SPEAKERS DIGEST CSF, Club No. 2009282 October-2012

Candlelight 50th Meet!

CRESCENDO:

A Day of Extravaganza

From the Editors’ Desk

There are people who come into this world, grow,

learn, live and die; just like a fish in a sea with

millions of fishes living together. And there are also

people who come into this world, grow, learn, speak

and die as a triumphant warrior. The latter indeed

live forever virtually in our minds. Those are called

Leaders owing to have left a lasting impression.

Toastmasters is a factory which keeps producing

such leaders who leave a lasting impression.

Perseverance is the buzz word for success.

Toastmasters teach how sheer hard work and

perseverance can be cultivated to achieve success.

It is this constant endeavor and perseverance which

lead me to an attempt to bring the best newsletter to

you. I feel great pleasure in thanking TM Kiran

Sarma, VP-PR for giving us the opportunity to be

the Editors for this edition; and last but not the least,

editorial team owe extreme gratitude to all members

who contributed their articles for this edition of

Speakers Digest.

There are fundamentally two different kinds of

speakers: those who use reasoning, and those who

speak from the heart. They reach two different sorts

of people, those who understand through reason,

and those who understand through the heart.

Toastmasters churn out both.

It is only with Gratitude that Life becomes Rich. The

Attitude of Gratitude is important and is stressed in

a book by the magic author Rhonda Byrne. Count

your blessings every day and let the spirit of

celebration continue to spread its wings. I thank all

who have contributed to this wonderful newsletter.

I feel grateful to Pravin and Kiran for giving me this

opportunity to be the Editor and also thank

everyone who contributed with their articles.

Editor Speaks

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TM Khushwant Singh Sansowa TM Milton Zen

Index

From the President’s Desk_______________________________________________________________1

A Story of Love and Loss__________________________________________________________________2

A way to get what you want______________________________________________________________3

City of Universities_________________________________________________________________________5

Dark vs Light________________________________________________________________________________7

Mentoring Matters_________________________________________________________________________9

Maatran____________________________________________________________________________________12

Stop Reading ______________________________________________________________________________13

I am an Extremely Selfish Person______________________________________________________16

The Beauty that Lasts____________________________________________________________________17

Power of Subconscious Mind___________________________________________________________18

Candlelight 50th Meet!___________________________________________________________________21

CRESCENDO: A Day of Extravaganza___________________________________________________22

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It gives me immense pleasure to reach you all

through this column. Month of October was so

special that our members made the club proud at

Division level by contesting and taking up roles. TM

Vivek won the humorous level first runner up and

TM Arna Chugani emerged as winner in Evaluation

contest in Division level. They gave their best in

every contest to ensure they make our club proud.

One common similarity between them is, they both

BELIEVE in themselves.

The word “BELIEF” brings me old but fresh

memories. Remember those days when we all were

kids. Remember those times when we were thrown

high in air by our mom and dad. When we were high

in air, we were never scared but we smiled, we

laughed and even giggled. All these happened

because of one thing, we had BELIEF in them, that

they will hold us back safely.

A similar scenario happened a year back but with

one difference. Group of leaders created Chennai

Speakers Forum. The first set of ex-comm was

elected. They threw the ex-comm in the air that was

filled with “Responsibilities” and “Challenges”. The

difference was that they had the “BELIEF” in the ex-

comm who were in the air. Can you guess what the

result of that “BELIEF” was? Chennai Speakers

Forum celebrated its 50th meeting in grand style

with loads of achievements and has become one of

the finest clubs in Chennai. The club produced

many prominent leaders and scintillating speakers.

All these happened because of “BELIEF”. If one can

have the belief, nothing can stop oneself in

achieving what one wants.

With the way the club is functioning, I have strong

BELIEF that this club is going to achieve more and

will become number one club not just in

Area/Division/District but in entire world. Wishing

you all a Happy Diwali and closing the note with

GODSPEED!

-TM Pravin

President Speaks

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1

From the President’s Desk

When I first met Brindha, a senior and the

uncrowned dancing queen of my college, she

was demonstrating a previously performed

dance at a friend’s request. An excellent

Bharathanatyam dancer, she would transform

every beat into an expression. Her movements

would mesmerize everyone. A classmate of

mine, a dancer herself stood rooted to the spot

wondering if she would ever be able to reach

Brindha’s level of perfection.

While on stage, Brindha delivered her

performance with confidence. But, off stage she

was timid, shy and suffered from inferiority

complex. Dusky, she felt her complexion ruined

her self-confidence. If there was someone who

made her feel beautiful, it was her boyfriend.

