bridging the gap between theory and practice. Curiosity makes the difference between a culture of complacency and growth. The essential elements to foster curiosity are: Frequent contact through face to face meetings continually, time management to set time for tasks, expanding skills, goal setting with alignment of goals to values Communication skills are valued very highly since people become quite sophisticated about how those skills can express themselves. One should communicate to bring first positive impression. Nothing is more potent in communication than a well-placed complement provided it is insightful, specific and empathetic. A good business interaction needs to flow to stay healthy by treating others with respect, and making sincerity clearly visible. Active listening is an art, skill and a discipline. The dynamics of communication involve ability for persuasive speaking Ambition can be defined as wanting to achieve something that is desired or planned. Ambition is rewarded when dreams come true. Extrinsic ambition is targeted outside – towards external payoff or reward that is physical or material in nature. Intrinsic is when payoff is more emotional or even spiritual. It is feeling of personal achievement or inner satisfaction. Ambition being subjective experience, fear works against it. Know what you are good at it, enjoy doing it and channeling career in that direction makes ambition goal congruent. Put these essential people skills to work for a new level of professional and personal achievement. Be conscious about your people skills development as you progress in toastmasters program
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Eloquence—The Quarterly Newsletter of Doha Toastmasters Club
OUR LEADERS
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Eloquence—The Quarterly Newsletter of Doha Toastmasters Club
OUR LEADERS
TM Jasil Abdullah, dynamic and dedicated club member is appointed as Assistant Area Director, Program Quality, Area 28., Division E.
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KNOW YOUR MENTOR—INTERVIEW
Interview conducted by TM Niloufer Samal with TM Abdul Nassar P
Dr Sampath Sowrirajan, DTM a scientist by profession, is a multifaceted personality. A polymath, his knowledge about diverse fields will amaze you. A connoisseur of Indian Classical Music and the Arts he is a self-taught flautist. He also wields the camera with zeal and precision. An engaging storyteller, he is a lifelong student of Tamil and English literature. His way with words has earned him the sobriquet “Wordsmith”. A much invited guest across all toastmasters clubs in Qatar, his education modules and speech evaluations are a revelation. A doyen amongst toastmasters in Qatar, the role dearest to him, is that of a mentor. And to him, one of the finer joys of life is to hear a good speech, delivered well.
Read On to know DTM Dr Samapath Sowrirajan’s views on the mentormentee relationship. Sir, when did you join Toastmasters International? Your first Club? I joined TI in 2002 with Tamil Social and Cultural Association Club, Bahrain. A demo meeting was held by Indian Club and at end of the meeting about 25 people joined. I was one among them and we chartered a new club. So that’s how I got involved. Can you tell us who was your first mentor? My first official mentor was Ms Gita Ponnuchami. She is a Distinguished Toastmaster now. But I had the idea of getting benefit from more than one. So in addition, I discussed my projects with many. TM Jose Kamath of Indian Club was also one of my mentors. Also there is a very famous toastmaster in Bahrain DTM P.T. Thomas. He is an extraordinary educator and very committed. He was my close friend and unofficial mentor.
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KNOW YOUR MENTOR—INTERVIEW
Interview conducted by TM Niloufer Samal with TM Abdul Nassar P
What is the one important takeaway from these early associations? One thing I learnt is different people look at your projects differently. So there is no one best way to deliver your project. There are multiple good ways. Secondly, you need not always accept and implement 100% of what the mentor says. If you feel strongly about some points in your speech, you should maintain them. And lastly, at times the mentor is not a senior or experienced toastmaster. But if the mentor is friendly, honest, candid, involved and interested in your progress, I would say he is a good mentor. At times, the mentor selects the speech topic, write the script and the speaker parrots it out. What are your views on this practice? This shortcut of not writing your own speech is very unfortunate. One of the prime duties of the mentor is to encourage the speaker. Goad them and guide them to find their own topic. The speaker should always come up with his own topic. The mentor can only give pointers. Once the script is prepared by the speaker, the mentor should only give his comments and suggestions, like a better word or a stressing on the impactful parts, and reducing the unimportant parts of the speech. An important area where the mentor plays a crucial role is the proportion of the speech. Sometimes the opening is very long or the closing is abrupt. Mentor should ensure a balanced speech. Sir, is coaching and mentoring different? And how so? Now that’s a very good question. Take the four words, teaching training, coaching and mentoring. I put them in this order.
