Ignite 2013

Know Your Future!

TCS MAITREE INFINITY TOASTMASTERS CLUB Meets

Every Wednesday at 02:30 PM at Tata Consultancy Services, 165 / 1A, 2& 4 Velachery,

Taramani 100 Feet Road, Velachery, Chennai - 600 042, Tamil Nadu

India Visit our website

http://infinity.toastmastersclubs.org Please share your feedback on this newsletter at

[email protected]

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Editors’ CornEr

Being the editors of a magazine or a news-letter, irrespective of its size and popular-ity, is indeed a very challenging task. Working on this news letter has moulded us into great team players. We are proud to have been nominated as the editors of Ignite, the brand new Newsletter of Infin-ity Toastmasters Club. Our passion for the language has been the driving force, that held our energy level higher for accom-plishing the role of an editor with utmost involvement. Perseverance is yet another dimension of an impressive writer, which we rediscovered in us during the making of Ignite. My heartfelt thanks to all Ex-committee members and all other Toast-masters who have rendered great support towards the successful completion of our first milestone newsletter "Ignite".

TM Shobana Masiline A

TM Sneha

TM Srinivas

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Executive Committee's Corner

It is a privilege to be a part of 'Ex-Comm' of In-finity toastmasters. I am enjoying my experience as Vice President - Education thoroughly. I made a lot of friends and enjoyed my part in organiz-ing all our weekly toastmasters meeting. Apart from the fun filled moments, I have learnt a lot during the course of my journey. My experience varies from over exciting to overwhelming. But I wouldn't trade this opportunity for the world. I take this moment to thank all the infinity toast-masters who have given me a helping hand as needed and had shared the joyous moments in my toastmaster's quest. I am proud to be an In-finity toastmaster and we always rock!!!

From a non-believer in toastmasters to some-one who spends a majority of his time 'Toast mastering', I have come a really long way. And it all began at HOME – TCS Maitree Infinity Toast-masters Club. The club has given me a lot – friends, opportunities, respect and joy. Also, be-ing the VP – Membership, I got a blissful oppor-tunity to interact with each & every member and a majority of the guests. Be it a regular meeting or a contest, Infinity always has its head held high. And all of this is attributed to the infi-nite potential that the Infinity Toastmasters have shown right since the word go. I bow to each of you and salute your spirit. Thank you for making the beginning of my journey so wonder-ful. It has been, and will always be, an honor

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As a Sergeant at Arms (SAA), the one for-gotten virtue that I remembered is “Discipline”. The role makes me more re-sponsible, because the entire meeting de-pends on my arrival. Our meeting generally starts at 2:30 pm every Wednesday. I reach the meeting room at 2:00 pm, put up the banner, ribbons and make all other neces-sary arrangements. I really enjoyed doing the work. Every opportunity that I used, every role that I performed in Toast Mas-ters, though Big or Small helped me trans-form from “What I was” to “What I am”.

TCS Maitree toastmasters Infinity club pro-vided me a platform to enhance my per-sonality and leadership skills. As a treas-urer, I got a chance to meet and interact with various people which helped me to come out of my comfort zone with respect to public speaking. I am looking forward for more opportunities with the Toastmasters club.

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My journey with TCS Maitree Infinity Toastmasters club started on 1-July-2013. Since that day, I have seen an exponential change in my public speaking and leadership skills. Having worked as the secretary of the club, I have interacted with various people across multiple projects whom I had never met be-fore. By nature I’m a workaholic person, and never get time to move with people outside my comfort zone. But our club gave me an opportunity to fill that gap and come up. I always had the fear of speaking for more than 1-2 minutes in front of people where majority of the crowd are strangers. I overcame this stage fear by delivering my CC#1 speech and influenc-ing the crowd with my emotions. I am looking for-ward for more positive changes in me being associ-ated with the Toastmasters club!