She worshipped the very ground he walked on.

Unlike some friends, she conducted her

relationship with dignity. As the time of

graduation approached, things started to go

wrong. Her boyfriend wanted to pursue his

masters. He was afraid to agitate and anger his

parents and ended the relationship. It broke her

heart. She lost interest in everything, even in

dancing.

Few days later, a friend told me that Brindha

was no more. Brindha had committed suicide

by hanging herself. At her funeral, seeing her

lifeless body, I couldn’t understand why she

had chosen to end her life. I tried to imagine the

pain she would have suffered from, that made

her to take this extreme step. For a few days, I

was frozen with grief. Then, I felt angry at the

easy escape she had sought from life, unable

to face the challenge life had thrown in her way,

uncaring for the gifts life had offered her.

While her death was a tragedy, it taught me a

valuable lesson. Love is an emotion that makes

our life more beautiful. But often we mistake

attraction as love and think love itself as life,

ignoring the potential we have. Her death told

me the music may stop any time. But an

excellent dancer (in life) is someone who knows

his/her moves.

A Story of Love and Loss -TM Padmaprabha

Opinion

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I want to get things done. How can I go about to

achieve it?

Think about this situation for a moment.

Imagine that you are the owner of a mobile

company. You are selling a mobile for Rs

15,000 (Model M) and a lower-end model for

Rs 8,000 (Model L). Both the models have

comparable features, but of course there are

more limitations on the lower model.

The sale of Model L (Low-end) is very steady,

but the sale of Model M (Mid-Level) is dipping

every quarter. What is the best way to boost the

sale of the Mid-Level model? The answer might

be surprising, but it is a very effective one.

The answer is to introduce a new comparable

high end Model (Model H) for say Rs 19000. A

high end

product will probably meet needs of only small

portion of the market, and therefore you will

make lower sales. But introduction of a high

end model serves a greater purpose; a high

end product actually increases the sales of a

mid-level product. (Model M)

How does this happen?

Two weeks ago, my father lost his mobile, and

we went to a showroom to buy a new one. The

sales man immediately showed me three

mobiles of comparable features. Just like the

three models above.

High end -Model H for Rs.19000

Mid-Level- Model M for Rs.15000

Lower end -Model L for Rs.8000

Now what do you think we chose? As any

average customer, we chose the Mid–level

Model M considering a compromise between

cost and quality. What if there was no Model H,

the high end model? There is a good chance

that we would have gone for the lower model

instead of the mid-range model in the absence

of higher model.

Most of the average consumers arrive at a

decision

In Depth

A way to get what you want -TM Nijil Chandran

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after prolonged comparison between the higher

model and lower model. Most of us will choose

the middle one as a compromise on cost and

quality. There might be a few who are inclined

more towards the cost attribute, they will

probably buy the lower model and those who

are obsessed with quality will go on to pay for

the higher end model. Knowing that the

average customer will go for the mid-level

product, a good strategy can define what you

mid-level model is. And you can sell more of

what you actually want to sell.

Having a high end product actually boosts sale

of a middle or lower end product because of the

price difference. The lesson here is not to stop

selling your high end premium product just

because you are not making enough sales. If

you drop that of your product list, you might end

up going further down in sales. So what is the

parallel in our daily life? I’m not a mobile seller?

A very straightforward and often used every

day tactic is behind all this. Unconsciously, we

use it to get our things done. Awareness of this

technique can help us to create plans to get

what you want in tough situations.

If you want to get something done, construct a

set of alternatives around your favorite option, a

better one and not so appealing one. With two

new options covering your favorite option, the

chances of getting your favorite option

increases multifold in comparison with just

asking for what you want.

You might not end up with what you actually

wanted all the time. But close enough most of

the time.

Idea courtesy: Authors: N.J Goldstein, S.J Martin,

R.B.Cialdini

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SIMPLICITY: It is to be plain and artless.

It is to avoid diplomacy, cunningness and

crookedness. It is to be simple in dress,

behavior, approach, speech, and food. It is not

to twist words and topics.

GENEROSITY: It is to have a large heart and

not to be parsimonious. It is to be liberal in

whatever one gives. It is to derive delight in the

joys of others. It has two blood sisters called

mercy and charity. It is the fulfillment of an

amalgam of nobility, magnanimity and charity.

VERACITY: Veracity is the quality of being true

or the habit of telling the truth. It is to

stick to one’s promises and not to

compromise or exaggerate or twist

facts.