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Eloquence—The Quarterly Newsletter of Doha Toastmasters Club
Know your mentor– INTERVIEW
Interview conducted by TM Niloufer Samal with TM Abdul Nassar P Teaching is very basic, the teacher teaches, mostly in a classroom and it is upto the student to learn and absorb. The teacher often does not know and cannot know how much the student has learnt. Training is slightly better. The trainer will give some tasks to the trainee and he can observe how well the trainee performs. Coaching is even better. It is task specific, for example- the task is – Make Miss ABC a champion badminton player. The Coach has to carve out specific programme to coach. There is constant learning and implementation of the lessons learnt by the player. So there is measurable progress with good results. Mentoring, I would say is the highest of all four. A mentor inspires, he guides and the mentee does the rest. Coaching is result oriented. But when you are mentoring somebody, it is for today, tomorrow and the future. It is lifelong . A good mentor can change the thought process and often the personality of the mentee. Sir, how many mentees do you have under your umbrella? Currently, I have 2 mentees, officially. But I think mentoring is not only about guiding speech makers. After every meeting, or during the break, I talk to all the role players, the ah counter, timer, grammarian, speaker, evaluators. I give them detailed feedback and suggest ways to improve. The written feedback is at times mild. But one to one feedback can often guide better. Also there are a few ExCom members who are my mentees in their excom role. They often consult me. I have also been a mentor to many clubs. So mentoring is an all round task. Sir let us talk about new members. On joining the club, the member is assigned a mentor. What are the steps the new member should take to engage with the mentor? A new member is new, many are reserved. So in the initial stage the mentor should take the first step. He should initiate contact with the mentee, give him telephone number, email address and make him feel welcome as a mentee. The mentor should ensure that the novice toastmaster knows his role, be it ah counter or timer. So mentoring starts with voluntary personal inter-
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KNOW your mentor –Interview
Interview conducted by TM Niloufer Samal with TM Abdul Nassar P
-action with the mentee and helping the mentee with his roles. With all new members, the mentor should take the initiative. Mentoring is not grammar correction. The mentor should take care of all the aspects, acquaint him with the art of speech preparation, help him rehearse, build his confidence. Sir, the new member is not so new, he has already delivered the icebreaker and is now moving on to Project 2. How should he go about this? The best way is to meet the mentor in person. But this is not always possible. So telephone and email are good enough for discussion. The mentor has to guide, step by step, give comments and suggestions and also give detailed explanations. On part of the speaker, the first step is to read the project description thoroughly, know the project objectives and evaluators guidelines. These are the minimum basics the speaker has to do. Often speakers prepare their whole speeches without knowing the objectives or the guidelines. I would say, that is an opportunity wasted. The next crucial step is decide on what message the speech has to convey and then build the speech around this message. Write the first draft. Remove the extraneous, unimportant points. Add points which elaborate the message. Edit the speech mercilessly. During all this always keep the mentor in the loop. After finalising the script, record it in our own voice. Listen to it everyday. And only then start rehearsing your speech part by part. All this needs sufficient time. So start preparing well in advance, preferably 3 to 4 weeks before the final speech delivery at the club. Sir, after the speech is delivered, an evaluation is conducted, the evaluator raises a few points. Of course, all these points are important to the speaker. But how far are these points important to the mentor?
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Eloquence—The Quarterly Newsletter of Doha Toastmasters Club
Know your mentor— interview
Interview conducted by TM Niloufer Samal with TM Abdul Nassar It is simple, it is time for the mentor to improve. The mentor should keep these points in mind and incorporate them in the future projects. That said, I would like to add, a mentor is involved from the beginning to the end of the speech project. The evaluator hears the speech for the first time with the audience. Many think this is a disadvantage. But I say that is an advantage. Because we want to know the reaction and feedback from such a person. The mentor is too familiar with the topic and therefore not in a good position to evaluate. So an evaluators viewpoint is as important to the mentor as to the mentee. That is the beauty of mentoring. You not only guide, but you are also guided. Not only the mentee progresses and grows, the mentor grows too.
Sir, another question, a senior member, though very active in the past has now lost interest, his performance has plateaued off. He is now more in the audience, than behind in lectern. How does the club and the mentor rekindle his interest? This does not happen often. Toastmasters are not easily discouraged (laughs). Once a toastmaster, always a toastmaster. But, yes as one progresses to advanced manuals, there is a big jump. The level changes. So many are hesitant to take up advanced projects. Here the mentor comes into picture. He should give the initial push and drive. I have observed, once the toastmaster starts on the advanced project, he becomes unstoppable. He completes the manuals with full interest and energy. And secondly, the audience also plays an important role. There is not much awareness and understanding amongst the audience about advance projects. They should be educated and familiarised with the advanced projects.
Sir, and the last question, what are the major benefits of mentoring to the mentor? A mentor gets mental satisfaction. It is a joy to hear a good speech, and even a greater joy to hear a good speech, delivered by your own mentee. It is like rearing a baby. Mind you, the baby is not the speaker, but the speech.