Flyers, posters, branding, publicity…. I learnt a lot more than all this being a VP-PR and my fellow club officers and Toastmasters made it a wonderful jour-ney. Officers training program was the first event we all officers attended together which made us realize the importance of the role as well as me being a part of it. And it started with all such events and opportunities lined up. Best moment I remember was getting appreciated by our Area Governor Murali for my work. I contributed not only towards our Club but also for the Area and the District as well. I would say it was a memorable journey and I’d definitely take it again.

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PrEsidEnt’s CornEr

TM Sashank

President Unless you live in China, you’ve probably never heard of Zhang Qian. But his story is one of the most important in history. In 2nd century Zhang set out on a journey of exploration. Zhang’s vision was to discover new ter-ritories and establish new trade links. His trail became the leg-endary route known as the Silk Road. Why am I talking about Zhang’s story ?? Because even TCS Maitree Infinity Toastmasters Club is also embarking on a journey. We, too, have a vision: to become the best club among the clubs present in district 82. Our vision may sound impossible and exaggerating but dreams do come true. We’ve taken our first step and we are ready to cross all the hurdles that will come our way. We are the BEST !!

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GovErnor’s CornEr

TM Murali Manohar

Area Governor G5

In life there are infinite aspects that are infinitesimal. But those of you who know of this wonderful platform called TCS Maitree Infinity Toastmas-ters Club, I’m sure you would concur with me that it is not infinitesimal but truly opens infinite doors for op-portunities to create voracious orators and charismatic lead-ers. In just these 25 weeks, these Toastmasters have come out of their shells with flying colours. They have touched upon many things that even well-established clubs struggle to achieve. Having said this, the leaders should realize their true potential and nudge fellow club members to explore much larger avenues in the Toastmasters community. It is wonderful to see some shining stars in the sky called Infinity Toastmasters Club… but just imagine if there are infinite stars shining all together. Wouldn’t that be a spectacular canvas to watch? Nihil Ultra!!

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The eagle gently coaxed her offspring to-wards the edge of the nest. Her heart quiv-ered with conflicting emotions as she felt their resistance to her persistence nudging. She thought "Why does the thrill of soaring have to begin with the fear of falling? This ageless question was still unanswered for her. As in the tradition of the species her nest was located high up on the shelf of a sheer rock face. Below there was nothing but air to support the wings of the child .

Srinivas Kurumaddali

“If the push is with a positive intention, it would make the

recipient responsible for putting in that EXTRA EFFORT."

Is it possible? Will it work this time?" she thought. Despite her fears the eagle knew it was the time. Her parental mis-sion was all but not complete. There re-mained one final task. The push. The ea-gle drew courage from an innate wis-dom. As I reflect, I can relate very much, many instances where my parents, es-pecially my mother, took the courage like the eagle and made me perform better and better without making me feel uncomfortable. When you get pushed without disturbing the emo-tional connect, it becomes a powerful value and an attitude to foster - the magic of 212 degree attitude!! If the push is with a positive intention, it would make the recipient responsible for putting in that "extra effort". Toastmasters gave me the platform to present myself to face the audience and speak before them. It separated me from my fear. We all need a bit of a Push now and again no matter how old we are. It gives encouragement to your chil-dren, sometimes to your siblings or friends and all in order that they may achieve more in life. We have to be pushed sometimes and we have to make others push sometimes . It can be the greatest gift you ever give. It can change a life forever. So Toast Masters, who is your Push?