ADAPTABILITY: This supplies the ability to

change. It is to understand the natural tendency

of people and adjust one’s mode of approach to

them. It is to adjust in such a way as to be

pleasing to others. Likewise, it holds good to

situations, events and environments. It is to

joyfully bear with the eccentricities of others.

HUMILITY: Humility is to respect everybody. In

Indian context, it is to bow with folded hands

before everyone. It is not to feel proud of and

one does not believe that he or she is better

than other people. It is to consider none inferior

to him or her. It is to love and respect all and

serve them with affection.

EQUANIMITY: Success & failure, pain &

pleasure, feats & defeats, congratulations &

commiserations are treated equally by this

virtue. It is to remain calm and bear insult, injury

and disrespect patiently. It is also not to be

elated by praise, pleasure, success and honor.

It is to behave alike towards friends and foes. It

never lets anything to disturb one’s inner

peace.

INTEGRITY: It is to culture & nurture

an integral personality. It is to

become a person of lofty ideals &

moral principles. It is to be fair, honest and

transparent in all our tasks and dealings. It is to

lead a life of righteousness. It lets moral

soundness and rectitude wafts their pleasant

aroma from one.

NOBILITY: It is the quality of elevation of mind

and exaltation of character, ideals and conduct.

It is to shun mean-mindedness. It is not to look

into the defects of others but appreciate the

good qualities of others. It is to be dignified in

bearing.

City of Universities -TM Patt

Speaking Tree

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PURITY: To be pure at heart, let us uproot

anger, greed, hatred, jealousy lust and other

evil tendencies. It is to be pure in thought, body,

dress and surroundings. It is to think of the well-

being of others. It is to observe physical,

mental, moral, emotional and spiritual hygiene.

REGULARITY: It is an attribute characterized

by a fixed principle. It is to be regular in our

daily habits, work and practices. It is to be

clock-like in our duties. It is to do the right thing

in the right time. It drives away worry, anxiety,

and stress. It enables us to achieve excellence

in all our tasks.

SERENITY: It is to be tranquil within. It fills the

mind with inner peace and joy that radiate

through a serene countenance. A serene

countenance is calm, composed, confident and

cheerful. It does not betray any violent emotion.

It is like a surface of a still lake.

TENACITY: It is to be steadfast and not to

vacillate. It is a fusion of doggedness,

persistence and perseverance. It is not to

compromise on fundamental principles, not to

break the vows and not to swerve from the

path. With tenacity, values become more

valuable than life.

We live in a city that keeps expanding. There

are many good cities that reside in us. Do these

cities keep expanding? A digestive reading and

a stimulating thought process shall keep

amplifying these virtues in us. The process also

invites many of their cousins for a joint family

living pleasure.

Read, Research and Rejoice

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For years, it has been believed that electric

bulbs emit light, but recent information has

proven otherwise. Electric bulbs don't emit light;

they absorb dark. Thus, we call these bulbs

Dark-Absorbers.

The Dark-Absorber Theory and the existence of

dark-absorbers prove that dark has mass and is

heavier than light.

First, the basis of the

Dark-Absorber Theory

is that electric bulbs

absorb dark. For

example, take the

Dark-Absorber in the

room you are in. There

is much less dark right next to it than there is

elsewhere. The larger the Dark-Absorber, the

greater is its capacity to absorb the dark. Dark-

Absorbers in the parking lot have a much

greater capacity to absorb dark than the ones in

this room.

As it is with all things, Dark-Absorbers don't last

forever. Once they are full of dark, they can no

longer absorb. This is proven by the dark spot

on a full Dark-Absorber.

A candle is a primitive Dark-Absorber. A new

candle has a white wick. You can see that after

the first use, the wick turns black, representing

all the dark that has been absorbed into it. If

you put a pencil next to the wick of an operating

candle, it will turn black. This is because it got

in the way of the dark flowing into the candle.

One of the disadvantages of these primitive

Dark-Absorbers is their limited range.

There are also portable

Dark-Absorbers. In these,

the bulbs can't handle all

the dark by themselves

and must be aided by a

Dark Storage Unit. When

the Dark Storage Unit is

full, it must be either emptied or replaced before

the portable Dark-Absorber can operate again.

Dark has mass. When dark goes into a Dark-

Absorber, friction from the mass generates

heat. Thus, it is not wise to touch an operating

Dark-Absorber. Candles present a special

problem as the mass must travel into a solid

wick instead of through clear glass. This

generates a great amount of heat and therefore

it's not wise to touch an operating candle-type

Dark-Absorber.