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KNOW YOUR FELLOW TOASTMASTER
Interview conducted by TM Niloufer Samal with TM Abdul Nassar
TM Adam Abidi a resident of Qatar, hails from the African nation of Somalia. He landed on the shores of Qatar sixteen years ago and has made this country his own. An employee of Qatar Islamic Cultural Foundation, FANAR, he is already a proficient public speaker and able leader. He is a big fan of American President Barack Obama. It is his firm opinion that Barack Obama was able to reach such great heights because of his oratory and public speaking skills. Read on to know why he is interested to become an active part of Toastmasters scene in Qatar. Tell us about your native country Somalia. Somalia is both infamous and famous. It is a country in transition. The country faced many problems like war, famine, piracy and violence. But Somalia is famous in a different way. It is the only country which did not have a government for the past 26 years. Inspite of this, things run smoothly. Education, business environment, and standard of living has constantly improved. The people have learned to manage themselves. How did you feel on coming to Qatar? I came to Qatar in the year 2000. I found myself in this country, though I barely knew about it. This year marked the end of one millennium and the birth of the next. I had visited many places before I came here, I had been to “Obama Town”, East Africa, Kenya, Tanzania and Nairobi. Qatar is a small country and I was homesick .I wanted to go back. But unfortunately my return ticket had expired and I could not return. It is interesting that I stayed on for 16 years when I wanted to leave . So now I am here in Qatar and loving it. I have been working with FANAR from the start. It is my dream job. As a teenager, I used to spend all my free time at bus stops and stations, observing people, watching them move and noticing their behaviours and traits. There is not much cultural diversity in Somalia. Back then, I knew there were many different kinds of cultures and people and I wanted to meet and talk with them all. My job offers me this unique opportunity. FANAR is visited by many tourists, People come from all over the world, America, UK, Australia, Japan, and interacting with them is an enriching experience. And now I can proudly claim, wherever I go, I know at least one person
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KNOW YOUR FELLOW TOASTMASTER
Interview conducted by TM Niloufer Samal with TM Abdul Nasser How did you come to know about Doha Toastmasters? My job involves teaching and educating diverse set of people, Many times I am behind the lectern, giving welcome speeches and delivering lectures. So I was always interested in improving my public speaking skills. I bought many books on this subject and learnt many tips and tricks. Whenever I watch TV, I don’t pay attention to what the speaker is saying, but closely observe how he is saying. 20 years ago, I use to listen to BBC Radio. And that taught me the importance of good language and diction. Few years ago, my cousin came to Qatar from America, looking for a job. He visited my workplace and was impressed by my public speaking skills. He was a toastmaster himself and encouraged me to join a club here. However I could not join back then. But recently , my daughter who studies in Shantiniketan Indian School, had taken part in a Public Speaking Contest. Here I was introduced to TM Anil Nair. He invited me to a meeting as a guest, and I joined Doha club in the next meeting! What did you like about the meeting? What was your first impression.? I was very impressed with your agenda and the manner in which the meeting was conducted within the allotted time. It started on time and ended on time. And the best part was all speakers strictly followed their time limits. Plus it was very interesting. All speakers spoke on different topics and shared their personal stories and ideas. Another point impressed me. All members and guests were involved in the proceedings and everyone was invited to speak. And Congratulations on winning the “Best Table Topic Speaker” in the last meeting. You spoke about Bollywood films and heroes. You connected very well with the audience.
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KNOW YOUR FELLOW TOASTMASTER
Interview conducted by TM Niloufer Samal with TM Abdul Nasser Thank You. In my job, I meet delegates from different backgrounds, they can be ministers, CEOs , executives, teenage schoolboys. It is my job to break ice with them. I have to welcome them, make them feel comfortable and relaxed. And the best way of doing that is to find common ground and talk about what they like. Any tips for new members attempting table topics.? I have a suggestion for the Table Topic Master. The topics should be easy. This puts the speaker at ease and he can talk comfortably. Also the topics should be related to Doha and their life. Also give options. If the speaker is unable to speak on the given topic, give him another. And make it simple. Any funny incident you would like to share about toastmasters? In this part of the world, not many people know about toastmasters. Many people think it is a cooking class and it is about mastering the skill of making toast out of bread. An outsider cannot relate toastmasters to public speaking. As a member of Doha Club, what is your goal?. My immediate goal is to improve my public speaking skills. But I have another goal which is very dear to me. The other day a popular public speaker from Somalia visited me, here in Qatar. I brought him to a toastmasters meeting and he was impressed with the positive and supportive atmosphere in the club. In Somalia it is different, If two men disagree, immediately they will pull out their weapons and fight. There will be no discussion or dialogue. Not attempt to deliberate or debate. And I think, they resort to violence because they cannot express and articulate their point of view. I want to replace “gun talk” with “table talk”. I want to start a Toastmasters Club in Somalia and show and educate the people. I want to show them the strength of words, the power of communication and talking. I want to convey that disagreements can be resolved through debate and discussion. I want to empower the people with the power of expression. That is a very noble motive. Doha Toastmasters will be happy to help and extend our support.. Somalis of my generation have been through war and strife. We have faced many hardships. But we are survivors. And one day I would like to return to my own country and make a positive contribution to its development and its future.
Thank You TM Adam Abidi for your time, It was pleasure meeting you, talking to you, knowing you better.
I should thank Doha Toastmasters Club, I am now a famous man in my community. Do you know why? Its only because I am a member of Doha Toastmasters Club. P.S Post interview TM Adam Abidi delivered his icebreaker with confidence and poise. He was voted the Best Speaker. He was also declared Smooth Speaker by the Ah counter. Many Congratulations! Best Wishes to TM Adam Abidi for his future projects.