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Sanket Bhamwari

Filler words — including um and uh— are never written into a speech, and add nothing when a speaker utters them. Yet these insidious verbal hiccups are ubiquitous, uttered by most speakers in most speeches every day. In this article, we examine why filler words have a negative impact on your effectiveness, and learn a five-step strategy for reducing them. Um…What’s the Problem? Some people adopt a zero tolerance policy when it comes to filler words, believing that a few ruin the delivery and invalidate an otherwise solid speech. I’m not one of those peo-ple. An occasional filler word does not trump passion and a great message. Furthermore, some audience members comment that an occasional filler word makes the speaker seem human (and not robotic). Nonetheless, speakers should strive to minimize filler words. They contribute nothing, and weaken your effectiveness as a speaker in two primary ways: Filler words represent verbal static that has to be filtered out by your audience. Why say it if the audience has to immediately filter it out? Repeated and excessive use of filler words weakens your credibility. It may be perceived as indicating lack of preparation, lack of knowledge, or lack of passion. All of these percep-tions are bad for you. Filler Sounds, Filler Words, and Filler Phrases This article has been started using the collective term “filler words”, but this is really a con-venient shorthand for three related speech fillers: Filler Sounds — e.g. um, uh, ah, mm Filler Words – e.g. basically, actually, literally Filler Phrases – e.g. “I think that”, “you know”, “what I’m trying to say is”. All of these — and there are more in each category — contribute nothing and could be completely wiped from your vocal patterns without any loss I n meaning.

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A Strategy for Removing Filler Words from Your Speech I wish there were a switch that could be flipped to strike these from a speaker’s vocabu-lary. (I would flip the switch for myself!) Since the magic switch is elusive, here are the steps recommended for minimizing these fillers. Step 1 — Assess how often you are using filler words. Before you embark on an effort to extinguish filler words, you should assess how fre-quently you utter filler words when you speak. There are three easy ways to do this: Recruit an audience member to track it and provide feedback. Ask them not only to pro-vide a count of each filler used, but also to comment on the impact. (In a Toastmasters meeting, the Ah-counter will help you!) Record your voice, and do an objective analysis. I occasionally do this with a digital voice recorder. This can be done non-obtrusively for nearly any speech you deliver. Record yourself on video. This is marginally more obtrusive, but delivers more benefits. You get verbal feedback, but you also get to see the expressions on your face and what happens to your eyes when you are… uh… filling in words. Your goal in assessment is to answer the following: How often are you inserting filler words? Are they distracting? Are they undermining your credibility? Step 2 — Understand why you are doing it, and why it is unnecessary. Filler words — that is, filler sounds, filler words, and filler phrases — are inserted when our brain needs a moment to catch up to our mouth. In certain contexts, filler words can serve a minor purpose. In a phone conversation, for example, a filler word sends a signal to the other person which says “I’m still thinking, and I’m not willing to pass the conversation back to you just yet.” In this way, the filler word fills the otherwise dead space which might indicate that you have completed your thought. In the majority of public speaking situa-tions, however, this is a completely useless signal. There isn’t any risk of someone in the audience taking over as soon as you go silent for a moment. You don’t need to fill that space to say that you’re thinking. You just need to … think, and your audience will under-stand. Step 3 — Raise your level of preparation. I have observed my filler word usage is highest when my preparation is lowest. Failure to prepare adequately has two effects:

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Your brain needs to “create” words on the fly, as opposed to pulling them from (preparation) memory. This increases cognitive strain, making it more likely that you’ll fall behind. You are (usually) more nervous when unprepared. Feeling nervous makes most people speak quicker, thus making it more likely that your brain won’t keep up. One additional aspect of preparation which merits mentioning is the importance of adequate rest. When you are rested, your brain will be sharper and you will find it easier to articulate your thoughts without stumbling. Adequate preparation (which has many other benefits) will thus reduce the occurrence of filler words. “As speakers force more and more con-tent into their presentation, they’ll have to talk faster and faster to complete it on time. Avoid this temptation.” Step 4A — Slow down. Slowing your pace will also reduce those Ums and Ahs, because it makes it easier for your brain to keep up. It doesn’t have to be a drastic change; even a modest reduction in pace will help. As an added bonus, speaking a bit slower probably improves the ability of your audience to understand you. To make this possible, you must be realistic about your time constraints and the amount of material you have. As speakers force more and more content into their presentation, they’ll have to talk faster and faster to complete it on time. Avoid this temptation. Step 4B — Embrace the pause. The best advice I ever received to reduce Ums and Ahs is to just pause. Replace the filler word(s) with silence. Since you’ve probably become accustomed to using filler words, re-placing them with silence will take practice. Commit yourself to the change, and it will happen. Step 5 — Monitor your progress, and be patient. Every so often, step back and monitor your progress. Revisit the assessment tasks in Step 1, and compare the results. Have you reduced the frequency of filler words in your speech? Have you reduced the negative impact on your effectiveness caused by using filler words? Do you notice a correlation between preparedness and speaking filler-free? Is your pace slower? Are you simply pausing when you think about what to say next?