In Depth

-TM Jagannath Panigrahi

Dark vs Light

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Also, dark is heavier than light. If you were to

swim just below the surface of the lake, you

would see a lot of light. If you were to slowly

swim deeper and deeper, you would notice it

getting darker and darker. When you get really

deep, you would be in total darkness. This is

because the heavier dark sinks to the bottom of

the lake and the lighter light floats at the top.

This is why it is called light.

Finally, we must prove that dark is faster than

light. If you were to stand in a lit room in front of

a closed, dark closet, and slowly opened the

closet door, you would see the light slowly enter

the closet. But since dark is so fast, you would

not be able to see the dark leave the closet.

Next time you see what is called an electric

bulb, remember that it is really a Dark-

Absorber.

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8

“If an egg is broken by force outside, life ends.

If an egg is broken by the force inside, life

begins” … a famous quote that puts in a

nutshell what mentoring is all about. Mentoring

is the process of helping somebody to realize

their true potential. Mentoring is the art of

helping the egg to break using the force within.

In this article, I’m going to discuss about

mentoring, how a

mentor can help in

coaching a member,

and the steps

involved in

mentoring a

toastmaster.

Who is a Mentor?

A mentor is a CAR.

A mentor helps you

to reach your

destination faster by transferring his/her

knowledge, experience and skills.

Coach (C) - A mentor identifies your

potential, teaches you effective ways of

achieving your goals and helps you to

succeed

Advisor (A) - A mentor is the go to

person when you have questions /

doubts

Role Model (R) - A mentor inspires you

and persuades you to reach greater

heights

How can a Mentor help?

Mentors can help

both new and

experienced

toastmasters.

Like a mom who

assists her kid to

get adjusted to

the world,

mentors help

new members by

“easing the

transition”. A

new member who enters the club faces

unfamiliar situations & unfamiliar people. Like a

mom who teaches the basic life skills to you,

mentors help new members with the basic life

skills in toastmasters.

In Depth

Mentoring Matters - DTM Saro Velrajan

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Mentors explain what an “Ah Counter” is

… what a “Timer” is etc.,

Mentors educate you on the club

standards and customs

Mentors provide you individual attention

and support

Mentors shorten your learning curve

If a mom can teach everything, kids do not

have to go to school. Mentors also play the role

of a teacher. Like a teacher who assists his/her

student to learn advance skills, mentors help

experienced toastmasters to “develop special

skills”. An experienced toastmaster already

knows things like club standards, the meaning

of various roles in “Toastmasters” and other

basic toastmastering skills. However, an

experienced toastmaster may need to develop

special skills such as “Humorously speaking”,

“Motivational speaking” and “Leadership skills”.

A mentor can help you in refining your skills

and in learning new special skills

What are the qualities of a Mentor?

Having known what is mentoring, I know, you

want to be a mentor. What are the qualities that

you need to have or you should develop to be a

mentor? You just need to have the SPARK, to

be a mentor.

S (Supportive) – Help your mentees in

reaching their goals.

P (Patient) – Listen to your mentees

views

A (Available) – You should be available

to your mentees. You must have at least

15 minutes or more each week to help

with speeches and answer questions

R (Respectful) – Everyone is different.

A mentor should respect the differences

between himself, the mentee and others.

K (Knowledgeable) – First of all, you

should be knowledgeable and familiar

about the club, its operations, and the

educational program. You should’ve

completed several speeches in the basic

manual, served various meeting roles,

and develop enough personal speaking

skills to be of help to the mentee.

What are the steps involved in Mentoring?

Explain the various part of the

meeting (business section, TT, prepared

speeches and evaluations). Explain the

various roles in the meeting.

Orient the new members to Club

customs and procedures – For

example, taboo topics, how to use the

club mailing list, how to reach out to the

officers etc.,

Explain how to sign-up for various

roles – Ask the VPoE to schedule your

mentee’s Ice Breaker speech as soon as

possible. Advice the mentee how to sign-

up for roles and who to contact if he/she 10

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is scheduled to fill a meeting role, but is

unable to attend the meeting

Help with the

Speeches/Assignments – The first few

speeches are the most difficult ones to

come up with. This is because new

members are not only uncomfortable

speaking before a group, but also

speaking before strangers. Your

assistance can help mentee overcome

fears and get off to a good start.