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LETS NOT LOSE SIGHT OF THINGS WHICH CAN WAIT TM Tonse Satish Rao CC, CL I remember having seen an article which said 85 percent of happiness in life will come from one’s personal relationships. Our interactions and the time that we spend with the people we care about is a major source of the pleasure, enjoyment and satisfaction. The other 15 percent of one’s happiness will come from accomplishments. Unfortunately, many of us lose sight of what is truly important, and we allow the ‘tail’ to wag the ‘dog’. There is no perfect answer to the key question of how to achieve balance in our lives, but there are a number of ideas that can help. The ancient Greeks had two famous sayings: (1) Man, know thyself and (2) Moderation in all things. Taken together, those two ideas are a good starting point for achieving the balance. With regard to knowing thyself, it is very important to give some serious thought to what we really value in life. All trade-offs and choices are based on our values, and all stress and unhappiness come from believing and valuing one thing and, yet, finding ourselves doing another. The second quote, ‘Moderation in all things’ is a wonderful and important dictate for successful living. But, at the same time, you know that you can’t really be successful in any area by being moderate in that area. Peter Drucker once wrote, “Wherever you find something getting done, you find a monomaniac with a mission!”. You know that single-minded concentration on a goal or objective is absolutely necessary for achievement of any kind in a competitive society. So what’s the solution? My take is that there is a simple formula; it is simple in that it is easy to explain, but one needs tremendous self-discipline and persistence to implement it in your life. The formula revolves around a concept of time management, or what one might want to call as ‘life management’. Time management is really a form of personal management in which we organize our 24 hours a day in such a way that they give us the greatest possible return of happiness and contentment. The key to time management, after we have determined our values and the goals that are in harmony with those values, is to set both ‘priorities’ and ‘things that can wait’. The importance of setSEPTEMBER 2016
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LETS NOT LOSE SIGHT OF THINGS WHICH CAN WAIT -ting ‘priorities’ is obvious. We make a list of all the things that we can possibly do and then select from that list the things that are most important based on everything we know about ourselves, about others and about your responsibilities.
The setting of ‘things that can wait’ is often overlooked. This, in my view is the key! We should never lose sight of those things which we categorized as ‘things that can wait’! Often we derive immense pleasure and satisfaction from doing those which are listed as ‘things that can wait’. Many of us classify time to be given to our families, time for work-outs, time to write those articles, time to read those books and time to visit friends and relatives as ‘things that can wait’ Let’s not lose sight of those things which can wait! Then only we can achieve a balance in life!
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TIRED? LEARN TO REST NOT TO QUIT Mehboob Srivastava, DTM Sometimes, rather I believe often simple and small things tend to lead to big results. These small things have a bigger impact on our energy source and sooner or later we feel exhausted, clueless and most importantly – “tired”. What we do, when we feel tired? Answer to this question over and over again defines, determines and distinguishes our life trajectory. Just to give a glimpse of one of many such chapters in my life, I joined Toastmasters International on 1 July 2010. Could achieve Competent Communicator (CC) & Competent Leader certification by July 2011 and by July 2012, my club President bestowed me with glittering certificates of Advanced Communicator Bronze (ACB) & Advanced Leader Silver (ALS). Come July 2012, I was elected as a Division Governor – District 82 and elatedly called one of my mentors to share the news. He congratulated me heartily and asked me a very simple question – “I have absolutely no second thought about your competencies and intelligence, is this role required so early in your life?” I did not understand the context of the question, not at that time for sure, so shrugged off the question as I had a firm belief. A firm belief that I may be young, however, maturity comes with experience(s) and not age. Although I went on to become one of dynamic and the most sought after Division Governors of District 82, by the end of my term in June 2013; I felt exhausted, clueless and most importantly – “tired”! The induced fatigue was so powerful then that I almost quit the so-called Toastmasters’ Journey, but the same mentor asked me to reflect on my learnings and decide the future course. This time I did exactly the same and realized what I need is rest, definitely quitting is not an option. So I did, take rest. Attended only club meetings – that too sporadically, streamlined my priorities and gave myself time to reinforce my learnings in professional as well as personal life. Practically, what could have been a reality within 6 months – getting a certificate for name’s sake, I took 2 years to earn the coveted title of “Distinguished Toastmaster (DTM)”. As I write today, I have already given two speeches from CC manual again and have re-embarked on second cycle of the Toastmasters’ Journey. SEPTEMBER 2016
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TIRED? LEARN TO REST NOT TO QUIT
“We get restless, when we get tired We can get over it, stay calm and fired Because nothing can bring us down Even the mightiest of all oceans remains lown!”
Now what you do, when you feel tired – Rest or Quit? Just remember “answer to this question over and over again defines, determines and distinguishes our life trajectory.” Cheers, Maverick – aka Mehboob Shrivastava, DTM Still Learning Eagerly and Growing Steadily!