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Most of us would have heard the proverb 'Make hay while the sun shines'. I can never forget this phrase even if I try. It was always the punch line of my father's advice/preaching sessions. Initially my understanding of this phrase was 'do your work before it is late'. But the actual meaning of the phrase is no way related to work. It means 'Utilize the opportunity right in front of you before it is too late'. I am sure that all of us would have come across this situation. We don’t see the oppor-tunities until and unless they hit us squarely on our faces. We tend to think that this hap-pens only if we get lucky. But process this…What if your luck factor is relatively low??? We have countless opportunities lying around, but do we see it?? No!!! Do we use it before it’s too late?? We don’t. Sometimes even when people find the right opportunities at the right time, they give up if they think it will fail. Going with the most

Gayathri Sridhar

“Many of life's failures are by peo-ple who did not realize how close they were to success when they gave up.”

famous examples of all time, just imag-ine if Dr. Thomas Alva Edison had felt the same way when he failed 999 times while inventing the electric bulb. If he had not been sanguine, our world would have been filled with darkness, right?! Or from a different optimistic perspective, we would have lighted our candles. Many of life's failures are by people who did not realize how close they were to success when they gave up.

Once a man dug up 80 feet of earth in Colorado, the gold rush city as we all well know, thinking he will get lucky. At the eighty-th feet, still having not found any gold yet, he gave up and left with

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frustration. Little did he realize, the next man, after him had to work from the eighty-th feet and he hit gold at the 93rd feet. Now, many of us will learn a moral from this story that if you give up after going all the way, you might just miss the mark. But I have a different theory and a moral from this. If you give up after all the trou-bles, someone else is going to get lucky by your work. Now, that sucks big time! Nobody likes someone else taking the fame and fruits of your labor. So, that I hope is enough incentive for us all to remember and keep going, the next time if we ever think of giving up. Hey, nobody said life was simple!

“Opportunity is missed by most people because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work.”

you are not born into richness as Mukesh Ambani did, then work for the richness as Dirubai Ambani did! History does not speak of Mukesh Ambani’s royal life style. It speaks of the labored troubles of Dirubai Ambani who made it big. After all, there is a movie on Dirubai’s life rather than Mukesh’s life, isn’t there. That should tell you something. We humans are blessed with this tiny fleeting emotion called optimism. It is rather diffi-cult to cultivate and to keep believing in it, look-ing at the way our lives go… but, it is up to us to look at a situation as a

stepping stone or a steep drown. Again, the most famous Scientist, Edi-son quoted during one of his inter-views that- "Opportunity is missed by most peo-ple because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work”

And he was not off the mark. The op-portunities will turn into a successful endeavor only if we work for it with sheer will and determination and oh yeah, keeping in mind that someone else is going to take it from you, if you don’t step up to the plate and keep working. It is that simple if you ask me. The world is cut throat and people are always going to cheer you to fail, but always take the cheer part and ignore the failure part, since you need to be the optimist in all that negativity and keep working for the goal. If you keep doing that, then maybe one day you will be successful in spreading a message to a few oth-ers and they might be successful in passing that message of hope to a few others more and one day, maybe, one fine day, the world will be filled with people who make hay while the sun shines not by taking the opportunity in front of them, but by creating the opportunities them-selves.