Make mentees aware of resources –

TMI website, Club Library, TMI

Magazine, District/Division conferences,

Speech Contests etc.,

Acknowledge Progress and Provide

positive feedback– Assess where your

mentee is and provide constant

feedback on what they are good at and

what needs to be improved

For experienced toastmasters, a mentor

should offer suggestions for improving

their leadership skills by participating in

various division and district events,

introducing them to District offices,

serving Area Governor or helping to form

a new Toastmasters Club. What are the

books to read and how the mentee can

enhance their humorously speaking

skills?

Conclusion

Ask yourself the questions “Whom can I help

become familiar with our club? Whom can I

help learn new speaking or leadership skills?

Who can help me learn new speaking or

leadership skills?” A mentor/mentee

relationship provides many opportunities, offers

many challenges and has many rewards.

Experience them for yourself. Benefit from the

skills of a mentor – then, become a mentor and

share those benefits with others.

You don’t have to be great to start, but you’ve

to start to be great. If you wish to be a mentor

for someone, start now!

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Movies are entertainment. Some movies are

feel good, few make us think of our own

everyday actions with a social message and

others are thorough entertainers.

Maatraan falls under the category of thorough

entertainer. It blends a rare phenomenon of

conjoined twins with the plot that threatens

millions of lives as a result of consuming

genetically modified food. Centered on the

conjoined twins, Vimalan and Akilan the movie

revolves in investigating and exposing the

ulterior motives of their father. The first half

takes us on a ride with comical sequences in

the life of the contrasting characters Vimalan

and Akilan. It is beautifully crafted in such a

way that the conjoined twins are never looked

upon sympathetically. Peppy numbers shot in

exotic locations keep us glued to the screen.

The second half builds on the suspense and is

more of an investigative thriller that takes the

viewer across territories surpassing emotional

barriers. Intense, repetitive fight scenes shot in

close angle are an eye soar and tests the

patience of the viewer thereby failing to finish

strongly.

Actor Suriya plays the pivotal role of conjoined

twins and is there in almost every frame. He

gives life to the characters Vimalan and Akilan

with different ideologies and body languages

making the entire first half look so easy. He

reveres the audience with his energy level that

never dips throughout the movie. His graceful

dance moves are a treat to watch.

Kajal Agarwal as the bubbly female lead

establishes an instant connect with the

audience. Her stern delivery in second half,

facial expressions and screen presence add life

to the sequences.

Sachin Khedekar in the role of the conjoined

twins’ father holds the audience interests and

his efforts in bringing out fatherly care,

struggling scientist are commendable.

The use of Motion Capture Technology to

portray the conjoined twins and VFX handled

minutely shows on screen as the flawless real

life Suriya.

Maatraan is a one-time watch with its overdose

of commercial value and a painfully lengthy

storyline that fails to make a strong impact.

Movie Review

Maatraan - TM Aashish

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Life seemed to be caught in a rut! And I was

wondering what I was doing wrong.

I took a month leave to clean my room (besides

other things) and unfortunately at the end of it,

my room still looked the same.

If you are wondering how I clean my room, let

me elaborate my innovative and completely

useless technique. There are 3 main entities in

my room. My table, my bed and my cupboard.

And this is what I do.

Day 1, I clear my desk and place all the piles of

paper, used stationary, outdated cosmetics and

the zillion other things and place them on my

bed. And hey! My desk is clean!! I admire my

now neat desk and am determined that I will

follow the golden rule henceforth "The right

place for the right things, strictly!!"

Day 2, invariably some guest would arrive, and

I will have to hurriedly stash all the objects on

my bed into the cupboard. But at the end of the

day, I am satisfied that my desk and bed are

both somehow clean. Wow!

Day 3, well now all I have to do is organize my

cupboard. Before I arrange, I have to first clear

out the cupboard, right? Ok. I momentarily

suspend my golden rule and place them all

temporarily on my table. But a single cupboard

can hold only so much stuff. So while my

cupboard is neatly stacked, my desk is still

occupied.

Day 4, I look around my room. Hey am I not in

the same situation as I was in Day 1? A very

messy desk? And so the circle continues.

Have you ever placed a seashell close to your

ears, and heard the roar of the entire ocean

inside?

Opinion / Cover Story

Stop Reading - TM Nithya

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Very often when we pay attention to how we

deal with the small things in life, they will help

us understand how we deal with the bigger

ones, as well.

The art of my room cleaning got me thinking

about my sticking in the rut situation. My

biggest complaint was how I…I who have read

Stephen Covey, I who have read Robin

Sharma, I who have read The Secret, and I

who read so much on life get myself into such a

messy knot!! After all didn’t I know it all!! I half

imagined a halo around my head already!! You

know something like a bulb glowing from inside.

