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A Special Edition for extremely special people-The Toastmasters.
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From the Editor’s Desk Here it is! CSF’s hundredth meeting! It sure was a challenging
journey, but here we are at last! For human beings, 100 is a special number. It is special to live for hundred years and centenarians are always revered but more importantly, they are celebrated.
So, we the editors have named this 100th meeting special edition
‘Centesimus’ , of Latin origin , meaning ‘hundredth’ . In the background, we have sprinkled words. Each of these words is an adjective our members have used to describe CSF. To make it even more special, there are precisely hundred words!
This being an important milestone, it is necessary to stop in
our tracks and look back over the years past. We
need to attain a wider perspective on life. Keeping all this in mind, this special issue is themed on life.
Life is something all of us look at differently, but one every
single one of us can relate to. This newsletter features literary works by toastmasters, giving us a peek into their lives. It gives us the opportunity to look at life through their eyes.
As first-time editors, this wasn’t an easy task. However, it definitely was a wonderful experience.
Regards, The Editorial Team.
TM Kannan Sri TM Thayn Malar Motchan TM Gitanjali Etican Arumugam
I remember the first time I
walked in through the doors of Ruby
hall, Presidency Club on a Sunday
morning without having the slightest
idea of what is to happen in the next
couple of hours. I was a silent
spectator throughout the meeting,
trying to understand all that was
happening around. At the end of the
meeting, as I was driving back I knew
I had stepped out as a different person
having absorbed the spirit of the
members! It was this infectious
positive vibe, feel good after every
meeting that made me come back over
and over!
As I mingled, I found I was
not the only one who felt this way, I
heard the same story from guests who
walked in but where did this all start?
It is unlikely that the qualities of our
club were inherent. One cannot reap
anything worthwhile without sowing
the seeds for it. Today as we reap the
fruits of our club and sow fresh seeds
for a better future, we celebrate the
past, present members of our club
who stand testimony to the fact that
transformations do happen as we
surpass our own limitations!
As we reach the milestone
100th meeting of our club, let us
remember that we as members are the
face of our club, your own resolution
to excel will inspire others to excel
and your success story will be our
club’s success story! Over the last few
months Gireesh, Poonam, Shubham
and Menon have joined our family,
wishing you all a life transforming
toastmasters journey!
We successfully completed
renewals in the month of October,
congratulations to our VP-M
toastmaster Jivitha and her team
comprising toastmasters Ganesh,
Athira, Pravin Srinivasan and our
treasurer Toastmaster Goutham on
their commitment to timely renewals.
Kudos to the Editorial
Team for going all out and giving
their best in coming out with this
special 100th edition newsletter! With
your creativity, relentless efforts and
eagerness to do more, I’m sure this
edition is going to be truly special!
Sachin Tendulkar has scored
hundred centuries, we are scoring our
first! He has announced retirement;
we plan never to retire from speaking,
leading, bonding and growing!
Regards,
Aashish Amalraj
President,
Chennai Speakers Forum.
President’s Desk
What’s inside?
How Charter members Feel
I can still vividly remember
how the idea for splitting the
Chennai Toastmasters club was
first mooted. There were mixed
feelings and everyone had their
opinions. I, at first felt that we
shouldn’t probably split the club.
But of course we all eventually
agreed to the pressing facts that
there was no room left for
expansion, new members had to
wait for more than 2 months to get
a slot to do their ice breakers, and
more than anything else, it would
be just nice to spread all the
positive energy of Chennai
Toastmasters and start a similar
club. But looking back, the entire
episode was interesting and an
enriching experience all in all.
Lao Tzu once said "The
journey of a thousand miles begins
with one step”. It’s funny when I
associate this quote with the birth
of CSF because there are a
thousand hidden steps behind this
one small step.
It was a lousy afternoon on
August 4th. I was at my desk in my
office trying hard not to sleep,
staring at the monitors. I was
about to log out and take a walk
when I saw an email from the then
president of Chennai Toastmasters
Club Prabakaran Ramaswamy.
The mail’s subject read “Cloning
Chennai Toastmasters Club” and it
invited me as a mentor of the
Chennai toastmasters club to the
executive committee meeting to
discuss the splitting of the
Chennai Toastmasters Club.
It had been nearly 8 months since
I attended a regular meeting of the
CTM and almost 2 years since I
attended an executive committee
meeting. Right then I told myself,
I MUST GO.
Later that Sunday, as I was
received with warmth and
excitement by my dear old friends,
fond memories of the Chennai
Toastmasters Club came back to
me. As I stood there frozen,
President Prabakaran called the
meeting to order. What I heard in
Looking Back…
DTM Sastharam Ravendran
the next twenty odd minutes was
something that I had always
anticipated and dreamt off during
the times of my leadership at the
club.