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If you are still not convinced, see how optimistic I have been just now in thinking that we will all listen to the words of poor Edison who has been quoted several decades now. If quoting his example had really been successful, we would have moved on to somebody else already. I do not think Edison himself would have imagined how great his one success after several failures was going to make him famous throughout the history. I say through-out because I still am not convinced we are going to stop quoting Edison. So, what is the point here? He believed in himself and he fought for his belief. So, take that belief fellow Toastmasters, because that is definitely going to take us to the right opportunities. Going on a different note and a different quote, dragging Einstein into the equation here, “I am thankful to all those who said NO to me. It’s because of them I did it myself” he said. Make it yourself, do it yourself, I am sure you are going to be thankful to yourself for be-lieving in yourself for the making the right hay when the right sun shined. I leave with a parting note that I believe us all to be the suns and so let us shine bright.

TM Dhanupriya

Honesty : The phone rings and your child

answers. He turns to you as the call is for you. You furiously gesture " Say I'm not here." And your child is made to lie to the caller at the other end of the line because of you! The best way to teach honesty is to be honest yourself.

Punctuality : Help your children dressed

for school on time, and ensure that they have honest reasons for turning up late. They will learn from you that there is actu-ally nothing fashionable about being fash-ionably late.

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Respect : Children who are 3-4 years old can

be taught to respond politely. Teach your older children to stand aside holding the door open to let the older people pass at super-markets and other places.

Responsibility : Younger children should be

encouraged to put away their toys after they are done playing. Older ones can be assigned other responsibilities on a regular basis such as watering the plants or helping younger sib-lings.

Compassion and Empathy : Your friendly

neighborhood postman is sweating profusely as he hands over the mail to you. Your child could be taught to offer a glass of water to him. You can encourage children to read to older people.

Gratitude : Encourage your children to thank

people. Older children can make thoughtful craft items demonstrating their appreciation instead of a written note. If you thank your driver for getting an errand done or for driv-ing you to the cinemas, your child will follow your example.

Civic Sense : Show your children that it is

not correct to jump the queue, no matter how long it is and how urgent the need. While driving, when you follow the traffic rules, your child will automatically respect your civic sense.

Self-respect : Spend time with your chil-

dren, relax and bond with them. Convey to them that they are valuable to you, yet in-dividuals in their own right. You will build self-respect in them.

Courage : Narrate real stories of coura-

geous figures like Gandhi, Martin Luther King or Helen Keller. It will inspire children to stand up for what they believe in, de-spite the adversities.

Perseverance : Persevere whenever you

face challenges in your life and see them through grit. Teach your child that every cloud has a silver lining. Your child will qui-etly follow your example and learn to never give up.

“What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters com-pared to what lies within us -- R W Emerson.”

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TM Hema Varshini

Bad communicator will face : Miscommunicating something to someone unintentionally. Frustration may develop as people are not sure of What to do & how to do. Low confidence while speaking. Avoids eye contact with the audients . Lack enthusiasm in doing the assignments. Get demoralized and would be forced to sit dull and boring. Consistent negativity in interactions. Hide away when opportunity come to him/her. Build emotional walls. Fear of what others think of your speech. Don’t connect with people.

Good communicator will be : Aware of the problems which he/she comes across . Active listener – receiving, understanding, remembering, evaluating and responding. Interact with their fellow beings that will improve their self awareness, self management, personal responsibility, decision making and relationship skills. confident to meet any kind of situation. Ready to take the opportunity. A Good team builder. Recognized quickly by anyone.

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Independence was achieved by putting forth so much of Interdependencies in past , but to-day's Independence has lost its unity , integ-rity , credibility and what not? With so much lost in all these years we have attained Individ-ual Independence with pure corruption & slav-ery.