We are a generation who has grown on self-

help books. Seven Habits of Highly effective

People, The Monk who sold the Ferrari. The

Secret, Paulo Coelho, Bible, Bhagvadh Geeta

have all been successful in our times.

How many of you have read more than one of

these books?

If your response is yes, then this article is for

you!!

So here’s my question. Ideally if any of these

books had been useful, would it not have

stopped the necessity for the others?

If my life had been touched and healed reading

Stephen Covey’s first book, why would I need

Robin Sharma’s? Perhaps, to remedy another

part of my life, we can argue. However if you

read any or all of these books, you will definitely

notice that the underlying message is the same.

Hey if Jesus had been able to round up the

entire Bible, and that’s more than a thousand

pages for the record, in a single statement

“Love your neighbor as yourself”, do we really

need to know what is in there in all those pages

in all these books?

Haven’t reading books turned into a fancy

today? An addiction? An image/prestige issue?

Do we really pause to realize what the lines

speak, rather than skimming through the books

to just complete them? And more importantly,

are we putting our lessons to any use? Are we

living them out?

Do we think that reading these books is going

to get us out of the rut, if we are stuck in one, or

lead a perfect life? Ok the harsh truth is “sorry

guys, no way”. Books can be handrails, just

guidelines, but we’ll have to do the actual

climbing of the stairs ourselves.

Let me get this straight, I have nothing against

reading books. But at some point we have to

realize that we have to stop just reading about

life, and start living it. Living life is like learning

to swim. However much you learn theoretically,

what matters is that you actually get into the

water and start swimming. You have to make

all the mistakes and then learn.

There are something’s in life that you simply

cannot learn without making all the mistakes

possible... I am sure all those who have seen

the movie “Kadhalilsodhapuvadhueppidi” will

agree.

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Live fully. Make mistakes. Spice it up. Stop

reading and start living.

I would like end with my favorite quote

Life is too short to wake up with regrets.

Love the people who treat you right.

Forget about the ones who don’t.

Believe everything happens for a reason.

If you get a chance, take it. If it changes

your life, let it. Nobody said life would be

easy. They just promised it would be worth

it.

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“I am an extremely selfish person. If I pull up

somebody, it is not to help them, but because it

makes me stronger.” …… these words still

linger in my ears. One of the most ebullient

speakers of all time delivered his DTM speech

in style and witnessing it was an absolute

delight. A leader, a speaker, a crowd puller, a

friend, a mentor…. are just a few to describe

about this tall and handsome Toastmaster…..

OOPS, Distinguished Toastmaster. A man who

has a mentee list which itself is enough to form

a slew of clubs. A walking example for all those

who don’t know what life is, take a look at this

person who enjoys each and every moment of

his life. He is the one who walks and talks

Toastmasters.

And if you ever felt bad for not being able to

listen to any of his speeches, here is a three

line motivation for you, “Please find out your

innermost desire and brutally go chasing

behind in a selfish manner. And the whole

world will look up to you, because you are a

shining star. You don’t have to stay here and

say “Don’t trust me”. You’ll be applauded as a

Distinguished Toastmaster.”

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I am an Extremely Selfish Person - TM Pramoth Krishnan

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Opinion

The public relations department of a beauty

products company asked its customers to send

pictures along with brief letters, describing the

most beautiful women they knew. Thousands of

letters came in. One caught the attention of the

employees and was passed on to the

President.

It was written by a boy from a broken home that

lived in a run-down neighborhood. With lots of

spelling errors, an excerpt from his letter read:

'A beautiful woman lives down the street from

me. I visit her every day. She makes me feel

like the most important kid in the world. We play

checkers and she listens to my problems. She

understands me. When I leave she always yells

out the door that she's proud of me.'

The boy ended his letter saying, 'This picture

shows you that she is the most beautiful

woman in the world, and one day I hope to

have a wife as pretty as her.' Intrigued, the

president asked to see the woman's picture. His

secretary handed him a photograph of a

smiling, toothless woman, well advanced in

years, sitting in a wheelchair. Sparse grey hair

was pulled back in a bun. The wrinkles that

formed deep furrows on her face were

somehow diminished by the twinkle in her eyes.

'We can't use this woman,' said the president,

smiling. 'She would show the world that our

products aren't necessary to be beautiful.'

When it comes to beauty, get your perspective

right: Don't be concerned about the outward

beauty of fancy hairstyles, expensive jewelry, or

beautiful clothes... But, clothe yourselves with

the beauty that comes from within.