As we started to debate on
whether we should split the club
or not, the other senior members
present voiced their opinions and a
consensus was reached that it is
best that Chennai Toastmasters
Club be split. This was decided on
the best interest of the club, the
members and the thousands of
guests that Chennai Toastmasters
Club attracted in a year.
From that moment, I knew
that, as a senior member and well-
wisher to the club, I had to be a
good critic to make sure the best
happened to the club. But I was
not alone on this mission.
Everyone present there was being
a tough critic. Senior member and
charter member Nina, earlier
president of CTM, Rajesh
Natrajan and the then division
governor Saro Velrajan were also
wearing a similar cap. It was then
that I understood why Chennai
Toastmasters had always
maintained one of the best
standards in the whole of District
82. For the Chennai
toastmasters, Perfection was no
accident, and every single
member present there were a proof
of that.
It feels like it was just
yesterday, but it’s already 2 years
and we have come a long way.
These 2 years have proven to be
the most crucial for Chennai
Speakers Forum; we have as a
group proved to be one of the
youngest clubs both in experience
and in the member age to have
scaled greater heights. Our
Champions have made us proud at
the contests, our leaders have
made us proud at the district and
our members have made us proud
in every meeting. We have learnt
to grow as a team. Many
were sceptical about the growth of
this club because it was just run by
a young set of Ex.Com, but we are
one of the strongest community
clubs now in Chennai.
At this momentous juncture
when CSF turns 2 and celebrates
its 100th meeting, I wish there will
always be some learning at CSF,
that there will always be fun,
frolic and fantasy at CSF and that
there will always be this beautiful
camaraderie at CSF.
Let’s take a bow to all those
who played a part in the birth of
CSF, the Ex com of Chennai
Toastmasters Club and the first set
of Officers at CSF lead by the first
president Arna.
Today CSF is proud to have
a parent club like Chennai
Toastmasters Club, but soon, let’s
change it and let’s make Chennai
Toastmasters Club be a proud of
CSF.
I have always kept my
affiliation with two of the best
clubs in Chennai, the Chennai
Toastmasters Club and Chennai
Speakers Forum and I shall keep it
that way in the future too.
- One Proud CSF-ian
Everything in this world has a
parabolic curve-like lifecycle that
starts, grows, achieves the best,
maintains in stationary phase and
finally declines. Is this the nature’s
rule? Can’t there be any
exception? This thought made me
introspect as a toastmaster as to
how am I going to respond rather
than to react.
When a person enrolls in a
toastmasters club, the mentor and
other senior toastmasters guide
them to unleash their potentials
and make them progress and
grow. This kind of growth is a
steady progress; taking the stage
time, utilizing all opportunities
available, there begins the
metamorphosis of a member to a
better speaker and leader.
Eventually, the member gets
promoted to a senior member
and would have started stepping
up in the ladder. While climbing this
ladder, the member would have
been graced with titles,
responsibilities and so on. In the
due course of time such members
who have achieved a lot would
have started withering away, and
they would have chosen to play a
silent role.
However in the club’s perception, it
would be facing a situation where
even in a fairly old club with no old
members turning up, the quality of
the club meetings would be on par
with a new club.
Hence, there is a need for
equilibrium between the wisdom of
the senior member with the
enthusiasm of the new member.
This equilibrium can be maintained
by having space for enthusiasm as
well as wisdom.
As we all know in nature, it is very
tough for a banyan seedling to
grow beneath the banyan tree. As
Neil Armstrong said, “That's one
small step for [a] man, one giant
leap for mankind”,let’s make a
conscious effort as toastmasters
and as a club to strike the balance
where optimal utilization of the
wisdom and enthusiasm is
achieved which will protect the
interest of the club and help grow
without attaining dormant phase.
Paradigm shift _ TM deepa
CSF- Counting 100 and Young! - Tm Abhilash
I won’t disagree if someone says-‘Most
of the good things in life happen,
just like an ACCIDENT!’
My association with Chennai Speakers
Forum (CSF) is one such accident.
After I moved from TCS, I was looking
for a Community Toastmasters club to
join. It was then I got to know about
the offshoot club forming from
Chennai Toastmasters Club.
Although I joined in as a Charter
member, by the time I approached
DTM Saro, the Chartering activities
were almost complete.
Such was the Power and Passion of the
members who laid the foundation for
CSF.
1st Meeting of CSF is still fresh in my
memory, for that was on my 25th
Birthday and I chose to invest my
morning time at CSF doing Ah-
Counter role.