A national anthem that needs to be sung proudly is now muttered within self not just he/she is shy but because they have forgotten! You cant blame them though they have moved all the way in the last two decades with Elvis presley, Ricky Martin, Rihana, TaylorSwift, Eminem, and many more. Though India has proven to grow out of its own shell they have preferred not to explore but remain on Sup-port. Every one will recollect small imperfections are needed for a substantial growth but the growth we have attained today is its

“Unity in diversity was something that was read in books long time back and now its all about seeing

them in cartoons.”

Population and remarkable number of corruption and sexual harassment cases that never had a punishment but innu-merable number of hearings. All these have just moulded and created a new meaning for Independence... Its nothing but "Public Holiday".. I write this all today because it was In-dependence day so i should also be blamed and you too because you have recollected all these today because you had a "Public Holiday". Together we stand with vision of making money and divided we fall by selfishness... I wish Independence day doesn't get worst in the coming days!!! With all this thoughts penned i think India as a whole deserves to rejoice its Independ-ence and not every Indian!!!!

TM Sundarraman

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Have you ever experienced happiness that made you breathless? Have you also been through hardships in life that has broken your heart? Surely there wouldn’t be any human be-ing born on this earth can escape this sinusoidal pattern of Life. If someone disagrees with me then certainly there is something wrong with their life.

The moment a child is born unto this world it starts its glorious journey to-wards the End. The End I say doesn’t attach any negative perception rather I mean it is the God destined purposeful and beautiful destination for each one of us. The only biggest difference that we all have is how we approach life in the meantime. Many a time we don’t realize that there is a tag line “P.S This shall also pass away” in the corner of each page of our Life book. P.S is the abbreviation of ‘Post Scriptum’ which re-emphasizes a particular statement after a long written script or message conveyed in a letter. It reinstates the significance of the entire content of a page in a single liner. I hope most of you would have read the famous book “PS-I Love you “by Cecilia Ahern in which each letter written by Gerry to his Wife and childhood sweetheart Holly is signed off with “PS-I Love You”. It assures her that Gerry is there for her always even though he is no more. In the same way “PS This shall also pass away” let us know that every incident or accident in life shall pass away. This is the Mantra that we should remem-ber whenever we leap in extreme joy

“Every incident or accident in life shall pass away. This is the Mantra that we should remember when-ever we leap in extreme joy or trav-erse through the most painful times. “


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or traverse through the most painful times. It makes us balance our life between the greens and the blues. Few months ago an untold sadness engulfed me. Thousands of clueless questions ran in my mind. I travelled through a tearful path that made me feel hopeless in life. Failures… unful-filled dreams and desires...Unanswered prayers…I felt like a fish out of water. With such a heavy heart I went to church on a Sunday evening. I was waiting for the pastor’s message for the evening service. A small incident that he nar-rated slowly opened my eyes. It was all about a 5 year old little girl Sarah. Everyday after school Sarah has to cross a graveyard to reach her home. When the clock strikes 5 she puts up her bag, buckles her shoes and happily starts walking towards her home. There comes the lonely graveyard that she has to cross alone. She sings merrily and walks through it everyday. An old man noticed this interesting little girl for few days and was surprised that she showed no traces of fear while crossing through the lonely and dark Graveyard. And one day he stopped Sarah and asked her in bewilderment, “My dear little girl, I see you everyday walking through this lonely graveyard, singing and dancing merrily. Aren’t you afraid a little?” I was anxiously waiting for the reply of Sarah that my pastor was about to say in a few seconds. Then my Pastor continued… Sarah replied the old man “I just cross this lonely graveyard to reach my home. Because I know for sure that my Home is only few yards away and my parents are waiting for me, I walk through the Graveyard with HOPE and it passes away” Hearing this beautiful reply from Sarah, the old man went speechless. Not only that old man, even me and everyone as-sembled in the Church renewed our hope that was lost. That Sunday night a ray of light enlightened my heart and soul. The innocent attitude of Sarah is a wonderful lesson for life. Sarah was sure of her destina-tion. Her home is her destination and her parents are her happiness. She is hopeful of the happiness and joy waiting for her at home, hence crossing the lonely and dark graveyard doesn’t matter to her. She believed that the grave shall pass away. The problem with most of us is that we are unsure of our destination. Poverty or richness, success or failure, power and fame, sickness and weakness, happiness or sadness, whatever be the situation that you are going through just remember “PS This shall also pass away”. Al-ways remember the saying “In the end everything will be fine”. So if something is not fine then it is not the end because God has a beautiful destination for each one of us. Failures, sadness, sickness are the everyday graves that we are crossing through. Just as little Sarah did sing through the grave with HOPE, because a beautiful destination awaits you in the END. “P.S This year shall pass away” and I wish you all a Very Happy and a Blessed New Year 2014!!!