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TOASTMASTERS AND THE BREXIT
TM Sunil Kumar Menon, CC, CL Toastmasters in Qatar have been immensely affected by Brexit. No?!!! How else does one explain the scheduling of COT (Club Officers Training) the same day as this historic event? (Historic, not personally for me, but I kept hearing it on BBC. I am more concerned about the drought, power cuts, inflation, poverty, lack of sanitation and lack of sensitivity in my country and of-course exchange rates!!!) Sorry?!!! Did I hear you mumble that the event was a coincidence?! Okay. Then how do you explain that both ‘events’ were related to ‘exits’, and both events had an ‘E’ factor in it - E for Europe and E for Excom! Okay okay, I let you surrender!!! After all, I am bound by the Toastmaster’s promise to develop and maintain a mutually benefiting learning environment. From my little understanding, the European event has created an uncertainty in the conduct of economic affairs in UK. But in contrast, the COT has settled us Club officers well into our roles to conduct our club affairs. Being the VP Membership of our Advanced wing, I had the privilege along with our very own VP Membership TM Chandrashekar to be enlightened by TM Subramaniam Sundaresan on our role. TM SubSun had a very soothing and self-styled approach, a welcome departure from the run-of-the-mill sloppy slideshows. We were given insights on how 'club growth' was a combination of 'number' growth and 'member' growth. (for those who always believed that both were the same - number relates to Quantity and member represents Quality) And neither of it depended on a single club official, but on every member of the club. Friends, being a member of both clubs - the Doha 'Pioneer' and the Doha 'Advanced', I feel obliged to contribute towards the development of both. While the pioneering senior club opens the gateway to the world of Toastmasters, the pioneering seniors of the advanced club, sets the platform for a higher dive and deeper plunge into realms of advanced projects. I humbly urge you all, not to perceive these projects as mere formalities to be completed, to earn a tag of DTM. Instead, indulge every advanced SEPTEMBER 2016
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TOASTMASTERS AND THE BREXIT
project as a novel adventure sport which only us Toastmasters have the opportunity to give a try, under friendly floodlights. An array of DTMs, Senior TMs and Champions at the Doha Advanced Toastmasters Club offer themselves as coaches for these Adventure Sports. DTM Sampath Sowrirajan our District TLI Chair, is also our club's Head Coach. His coaching camps are well known across Qatar. Another pillar of our club is our District Finance Manager and 'Mentor of Many' DTM Rajeshwar Sundaresan. He is himself pursuing a second DTM. Inspired by him, we are seeing a spate of pursuits for their 2nd DTM. And these are not lustful races for personal glory, but selfless endeavors to 'walk the talk' which only true masters can dare. And I wish that every member of Doha club avails these opportunities at our Advanced Club. Journey at our Doha Advanced Toastmasters club begins after CC. Our slogan is 'From Competent Communicator to a Complete Communicator - the journey has just begun'. Dear Fellow Doha Club Toastmaster, I sense immense happiness to invite you to this adventurous journey and share our learning with you. Complete your CC and acquire your dual membership with us. And we can sail together on this journey. I have pledged myself to keep TM Chandrashekar busy, by adding new members to our pioneering club of Doha. You can pledge to keep both of us busy!!! Happy Toastmastering! P.S. My take on the Brexit.... "Be it Euro or be it GBP How in Heavens would it matter to me? I am a Toastmaster of good standing, and for that
Only in dollars TM I'll accept my fee."
VP Membership, Doha Advanced TM Club SEPTEMBER 2016
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KNOW YOUR EXCOM
TM Niloufer Samal President Abdul Nassar P, ACB, ALB, an Indian Citizen and resident of Qatar since 2007, is a finance professional working in the Oil and Gas Industry for the past 16 years. He has worked with fortune 500 and multinational companies and currently is the Head of Finance of one of the leading oil and gas exporting companies wholly owned by State of Qatar. He holds a bachelor’s degree in commerce and he is a Chartered Accountant by profession. He is a fellow member of Institute of Chartered Accountants of India. As a dedicated toastmaster since April 2012, Abdul Nassar has been an active member of several toastmasters clubs in Qatar and has held various leadership positions in the past at club and area levels. He has served as Sergeant at arms, Secretary, Vice President Public Relation, Vice President Education,Club Mentor and Area Secretary. He says, "I am fortunate to be surrounded by extra special people called toastmasters. You know why, they are positive, optimistic, enthusiastic and energetic people, always working with equal zeal for the improvement of their own skill sets as well as the skill sets of fellow toastmasters. In this process, my cells are charged.” Passionate to help others in various roles, Abdul Nassar has equipped himself with many important skills. He is a certified coach from ILM (Institute of Leadership and Management) (UK), Licensed BLS/AED (Basic Life Support/Automatic External Defibrillation)and First Aider, Trained Fire Warden. His hobbies include Kung-Fu, marathon running, hiking. He is happily married and a proud father of three lovely daughters. Vice President Education Sandeep Kinge, CC, ALB an environmental engineer by profession, is working with Arcadis, a leading global Design and Consultancy firm for the infrastructure development. He is actively involved in projects for a successful FIFA 2022. He is a Chartered Water and Environmental Manager (C.WEM) from the Chartered Institute of Water and Environmental Management, UK and has recently qualified as Project Manager from Association of Project Managers, UK. Sandeep firmly believes in the motto Service Before Self. He has worked with various voluntary organizations including the British Trust for Conservation Volunteers and Engineers Without Borders where he served as the founder president of the Mumbai Chapter. In four years,
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KNOW YOUR EXCOM
TM Niloufer Samal he successfully completed many field based projects for sanitation, solar power and education.