Soon after that, I got the opportunity
to work for CSF’s 1st Newsletter and
propose the name “Speaker’s Digest”.
It was a really nice experience to work
with TM Aarthi Vijayakumar and TM
Jananee Ramakrishnan, who made it
the best Editorial team I have ever
worked in.
Within a few weeks since its inception,
CSF was able to provide a unique
experience to all the visitors and the
quality of the meetings continued to
grow every time.
When CSF implemented innovative
ideas like- The Classroom, Special
meetings on: Christmas, Pongal etc.,
that brought in an entirely new form of
Energy to the forum of Toastmasters.
TM Abhilash is a student
and PR cell member at
IIM, Rohtak. To him, life
is an opportunity to
contribute to the
betterment of the
family, society, world.
That ‘Youthfulness’ and ‘Innovative
Spirit’ seems to be the driving force
at CSF till date. With Toastmasters
from almost all age categories, CSF
meetings never fail to break the
myth that ‘Youthfulness’ has nothing
to do with your age; rather it is in
your mind-set.
As I had to move out of the town
for doing higher studies, my
membership at CSF lasted only for
7 months. During that time I
completed my Competent
Communicator projects and one
ACB project. It was all possible only
with the support of the fellow
Toastmasters at CSF.
I would like to use this opportunity
to thank all those dedicated
Toastmasters at CSF, especially my
mentor- DTM Kartik Srinivasan
for the continued encouragement.
I was talking to TM Pravin Mani
before writing this article and I
realized that it has been 2 years
since invested my time on CSF in its
1st Meeting.
Till date, I continue to reap benefits
on my investment with ‘Interest’
and Involvement! CSF has made
“Toastmastering” a life-time
experience for me.
Just as one looks back upon time by
going through the leaves preserved
between the pages of an old book,
occasionally I glance through those
colourful ribbons in my CC Manual
and read those Sandwich
evaluations.
I thoroughly relish the learning
experience I had at CSF, and hope
to get associated with CSF
sometime in the future. I wish CSF
more Youthfulness as it gets older,
and hope that the club continues to
develop good Leaders and Citizens
for the world!
10 things that I liked about Chennai
Speakers Forum
1. Highly energetic members - most of
them youngsters
2. Very creative club officers -
constantly innovating and seeking
feedback for improvement
3. Classroom sessions offering
opportunity to every member to
practice in an informal setting
4. High Standards - Meeting starts on
time, Agenda & Minutes of the
meeting sent regularly, Flyers to
promote club/individuals'
achievements in Facebook, VPE
lines up role players well in
advance, Ribbons & Banners
displayed in every meeting
5. Members go outside of the club and
contribute in mentoring other clubs,
organizing contests/conferences,
and conducting educational
workshops
6. Has many champion speakers - who
have won laurels to the club
7. Good way to begin/end a week - by
participating in CSF meetings on
Sunday mornings
8. Members who do homework
before their performance - there is
always something to learn from
others during the meeting, even if
you are just an audience
9. Nominal fee
10. Meeting happens in the heart of the
city at a very accessible location !
Why I like CSF?? - DTM Saro Velrajan
The race is not won by the swift or the battle by the
strong.
Victory and Success becomes the byproduct to
the mind that has the power to adapt to
circumstances and the will to look beyond
today’s glory.
Two years ago (it doesn’t seem like it), the office
of Chennai Toastmasters Club decided to adapt
and look beyond. The result of which is the
100th meeting of Chennai Speaker’s Forum
that we celebrate today.
100th meeting. The pressure is on to do
something memorable!
Imagine Sachin’s pressure to score his 100th
run every match, or even the 100th 100!
CELEBRATIONS DTM Aditya Maheswaran
The 100th meeting of CSF is a landmark
and would never have been possible
without the toil, sweat and passion
sustained over 2 years and over 99
meetings.
Today is a celebration of that VPE who
meticulously prepared the agenda, of that
SAA who gracefully greeted the guests, of
that senior member who volunteered to
mentor the club and members, of that ah-
counter who gave his/her report with such
finesse.
Because it is not in milestones that we see
excellence, it is in the pathway that it lies –
sometimes unnoticed, sometimes
unrecognized. And today let us celebrate
such untold stories and unsung heroes!
200 is just 100 away! But it doesn’t matter.
101 needs work to be done
Always with love,
DTM Aditya Maheswaran
If you had read the sports column of 12th December 1988, you would have come across this quote: “No one can stop a Force whose time has come”.