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I can see a river of blood I am down inside , stuck in mud Chances of survival are low Slow onset catatonia hindering free flow They are very happy , most of us World will not take care of us It makes our lives horrendous . But I want to be sad , unlike them I will confront it with what I've got sometimes little is like a lot . Young gets older , and older younger Man is a looser , and looser stronger All you can see is chaos and iniquity . There are very few people Who know they are being cheated Their hearts are flooded with hatred . My mind is not a fear's paradise I hate a sacrifice , Oh! mighty brothers, we are a minnow One day every one will know We are a evolution Reason for a revolution .

TM Sashank Bandhakavi

The doors of our perception are open , exposed Breeze of intellections fight the evil, naked . The belief in us is eternal Melancholy ephemeral. A new sunshine is impending .

Sasha

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I have a confession to make I decided to master my fate life was easy all these days a mask hijacked my face freedom flowed in my blood summoned conceited flood I came past many hurdles never had to jump ,climb. life was easy all these days a mask hijacked my face All the things i wanted to do I never did, regrets drenched in agony smothered dreams completely. I was omnipresent in a world where confusion was the dictator it impeded my conviction to be the creator . In pursuit of a brave new world where freedom is a prison I felt a epiphany ,knew that comforts are for defeated I felt a epiphany, freedom was a enemy It only left me emptiness.

TM Sashank Bandhakavi

Its time , I hate everything I had everything should be hard. I am now a creator who will create his brave new world

Sasha

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IGNITE

"It usually takes me more than three weeks to prepare a good impromptu speech." - Mark Twain. It is really true. Fluency in English alone is not enough for you to be a great impromptu speaker. You definitely need to prepare and practice to master the art.

When I joined toastmasters, Table Topics used to be Terror Topics.

There were times when I used to sit in the remote corner of the room to hide away from the Table Topics master. Eventually, I developed passion to speak. Though I had the passion to speak, I was running out of ideas / thoughts to express. I used to imagine my brain to be running rigorously like an empty grinder... making a lot of noise without any useful output. That is when I learned, you should feed the grinder with something to reduce the noise and to get useful output. I tried experimenting a number of techniques, which produced results. Today, I can confidently talk on any Table Topic (even on a topic which is as com-plex as "Craziness is the welcome mat at the doors of creativity"). How do you go about preparing for Table Topics? Here are some simple techniques that you can follow to become a great Table Topics speaker.

1) Read newspapers - Reading newspapers will help you to stay current with the day to

day events that are happening in the country/world. Most of the water cooler conversa-tions that happen in social and professional life are about current events. Staying on top of current events will help you not only strike conversation with people, but also to handle

DTM Saro

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impromptu situations such as Table Topics. For ex., if you get a topic such as "Honesty is the best policy", you can immediately relate back to the match fixing that is happening in cricket and how players have lost honesty.

2) Read books - “Five years from now, you’re the same person except for the people

you’ve met and the books you’ve read.” a quote from John Wooden. You can accelerate your communication journey by reading good books. Reading books will help you to learn new words and new ways of communicating ideas. You can apply them in your Table Top-ics.