Opinion

The Beauty that Lasts - TM Blessie Crystalin

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Remember your school days? The day before

exams… you are tensed, nervous and you

have so much to cover in so little time… you

keep thinking… I’m going to get difficult

questions tomorrow… I’m going to get low

marks… I’m not going to do

well… You go to the exam

hall and you see all difficult

questions in the paper. You

end up scoring low marks;

you end up not doing well…

That is the power of

subconscious mind… if you

think THINGS WILL GO

WRONG… THEY WILL…

IF YOU THINK THINGS

WILL IMPROVE THEY

WILL…

Today, I would like to share few tips on how to

actuate your subconscious mind, which is

purely based on what I have practiced.

1. Fine tune your conscious mind to sub-

conscious mind by instilling clear and

good thoughts.

When I see a swimming pool my subconscious

mind says I want to be a Michel Phelps. When I

see a movie, it says I can also direct a movie

Like Manirathnam. When I read about Salt

Sathyagraha, it said why you can’t lead like a

Mahatma Gandhi. There is no offence if we

have dreams and desires, if we have all these

dreams together – We may be the victim of our

own dreams.

To overcome this, we

should know how to

correlate our subconscious

mind to conscious mind to

trigger the Infinite

Intellectual. How did great

scientists, writers,

businessmen and leaders

excel in their lives? Did

they work 25*8? No- they

have just tapped the power

of subconscious mind.

Our Conscious mind can work for 15 to 18

hours based on the person, our sub conscious

mind can work for 24 hours, you just take up an

idea and dictate it to the sub-conscious mind, it

would work for you 24*7, and as per your

desires you may ink your business deal, write

masterpiece, get great innovations..

Why should we have good and clear thoughts?

Our subconscious mind is also like a

In Depth

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Power of Subconscious Mind - TM Vishnu Kumar

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farm land if we sow hope, peace and harmony,

we can reap wealth, health and happiness. If

mind land becomes malady, no pesticide can

save us from our pest like character. So folks,

your Quality of thoughts will give you an edge

you wanted.

2. Don’t retrospect on past, just unleash

your imagination

I was worried about the days when I

cheated in exams, ragged my juniors, and did

cheap things to get an edge. Later I

understood, I’m not supposed to worry about

the past rather I should look forward and do my

best.

Friends, don’t dwell

on your past. Since

scientists inform us that

every cell of our bodies

changes every eleven

months, mentally and

spiritually we can start a

new life as a new man, so it’s better to think

what we can do rather than what we did.

Unleash your imaginative power; don’t

tell your subconscious mind that you are unfit

and undeserving. It would accept mere words.

Remove “un”, now say it louder that you are fit

and deserve to succeed, and then you can.

Because what you think, is what you become.

3. Be emotionally mature and face fear

I had so much emotional quotient that I

was worried about others’ behavioral manners.

Later, I understood that the problem was not

with others’ behavior rather it was with my

behavior; I’m not supposed to change others

rather change myself.

For instance, when one of my friends said

“Don’t waste your life with your ideas”, and

when my mother said “Stop your lectures” I felt

embarrassed and those words stirred anger in

me.

Friends, just chuck out EQs and say good

bye to “Emotion, anger and reaction” from your

mind by identifying a clear goal in your life,

which will give you a limitless reservoir of power

to overcome the problems.

How to face fear?

Few months ago,

when I got placed in

Infosys, I got a lot of

appreciation in my village

after which I felt jubilant.

After a few days a 5th

grade student stopped

me; I thought he was

going to wish me, but on the contrary he said

you look like 5.3ft, 75kg pumpkin, don’t you

know how to swim? Ouch! Puppy shame!

After his harsh criticism, I decided to face

fear. I whole heartedly convinced my

subconscious mind that when others could

swim, I could also swim. I started dreaming in

my subconscious mind. Friends, when I dreamt

about swimming it was very easy, but when I

woke up from bed and swam in the swimming

pool it was very difficult. I didn’t give up; I

practiced slowly and steadily. First I overcame

the fear of water, then my body became a

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catamaran and my hands activated as oars and

finally I started enjoying swimming.

Friends you have to do the things you fear and

there are no shortcuts to success. Only

practice, practice and practice will find the way

out.

I reiterate three vital points.

1. Instill clear and good thoughts

2. Don’t retrospect on the past, just unleash

your imagination

3. Be emotionally mature and face fear.

Friends, tune your subconscious mind to

conscious mind, so you can dance to the

rhythm of Wealth, Health and Happiness.

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In The News

Candlelight 50th Meet!

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A day of Dhamakas (D D), Duets and Duos.