It was prominently highlighted marking the arrival of the GOD OF CRICKET, Sachin Tendulkar. On this momentous occasion of 100th meeting celebrations, I cannot stop but compare Chennai Speakers Forum (CSF) with Sachin Tendulkar, a Force whose time has come and no one can stop it.
Energetic Club Officers, Enthusiastic Members, Eventful Meetings, the secrets of CSF’s success in endless. There are clubs that produce great communicators and there are clubs that produce great leaders. However to me CSF is one of those few clubs
that produce both great communicators and leaders. This holistic growth of CSF is admirable and is the remarkable achievement of its Past and Present Club officers. Today looking back, I revere CSF’s journey and admire the way it has become a model club for all the other clubs in Chennai.
I signed up to be a charter member of CSF and I believe it is one of the best decisions I have ever taken. Wishing CSF to hit hundred hundreds in years to come
Proud to be a CSF-ian!
Proud to be a CSF-ian!
- TM Rajesh Natarajan
Some may call it a mystery,
For some it may be an adventure
It enraptures some
Some think of it as an experience
Many have tried to define it
But definitions always varied.
Some amidst comforts make it miserable
While some in spite of misery, enjoy it.
This is life.
Life can be made a luxury.
It can be made interesting.
It could be filled with fun.
It could be entertaining.
It changes on one’s outlook towards it.
Life depends on one’s attitude towards it
And
A positive attitude can brighten one’s life.
Life, a mystery! TM Athira
Humans are social animals, who live in a
society called Techno Age. Life has
moved away too fast for humans to stop
and enjoy the beauty of it.
Today we do not need another human
being for anything, yes anything. We get
almost every need satisfied by
technology, phones, tablets and Kindle.
We are slowly losing the human
touch.
Yesterday I was travelling by train. I
noticed that the moment one sits in the
train, they make or get a call and then
it’s the journey with the mobile, either
listening to music or chatting over
Whatsapp. Or take out the tablet or
laptop and watch movies or sitcoms.
There was a time when I remember;
when we used to get into a train and
immediately start socialising.
Sir, where are you from?
Where are you going?
What do you do?
All the things which are very personal
There are even instances where people
go to the extent of becoming a broker for
a marriage proposal!!
Today we have lost track of
humanity and more importantly the
Art of Socialising.
It’s not only Facebook or Twitter that
are means of socialising.
During travel, there are individuals who
push, nudge, stamp or may kick your
ankle. These things happen, yes, some
times by mistake.
The point of concern is not being able
to say Sorry, Excuse Me, or I
Apologise.
Let’s Say Thanks, Sorry, Please TM Raghavender Matam
Life is the name of purpose, struggle, love, dedication and a number of feelings and emotions. Life shows its true colors with time. It depends upon how you look towards life and what is your strategy of leading an ideal life.
Life takes a number of turns during its whole span. Life may not be kind to you all the time. There are tough times which really test your courage and your capabilities of facing unfavorable situations.
People who just close their eyes to avoid facing the hardships of life are cowards.
Remember that nothing can be done
without trying, without striving hard. If there were no such thrills in life, it would be quite boring and monotonous. In other words, life tests you all the time.
“Life is different from a teacher because teacher teaches a lesson and takes the exam but life takes exam first and then teaches a lesson.”
Do not waste your life. Life should have some purpose. Identify your aim, head towards your destiny and spend your entire life in achieving your goals. This is what we call life.
It is a wise saying that time waits for no one. We’ve got to be wise in choosing our priorities so as not to
waste any of our precious time.
Keep on trying to get your goals and don’t lose hope. It is said by Paulo Coelho:
“When you want something, the entire universe conspires in helping you to achieve it.”
Life is worthless without hope. Hope is the key element in life which never lets you down and keeps your morals high. Always be optimistic and have faith in God.
Everything happens for a reason. Spread optimism instead of pessimism. It will light up your life positively.
Remember:
“The darkest hour of night comes just before the dawn!”
Life TM Karthikeyan Elumalai
"If livelihood is to live then what is
life?" thundered 'Debashis
Chatterjee', educational speaker at
Reverberations 2012 at Cochin.
I didn’t know about what others felt
but I for one was so bemused and
amused by that statement that I
instantly wanted to know what life
really meant. Fellow Toastmasters,
since then I have sincerely been trying
to find out what life really means in
my own perception.
At times I felt being successful is all
that is in life. Becoming a DTM in
July this year was a great achievement
for me as a Toastmaster. The very fact
that nearly 100 toastmasters cutting
across Clubs and Divisions had come
to listen to me speak made me feel so
very special that even before I started
to give my speech I felt loved, cared
and special in life.