An active member of Toastmasters International since April 2013, he has served Doha Club as Sergeant at Arms in 2014-15 and Vice President of Public Relations in 2015-16. He achieved another milestone in his toastmasters journey when he was awarded the prestigious “Triple Crown” by completing Competent Communicator, Competent Leader and Advanced Leader Bronze in a single term. Under his leadership as Vice President Public Relations, Doha Toastmasters Club earned the Award of Excellence for the “Best Website” at the Toastmasters Annual Conference , Division E 2016. Recently, the Doha Toastmasters Club earned the District 20 PR @Platinum Web Byte Award 2015-16’ and “Captivating Communique Award 2015-16” at the 2016 District Conference held at Abu Dhabi(UAE). As Vice President Education, he aims to achieve 10DCP Points by End of 2016, 7/7 COT attendance during both COTs maintain a better MentorMentee relationship, motivate new members to learn by doing and take up new roles for their personal growth and ultimately improve the quality of the meetings. Vice President Membership
Chandrashekhar Dudhe from Nagpur, Maharashtra, India, is working as Power Plant Professional with Qatar Power Company which is providing clean energy and water to contribute in economic, social and environmental development of the state of Qatar. He focuses on Combine cycle power plant and water plant performance and strategic plan for business performance. Chandrashekhar earned a degree in Mechanical engineering at Rajiv Gandhi College of engineering Research and Technology Chandrapur, Maharashtra, India. He also earned a Master Degree (M.Tech) in Energy Management from Devi Ahilya Vishwa Vidyalaya, Indore. Madhya Pradesh, India . A Toastmaster for 6 months, He says, “Technical knowledge without leadership and communication skills is incomplete. Leadership and communication skills plays a major role in professional growth. Toastmasters International is the best place to enhance these skills where positive environment and experienced toastmasters sculpt your present skills continuously”.
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Know your ExCom
TM Niloufer Samal Vice President Public Relations Niloufer Samal is a finance professional from Mumbai, India, now a happy homemaker in Doha. A member of the Institute of Cost Accountants of India, she earned her Bachelors degree in Commerce from University of Mumbai. She also holds a diploma from the National Institute of Information Technology. She joined Doha Toastmasters in January 2016 and finds Toastmasters to be one of the finest programs for personal development. According to her, the most striking feature of Toastmasters is the positive and encouraging environment it provides to develop public speaking skills. Toastmasters is the place where you will find a group of people who come together with the express intention of helping each other grow and develop. As the Vice President Public Relations of Doha Toastmasters Club she aims to spread this unique opportunity for positive transformation, Toastmasters International offers.
Secretary Sandhya Premchand from Kerala, India is a post graduate in Applied Microbiology from Madras University, Tamil Nadu. She served as a college lecturer in Kerala, India and now is a happy homemaker in Qatar. As a passionate teacher she was a friend and guide to undergraduate students and helped them achieve their academic goals. An active member of the Doha Toastmasters Club since October 2015, she is keen to develop her communication and leadership skills. Treasurer Afajal Ahmed, a contract sales coordinator, is working with Al Mana and Partners for last three years. Prior to shifting base to Qatar, he has worked for the biggest banking client, Westpac Banking Corporation of Australia, under the banner of Genpact India as Team Leader and Coach for more than four years. Afajal holds a Masters degree in English Literature and a Bachelors degree in Science from University of Rajasthan, Jaipur India.