The 2012 calendar refuses to forge ahead from

October 21.The day was filled with thrillers,

fillers & memories. There were a few Duos that

did their Duets. The Duos that put the show

together – Ram Mohan

and Karthik

Ramachandran.

While one shunted his

family to his hometown,

The other dared a family

that was battered with

fever. Superb Double

Dhamaka of

commitment from the

amazing duo Ram and Karthik.

Then on the stage the hours from 9:00 to 16:30

was duet by a marvelous team.

Shalini and Vikram as MCs rocked the stage

with their well fused steps. The entire audience

swayed and danced to their tunes & rhythm.

There was the formidable duo of Chief Judges

– DTMs Sastharam and Karthik Srinivasan.

Kudos to the duo for organizing, mix-matching

their team and carrying the four contests with

aplomb.

The Contestants were relentless and gave the

Judges the run for their lives with their

selections of winners.

CONTESTANTS in all the 4 contests, you stole

the show – it belonged

to you. All of you made

the entire event most

relished and cherished.

YOU SHOWCASED

THE ENERGY THAT

ELECTRIFIED THE

ENVIRONMENT like in

the world football

championship. The MC

was heard complaining that he learnt for the

first time LAUGHTER can be painful! Keep

winning – Keep raising the bar – Keep

performing.

The Division M & N had a huge team of Role

Players –all, committed, innovative,

enthusiastic, supportive and carried their tasks

to the tee. My heart goes out to you for all the

sacrifices you have done, spent days and

nights chiseling your roles to beautiful shape.

AMAZING and MARVELLOUS

In The News

- TM Venkatesh S Nagarajan

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Crescendo: A Day of Extravaganza

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A five musketeer team graced the occasion the

Division Conference. The Divisions M & N were

pleased to host the following Dignitaries from

the District 82.

District Governor – DTM Nina John

Lt Gov. Marketing - District 82, – Yusuf

Jeevunjee from Sri Lanka

District P R – Mala Martina from Bangalore

District Treasurer – Abraham Zachariah, and

District Secretary – DTM Lalitha Giridhar

Toastmasters from Tamil Nadu, thanks for

living up to the spirit of

Toastmasters one time

more.

Rains could not hold you

back under the warm covers.

Registration at 8.30 seemed

to be ambitious with the wet

weather. But warmth was

ushered with all of you

beating the weather.

YOU MADE THE DUAL

DIVISION CONFERENCE

THE SUCCESS THAT IT

WAS.

The Guest Speaker, Mr. Sarath Babu was on-

time and graced the event with his presence all

through to the end. He served the audience

with the perfect FOOD for the day – the

success secrets of the FOOD KING, the

commitment and unstinted Focus. He found it

tough to wriggle out in the end from the fan club

demanding autograph & photograph.

Heavy-weights that missed (due to professional

pre-occupation) the Division Conference:

DTM, Adithya Maheshwaran

DTM, Saro Velrajan

Area Governor N1 – Shankar

Balasubramanian

Proof that your Absence is conspicuous.

The exemplary example of a perfect Host, CSC

India Private Limited. The Administration team,

for helping out with the Logistics and

immaculate arrangements throughout the day

including at the food court, Thanks to you the

event flowed smooth as silk.

CSC India’s whole hearted

support for the cause of

Toastmasters is a bench

mark for corporate corridors.

They have perfectly imbibed

that Corporate and

Toastmasters are also

mutually supportive entities

that help members learn,

develop, grow & mature

leaders serving the

organization and society with

passion.

My heartfelt gratitude and Thanks to the Tamil

Nadu Toastmasters, District 82 Executives, the

Hosts CSC India (P) Ltd, and all the Role

Players. Thanks to all the Toastmasters who

had a kind word or two to the Role Players –

they deserve all the accolades and more.

PS: All those who missed the Dhamakas wait

for 4 more months for the next show – Await

Advance Booking announcements.

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President

VP-Education

VP-Membership

VP-Public Relations

Secretary

Treasurer

Sergeant at Arms

Pravin Mani

Babu Vivekanandan

Nijil Chandran

Kiran Sarma

Ram Kumar

Ramesh Karunakaran

Padmaprabha V

Meets every Sunday

10 AM to 12 PM

Ruby Hall, Presidency Club,

Egmore, Chennai

www.chennaispeakersforum.com

Chennai Speakers Forum Editorial Team

Khushwant Singh Sansowa

Milton

OFFICE BEARERS

Please write your feedback to our VP-PR: kiransarma88@gmail.com