At this juncture I asked myself “Is this
the meaning of life that I was
searching for?” For a moment, I felt,
“yes, this is it!” After a week, I felt the
emotion and jubilation of becoming a
DTM pass over and I realized life is
more than what I thought it to be.
To be honest with you readers, as of
now what I have comprehended as to
what life is, is that it is doing small
work with lots of love, passion,
commitment and compassion
for other people.
Because, as a toastmaster when you
help others succeed, then I believe
that life completes one full circle.
Finally in the very own words of
Mother Teresa "when you become
successful you have harnessed
your potential and when you
help others to become
successful your life becomes
purposeful and meaningful.”
God Bless!!!
Life in my eyes DTM Rajeev Nambiar
To improve my COMMUNICATION skill..
I was pushed into toastmasters with NO WILL...
I entered the Ruby hall with trembling FEAR..
Seeing the presentations, I cursed God,
“Why have you sent me here...?”
I sat there in silence, gazing ONE by ONE..
When I was called to SPEAK.. I was DONE!
Stuttering and stammering, I did it with flaws..
To my surprise there was a great APPLAUSE..!
I made up my mind to win the same,
To do better, I got into the game!!!
Toastmasters twist the tongue of even the dumb...
So salutes to our CHENNAI SPEAKERS FORUM !!!
CEASELESS CSF! TM Rohnie
“Our little Champ” 1. Hello Teddy bear lady, you have been to
a district level international speech
contest. How does it feel to step on
stage every time ?
For me, stepping on any stage is an
overwhelming feeling. When it came to
district contest, it was a different and new
experience for me. It was the speech that I
believed in completely. I was afraid that it
was too childish for a professional platform
like Toastmasters. But, I went on the stage
and delivered my speech. That day I realized
conviction in your speech is what
matters.
2. According to you how a speaker must
prepare?
For me, the major thing the speaker must do
is the time that a speaker puts into before he
scripts and the time he spends for the topic,
the time he takes to decide the emotion that
he is going to leave the audience with, the
time to takes to decide on the genre like is
that going to be humorous, love or fantasy.
At the end of the speech what he wants the
audience to get back home, with a smile on their
face or sadness in their heart? If that preparation
is done properly and exhaustively, scripting a
speech becomes very easy and the practice also
becomes very easy as you are speaking from
your heart. Scripting the speech is the
most important for a speaker according to me.
3. How did it feel to be a charter
president of a club even before
turning 20?
Oh wow, that was one of the best experiences.
When CSF was formed, it was like a baby for
us. Usually babies have 2 parents, but CSF had
33 parents, 33 charter members plus
CHENNAI TOASTMASTERS CLUB, which is
the parent club. It was great and lot of people
who were supportive with me. I wasn’t sure if I
could carry it off, but there were people backing
me up, that I could do it and I loved the
experience.
4. What is that one quality you feel
would stay with you forever?
Why?
As a speaker, I always feel that I want the best to
come out of everybody. Especially when I do
evaluation, it is for the best of the
speaker and I want to carry out in my
personal life as well. I love to see the best in
everybody. That’s one quality I wish to carry
forward in my life as well.
5. You get one moment to relive. What
would that be?
That would be the day of chartering of CSF 18th
September 2011. It was the day when we were all so
excited, so nervous. It was a mix of emotions. We
dint know how it will go ahead, how CSF will be formed.
That is the moment for not just me and for lot of other
charter members is the one day that they want to relive.
6. Being a CA student, what do you see
as your profit and loss, being a
toastmaster?
Oh, profit- there are a lot of profits, I think I become a
better person, better speaker, better friend, better human
being and I have tried to become a better leader. There are
humongous profits of toastmasters. It is about what you
choose and where you take it. Toastmasters have just pluses
to provide.Loss- Well, my mom says that I don’t devote as
much as time as I should to her now. Thanks to
toastmasters. That would be the loss that I have.
7. Have you ever woken up screaming
from a nightmare? Care to share?
Oh, of course yes. One of the nightmares I
want to share would be the day before the
international speech contest semifinals. The
nightmare went like this. I imagined the
HOTEL HILTON was not our venue
anymore. We were supposed to speak in a
car park. I reached the stage late. I was
called upon, everybody was searching me
and I dint know where I was. Everybody
pushed me on stage. I forgot my speech for
the first 30 seconds and everybody was
laughing at me. That was the nightmare that I
had the day before the international speech
contest.
8. Tell us about one person whom you
look up to always?