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Know your excom
TM Niloufer Samal Afajal Ahamad, has immense passion to improve his public speaking and leadership skills. He came across Toastmasters after a series of offline and online searches. Right after attending his first meeting as a guest in Doha Toastmasters club, he realized Toastmasters was the place he was looking for. He says ‘There was no scope for second thoughts, I became a member of the club in the next meeting. Toastmasters International helps me to expand wings of my thoughts. It provides me a platform to learn from others. It minimizes my mistakes and maximizes my potential. It benefits me to become a confident speaker and a better person day by day.” As the Treasurer of Doha Toastmasters Club, Afajal wants to help new members of the Toastmasters fraternity and simultaneously wants to keep improving his leadership skills under the guidance of senior and experienced toastmasters. Sergeant At Arms Nagaraja Sekar Mannem from Tirupati, Andhra Pradesh holds a Bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering and is a Strategic IT Supply Chain Management Professional in SAP domain. He is Certified in Production and Inventory Management, CPIM from the American Production Inventory Control Society, APICS. He is also a Project Management Professional , PMP, from Project Management Institute, US. He has also attended the Executive Program in International Business Management conducted by the Indian Institute of Management. Calcutta. He is a lifetime member of YMCA, Mumbai. He is also a Vipassana Meditator trained by Shri S.N. Goenka’s team at Igatpuri near Mumbai. He has worked in Chennai and Mumbai in India, Riyadh and Al Jubail in KSA, Ghent in Belgium, San Diego in USA, Walldorf in Germany and Doha in Qatar. He is married to Lavanya and they are blessed with two lovely sons, Geetarjun and Parrinav. He attributes all his success to his parents, teachers, family members, friends and society at large. He strongly believes that it is their unconditional love and continuous support that has helped him reach greater heights. An active member of the club since October 2015, Nagaraja says ‘Toastmasters who follow the core values of Respect, Integrity, Service and Excellence will never be let down at Toastmasters International. I continue in my endeavours to imbibe these values in my personal and professional life too!” He is planning to complete projects from Compe-
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Felicitations
TM Niloufer Samal -tent Communicator Manual this year. As Sergeant at Arms of the Doha Toastmasters Club, he would love to support and share the benefits the club offers with members and guests. He is particularly thankful to DTM Rajeswar Sundaresan for introducing him to Doha Toastmasters Club, where he continues to improve his public speaking and communication skills. Immediate Past President TM Yoosaf Vannarath needs no introduction. Awarded the “BEST AREA DIRECTOR” in Division Q, area 53, the area he led was ranked numero uno in District 20. He was also awarded the OUTSTANDING TOASTMASTER at DTAC 2016 Abu Dhabi. His committed and proactive leadership has taken Doha Club from strength to strength. Doha Club is now, one of the top ten clubs in the whole of the Middle East. Doha Club was also declared BEST CLUB OF DIVISION E at TAC-E 2016. An engineer by profession, he works with College of North Atlantic Qatar. Having served the Club for the past five years, he remains committed to the progress and development of Doha Club..
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OUR new members A Warm Welcome to our New Members DTM Mehboob Srivastava Abhijith Balakrishnan Rovelyn Agliplay Sreekanth Balan Dinesh Kumar Ramaraj IIayarajan Rathakrishnan Rupali Suvarna Jijith Vishwanathan Emike Emolu Adam Abidi Elie Nader Gopakumar Gopalan Ravikeerti Patil Sudhanva Vijay Khaliq Burhan
DTM Rajeshwar Sundaresan officially handing over the Welcome Kit . SEPTEMBER 2016
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DOHA GAVELS ELECTS EXCOM
Niloufer Samal Come June, Doha Gavels Club elected a new set of young and dynamic leaders under the guidance of Gavels Coordinator TM Anil Nair. Doha Club members will be glad to know that Gavalier Shivani Thakur, elected as secretary, is the daughter of our club member TM Kamala Thakur. A proud moment for all of us! The installation ceremony was graced by the presence of TM Sandeep Kinge, Vice President, Education and Niloufer Samal, Vice President, Public Relation. Doha Club wishes all the best to the energetic and vibrant young leaders.
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Awards and accolades
Niloufer Samal Doha Club has won a gamut of awards at the Division and District Level under the able leadership of TM Yoosaf Vanarath and due to the dedication & hard work of Excom 2015-16. Doha Club is one of the top ten clubs in the whole of the Middle East. TM Yoosaf Vanarath was awarded OUTSTANDING TOASTMASTER at DTAC, Abu Dhabi.
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Eloquence—The Quarterly Newsletter of Doha Toastmasters Club
Awards and accolades
TM Niloufer Samal Awards won by Doha Club at DTAC Abu Dhabi Program Quality Director’s Excellence Awards
Club DCP Achievers Award
Perfect Ten Club Achievers Award
Club Super 7 COT Award
Triple Crown (TM Rangamani Ravi)
Club Growth Directors Awards
Top 10 Club Award. (For Membership)
Special Award for adding new members
PR Awards
Captivating Communique Award for the club newsletter
Platinum Web Byte Award for the club website.
Awards won by Doha Club at Toastmasters Annual Conference Division E, Doha
Outstanding Club
Largest Membership Award
Best Website Award
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Our champions
TM Niloufer Samal Many Congratulations to TM Dipak Shivankar for bringing laurels to Doha Club. He swept the Area 28 awards emerging champion in most of the speech categories. He also won the first runner up award for Humorous Speech Contest and the Second Runner Up award for International Speech contest at Toastmasters Annual Conference, Division E. TM Dipak Shivankar, Doha Club is proud of your achievements!
TM Nisamudeen, member of Doha Club, secured the Second Place Runner Up position in the Table Topics Speech Contest at the Toastmaster Annual Conference for Division Q. Many Congratulations.
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Presidents excellence awards 2015-16
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Presidents excellence awards 2015-16
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Felic
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itations
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EDUCATION AWARDS
Niloufer Samal The goals of individual members is what fuels the growth of every club. Our star performer, TM Rangamani Ravi, achieved the prestigious Triple Crown Award for her educational pursuits. TM Mani Roy Vinnakota was awarded the Competent Leader Award. Also TM Mustafa Ali Syed was awarded the Competent Communicator Award. TM Sunil Kumar Menon was the proud recipient of the Competent Leadership Award. Doha Club wishes all the members, the very best and many more milestone achievements on their Toastmasters Journey.