The one person who I look up to a lot in
toastmasters, he is the person who brought me
to toastmasters, made me realize that I can
speak and that I have the speaking quality within
me. He is the person possibly the best mentor I
could have ever asked for. He is DTM Aditya
Maheswaran. I share a wonderful rapport
with him as a friend, as a mentor. He just did
not show me the path and say walk on this path.
He has made me discover my own path of speaking and I think he has really made me
grow as a person and a speaker.
9. Tell us one superior quality that a
human being must possess?
The superior quality that a human being should
possess is to realize everybody is
superior in their own field. When
people realize that the person standing opposite
to them has something to offer, you have
something to offer, and when these ideas clash,
a beautiful creation can come out. When people
realize that they are not superior at everything
but at something, that’s when this great
harmony great team effort, you grow as a
person, people around you grow as people and
everybody grow at the same pace. And I guess
that is the quality that everybody must possess.
The “Innovative” Icon
1. You are known to be one of the most enthusiastic toastmasters, known for your infectious energy. How are you always energetic?
I believe in learning and to learn, you need to be enthusiastic and energetic.
When I come for the meetings, I try to be energetic and enthusiastic so that I can catch each and everything that comes across me and learn something from it.
2. What are you really passionate about?
My goal in life is to become a politician because I am passionate about serving the country.
I have taken a few steps like setting up my own charity foundation named “Yours friendly foundation”. I would also like to become a social entrepreneur with an MBA degree from one of the top B – Schools. After that I want to get into politics because if politics fails, I have my social entrepreneurship and if that also fails, I still have my NGO to concentrate on.
3. I am sure you had several memorable moments during your college days. Tell us one, particularly embarrassing episode.
I did my graduation in RMK Engineering College, which is a strict college. We had to wear lab coats for our practical sessions. During one such session, the fan in the lab was not working. I was sweating very badly and so I decided to remove my coat. When the faculty asked me why I wasn’t wearing my coat, I could not explain my reason.
I ended up saying things like fan not rotating
and the entire class started laughing at me. That
day I realised that communication isn’t going to
be easy for me and I have to work hard. So
that’s how I joined the Toastmasters
International. Although that was one of the
most embarrassing episodes of my
college life, I did not take it that way.
Instead I looked at it as a stepping stone
and that is what has brought me to where I am
today.
4. Any memorable or funny moments
with CSF?
I had many special moments in CSF because I was
lucky enough to be associated with the club right from
start. Initially I was part of the ex-comm as VP-E.
There were no funny moments in particular, but every
single moment, the way we worked together, we
ensured that the fun portion was always there.
We used to have ex-com meetings at different places
so that we could enjoy and at the same time work.
5. What changes did you bring into the
club when you were the president?
Every term has its own goals and challenges. The
previous term, we chartered the club and our
challenge was in terms of finance. We focussed on
finance because the Dollar rate was fluctuating at that
time and we wanted to make our treasury look good.
So we came up with a model to ensure that we
could increase our finance and eventually we
were able to do it.
6. Can you explain the model?
We had a treasurer in place. We saw what the treasury
had. We had a fixed mind to increase the treasury, to
say X amount in six months. We came across many
ways and the most promising way was to get
new members for the club. So with that idea in
mind we set a goal for
the VP-PR saying that the responsibility of the VP-PR is
to bring 12 guests per month and the responsibility of the
VP-M is to convert 3 of them into members per month.
So by that way we were able to get 17 to 18
members in six months and this eventually helped us
to increase our cash flows.
7. What changes has CSF brought about in
you?
As I said, the person I was years before and the person I am
today is because of Toastmasters. When it comes to
Toastmasters, CSF is the club where I spent most of my time
in. It gave me so many opportunities and I feel that CSF is
the place where I grew as a LEADER.
8. Your words of wisdom for aspiring leaders
and speakers?
To aspiring leaders and speakers, always remember that
there is no end to learning. The minute we feel that
we have learnt everything; we cannot progress in our
journey. There is a quote in the movie Rescue Dawn,
“Empty what is full. Fill what is empty”. That’s
one quote which keeps me going even today.
9. You are granted one wish. If you can bring
back someone from the dead, who would it
be?
Probably, that one person would be my grandfather. The
reason being why i said my grandfather was because I saw
him suffering and die of cancer. He was one person who gave
me so much care and affection. When I used to go to my
native to visit my grandparents, what I learnt from him was how
important care and affection is in life, which we have been missing in
the so called materialistic world. If I say that I want to serve the
people, it’s because of that enormous love and affection he
showed on me and I want to give this love and affection
back to the society by serving the people.
The Serious Humor
King!!
1. You have gone up to the division
level of the humorous speech contest. Any day or competition that will stay with you for eternity?