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IN THE PRINT MEDIA
Niloufer Samal Doha Club is well covered in all the English language newspapers of Qatar. The 434th meeting with the theme “Martians v/s Venusians” appeared in the Peninsula. The Installation ceremony of Excom 2016-17 was covered both by the Gulf Times and Qatar Tribune.
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THE Toastmaster travels
TM Niloufer Samal
TM Nagaraja Sekar on the serene shores of Sri Lanka
TM Niloufer Samal at the pre-historic Stone Henge in England SEPTEMBER 2016
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THE Toastmaster travels PRESIDENT meets PRESIDENT President Abdul Nasser with International President Jim Kokocki
President with the World Champions of Public Speaking at TM International Convention, Washington, D.C
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Smile please
TM Niloufer Samal
SEPTEMBER 2016
From Internet Sources
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Eloquence—The Quarterly Newsletter of Doha Toastmasters Club
TMs SMILE WITH TMs
Cartoonist—tm raveendra rao
TM Niloufer Samal TM Raveendra Rao, a senior toastmaster, is a member of the Doha Advanced Toastmasters Club. His humour and wit are not limited only to speeches but also find expression in his cartoons and caricatures. Toastmasters’ meetings are the source of his inspiration. Here are some of the his best works. So fellow toastmasters, sit back and
SEPTEMBER 2016
Eloquence—The Quarterly Newsletter of Doha Toastmasters Club
Members musings
TM Abhijith Balakrishnan TM Abhijith Balakrisnan, member of Doha Club is a recent addition to the Toastmasters scene, here in Qatar. A passionate and dedicated toastmaster , he is adept at putting pen to paper, Here are his thoughts after witnessing the Awards Ceremony and the Installation of the current Excom held on June 18, 2016. This evening was the installation of the office bearers of Doha Toastmasters Club, the oldest TM club in Qatar. When moving to Doha, I was a little sceptical about my TM future. My goal of finishing my CC last year couldn't be realised with the new job and shifting countries. But this club has been a revelation. Every meeting I attended at the club makes it seem like the chairs are never enough. There are no dearth of role players or speakers. There is at least one advanced project every meeting. But what humbles me most is the dedication shown by Distinguished Toastmasters. Today's installation had at least a dozen of them. Their sincerity to enriching the club experience and giving back to people like me and helping them learn, is beyond words. It truly humbles me. Makes me seem so insignificant. But more importantly shows me what I can achieve because there is this large tree with deep roots which will nurture every aspiring toastmaster.
SEPTEMBER 2016
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Eloquence—The Quarterly Newsletter of Doha Toastmasters Club
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Easy Speak—Toastmaster Automation
TM Kit Barritt Kitt Baritt a long time member of Toastmasters International hails from United Kingdom. He is currently a resident of Doha and member of FIlicom Club. He is the maker of Easy Speak Software, the perfect software for automating club activities. Here he gives a clear overview of Easy Speak. Some years ago a VPE faced with a multiple of spreadsheets, word documents, phone numbers and email addresses, and a year of meetings to organize thought ‘there must be a better way to do this’. There was, and he came up with Easy-Speak. Now more than 10 years later, thousands of clubs around the world track plan and manage their meetings using the system. Many VPE’s find that they can now focus on far more valuable aspects of their role such as mentoring and helping members to develop rather than the tiresome, clerical activity of creating an agenda. Easy-Speak uses a web platform which allows all members to actively be involved in the planning of meetings and tracking their own progress. Once logged in a member can confirm presence or absence at meetings, request speech slots, volunteer for roles, check previous roles performed and progress. The VPE can view all activity to fairly allocate roles, balance the wishes of the members or even use the auto allocation function that assigns roles based on a set of rules. Members are automatically notified through email of allocated roles and the agenda can be printed just before the meeting with no editing effort, correctly reflecting the role players. Other club officers can also use the system. The VPM can track visitors, following up with them to tell them about upcoming meetings etc. The secretary can use the system to notify members of, for example, the AGM, without knowledge of their email addresses. The treasurer can record dues payments and only send email reminders to
those who are yet to pay.
In summary Easy-Speak helps all club officer serve the members better and members get more out of the club.
SEPTEMBER 2016
Eloquence—The Quarterly Newsletter of Doha Toastmasters Club Business Name
Write to eloquence
TM Niloufer Samal Dear Readers, Hope you enjoyed reading the newsletter! The next newsletter is scheduled for December 2016. Kindly send your contributions at the earliest. I am planning to include a feature on your personal and professional achievements and achievements of your children. Also I would like to start LETTERS TO THE EDITOR section. So please do send your letters and inputs along with your regular contributions. Also please send your feedback about this newsletter to Vice President, Public Relations on nilsamal@gmail.com. Your suggestions, opinions and ideas are most welcome. Also your criticism will be received with open arms. Hopefully the next newsletter will be better!
Wishing you the Best!
Niloufer Samal VP Public Relation
SEPTEMBER 2016
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