Well, I have lots of memorable days like the day I got married, the days my son and daughter were born etc. To quote Toastmasters in particular, I think the most memorable day so far would be the 2nd of January 2011 when I entered the Ruby Hall as a guest to attend one of the meetings of Chennai Toastmasters. It was on this day that I had decided to join the Toastmasters International.
2. What would you like to see more
of in the future development of CSF?
It is the enthusiastic members who
help the club perform well and take the club
to the next level. So what I would like to see more of is the presence of enthusiastic members, willing to dedicate themselves for the club by taking up leadership roles.
3. What do you think is the best
quality of CSF?
As usual, it is the youthfulness which
makes this club standout. Also the camaraderie with senior toastmasters, the little
comments we make during the meeting make CSF meetings livelier.
4. The stage is set. You are about to
give one of your best speeches. Who
would you like to compete against?
Which great name would you like
among the audience?
I always like to compete with myself because when I go
on stage what matters the most is how well I compete
with myself, how well I overcome my minus points before
delivering my speech. Coming to the audience, I would
like to have the presence of DTM Karthick Srinivasan,
DTM Saro Velrajan and DTM Nina John because these
toastmasters observe each and everything in a speech. Even
the smallest joke which other people do not notice,
they notice. And once they start laughing the rest of
the audience join them. So this gives me the extra
energy I need for delivering my speech.
5. What role does humour play in your
day-to-day life?
Humour makes life simply and easier. It lightens
my day. Be it at a traffic signal or wherever, it is those
funny little things which you observe and laugh at that
makes your heavy day lighter.
6. There are lots of moments you
laughed out of happiness, but tell us
one moment you cried out of
happiness?
When we achieve something great, tears will come
instantly. For example, when I gave my ice breaker
speech, my CC4 speech and few other speeches
including my humorous speech at the division level
contest, people were laughing throughout my speech.
Although tears did not come out, I felt happy
that I made a huge group laugh. Before joining
Toastmasters, I didn’t know that I could give a humorous
speech. In fact, after I gave my ice breaker, one of the
toastmasters told me to participate in the humorous
speech contest. It was Toastmasters which brought
out the humour in me.
7. How did it feel to be amongst young
members? You are elder and had that
any impact with these people?
I never take my age seriously probably because of the
way I was brought up. I mingle with everyone. In fact
my mentor TM Arna is in her twenties. To me age is
only a number.
8. What is your vision?
My vision is that whatever I do I want to do
it constantly and make it a big way. I do
little things on a daily basis like improving my ability to
speak very well with a flow. I love reading books and I
want to take my reading to the next level i.e. To become
an excellent writer especially in screen play where I can
learn and do things in a different way.
9. Any particular person you admire?
My favourite writer is Sujatha. He is my
inspiration not only in terms of writing
skills but also because of his
personality. He does not like anyone to take him as
their role model, but to me he is my role model.
Great leaders always say “Success is
99% perspiration and 1 %
inspiration.”
We all do the 99%
perspiration but
We miss out on the 1%
inspiration.
We look for inspiration everywhere
and come up with great leaders of all
times like Mahatma Gandhi, Swami
Vivekananda.
But, we have leaders amidst us
from whom we can learn to be
great leaders.
Chennai Speakers Forum is one
such forum which has many such
inspiring leaders.
Distinguished Toastmasters always say
that “Leadership today has moved
from Grey hair to black hair and it is
this leadership that has taken the
Toastmasters forum to the next level in
District 82”.
One such intangible values that CSF
has given me, is the number of
friends I have made.
Friends who are always there to
give you food for thought and
sometimes even actual food.
Friends, who do not expect
anything from you, except your
own self improvement and growth.
Opportunity is given to all to bring
out their best on stage and
encouragement is provided to them
who are taking their first steps.
The biggest struggle we face is to
make the right choice from the
options given but we forget that there
is nothing called as the right
choice.
We only make choice and then we
make those choices right!!
So take this opportunity to make your
choices RIGHT...!!!!
Choices TM Badri Narayanan
Imagine…
An astronaut landing on moon without an oxygen
mask??
That is how I was struggling for breath when I landed at
Chennai Speakers Forum for the first time!!
I was to deliver a speech but the people in the audience were already established CHAMPIONS;
I was yet to take the first step forward..
I had so many 'What ifs' in my mind;
"What if I fail to pull of the speech?"
"What if the evaluator rips me apart?”
But thanks to the brilliant display of camaraderie at CSF!
None of my fears were close to becoming true.
I totally felt at home, the warmth and hospitality put me at complete ease
I realized CSF is an extended family that takes care of
your needs & ensures at the end of the meeting, you always have a lot to take home!
CSF to me is easily one of the best clubs with an unique mix :
Where "Young talent" blends with "Rich Experience"!
CSF = YOUNG TALENT + RICH EXPERIENCE
a Captivating club
that owns Scintillating speakers who
epitomize Flamboyance in public speaking!
CSF CSF CSF…!
TM Akshaya
My first visit to Chennai Speakers Forum was on your 75th meeting – I had dropped in to meet Jivitha and Uday, who were, rather unfortunately, teamed up with me for a sub committee @ Ovation. The 75th meeting was a riot, and I ended up regretting not having visited the club earlier. I have since attended about 5 meetings at CSF, and not once have I regretted sacrificing my sleep on a Sunday morning .
I can see why CSF has a lot of dual members – you have a young crowd and a lot of fun during your meetings – it’s sort of like love at first sight, and despite already having a girlfriend, you can’t resist the temptation of having flings with this girl every Sunday morning. Weird analogies aside, a lot of my closest friends are members of CSF, and I am envious of the fun and frolicking that takes place during the meetings. If I were to describe the members of CSF, it would
have to be : Charming, Savvy, and Friendly. Onwards and upwards, CSF.
Love -TM Sarathy Srinivasan
Facebook Posts Here are some interesting posts by our members …
Oxymoron is a figure of
speech, by which a locution
produces an incongruous,
seemingly self-contradictory
effect such as:
browse thoroughly
deadly life
bitter sweetness
old news
happily married
awfully good
pretty ugly
What is the only speciality of the word "UNDERGROUND" that no other word in the English language possesses?
Answer: It is the only word in English that starts
with ‘und’ and ends with ‘und’ as well.
Friends are angels who lift our feet when our own wings have trouble remembering how to fly. Rashida Rowe
I am the beginning of the end, and the end of
time and space. I am essential to creation, and I
surround every place. What am I?
Answer: the letter ‘E’
The most beautiful Gods creation, Is not the round moon, Is not the clear sky, Is not the deepest ocean, But is the curve on your face that manages to create million other curves *Curve= Smile
Few interesting English facts:
1. All male terms are shorter than the female terms except for “widower”
2. "Rhythms" is the longest word in English without a vowel
3. Word with only one vowel, which occurs six times: “indivisibility”.
4. Find out the meaning of "Pneumonoultramicroscopicsilicovolcanocon" (longest word with 40 letters).
Answer: It is a word invented in imitation of polysyllabic medical terms, alleged to mean ‘a lung disease caused by the inhalation of very fine sand and ash dust (mostly volcanic silica ash dust)’ but occurring only as an instance of a very long word.
If you can be the best you can and keep bettering it!
If you can be the role model to your family, friends
and community!
If you can be the change you want to see!
Our country, world will change!
Turn all your expectations unto yourself!
Happy Independence Day!
Contranym is a word that means exactly the opposite of its own meaning in two different sentences.
For example, the word “cleave” means to set apart or to join.
“Thirty years before, we
had Johnny CASH, William
HOPE and Steve JOBS... But
now, we have no CASH, no
HOPE and no JOBS."
Great is the reward to those who help and give without thought of self, as it is impossible to be unselfish without gain!
Highlights of CSF
Classroom Sessions
CSF is among very few clubs in Chennai that
hold classroom sessions every week. Our sessions
have dealt with evaluation, vocal variety , table
topics, body language and gestures.
Book Club Review
Some of the books reviewed during the classroom
sessions are Rich Dad Poor Dad by Robert Kiyosaki
and Science of Getting Rich by Wallace Wattles.
Pirates of the Gavel
An initiative by D82 to promote
member involvement in other clubs.
Ribbons
CSF’s proud achievements include:
Talk up Toastmasters Award
– 5 new members (FEB-MAR 2012)
Founders Award
Beat the Clock Award
– 5 new members (MAY-JUNE 2013)
Smedley Award
– 5 new member (AUG-SEPT 2012)
Smedley Award
– 5 new member (AUG-SEPT 2013)
Home Club of the Division Governor
Talk up Toastmasters Award
– 5 new members (FEB-MAR 2013)
President’s Distinguished Club (2012-2013)
President TM Aashish Amalraj
Treasurer TM Goutham Varma
VP-Education TM Pranav Vinod Kumar
Secretary TM Uday Kiran
VP-Membership TM Jivitha
Sgt. at Arms TM Kannan Sri
VP-Public Relations TM Priyadharshini
Imm. Past President TM Vivekanandan
Meet the Executive Committee
We are family!