3) Listen to Podcasts / Audio Books - Listening to podcasts and audio books help you

to learn so much during your spare time - be it walking or commuting or when sitting idle waiting for a bus or a train. The authors of podcasts and audio books would've learned / experienced so much during their life time and sharing those experiences with us in a nut shell. You can talk about the content that you learned from Podcasts & Audio books, dur-ing your Table Topics. For ex., I quote Zig Ziglar often in my speeches. Zig Ziglar has pub-lished nearly 200+ podcasts for free. Each one of them has a story and a message. You can use those stories and messages in your table topics.

4) Prepare for standard topics - Most of the table topics are around common subjects

such as success, failure, most memorable event, greatest achievement, most happiest moment, leadership, hard work, friendship, forgiving, happiness, sadness, goals, vacation, professional life, career, family, kids, education, determination. If you can prepare a short paragraph on each of these subjects, you can easily talk about them in your speeches.

5) Blogging - Write blogs... Blog about your personal events, passion, hobby, things that

inspired you, things that you learned, things that you admire etc., When you write about blogs or articles, you learn to organize your thoughts and present in a clear / concise man-ner. This is a skill which will be very useful for you to apply when handling Table Topics.

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Do you feel nervous when you are in the stage? It is perfectly normal to be nervous before delivering a speech, no matter how many times you have spo-ken before. There are some simple tips to avoid be-ing nervous during your speech:

1) Show up early and get to know the people/speaking environment better. Familiarity of people/environment helps you to minimize your nervous-ness.

2) Check whether your props (including projector, computers) are working fine before the meeting. This will avoid unwanted last minute frustrations.

3) Take a few deep breaths and exhale slowly, before your speech. This relaxes your body, helping your blood pressure to lower and your mind to clear. This will enable free flow of words when you start to speak.

4) Have your opening memorized and it will help to break the ice and get you rolling

If you make mistakes during your speech, because of nervousness, don't stop speaking and don't apologize. Remember that the audience wants you to suc-ceed. They will feel your pain too, and they will understand what you are going through.

DTM Saro

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6) Write Diary - If you don't like to write and share your thoughts publicly through

blogs, you can even begin the habit of writing diary. This will also help you to document your important moments & experiences which will eventually help you in creating stories from your own personal life. In fact, writing diary will help you to track where you are and focus on what you want to achieve in your life. It will also help you to get over your emo-tions.

7) Offline practice using Quotes - Take a printout of some 50 or 100 quotes from

Internet. Cut the paper into smaller chits - each chit with one quote. Fold them, shuffle them and put them in a bowl. Now, take 1 chit from the bowl, open it and start talking about it for 2 minutes. Record what you speak. Then, play back and see how you could've handled the topic better. Be your own evaluator and write your "strengths" & "areas for improvement". Redo speaking on the same topic again, if you want to. Record it again and listen to it. Whenever you find time during the day or weekend, do this exercise. I have done this during my early days of toast mastering and it has helped me to think instantly and talk on any subject.

8) Play Table Topics Games - http://www.tabletopics.com/ sells box full of table topics

that you can buy and play with your friends.

9) Volunteer for Table Topics - You cannot learn swimming by standing on the shore -

you'll have to jump into the water to learn swimming. Similarly, you can sharpen your im-promptu speaking skill by constantly participating in Table Topics sessions. Whenever the Table Topics master asks for a "Volunteer" to speak, raise your hand immediately without a second thought.

If you practice the suggestions given above, Table Topics will no more be a Ter-ror Topics session for you.

http://www.tabletopics.com/

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TM Dhanupriya My journey in toastmasters started with the Spirit of Gift followed by emotional intelligence. It really helped me to focus more on impromptu speeches and creative thinking. I gained the confidence in fac-ing the audience in a crowd. Usually when we de-liver a speech anywhere, we may have a doubt that if it is good or bad. But in toastmasters, since our speeches are evaluated properly, it gives us a chance to improve further. I too have played various roles like grammarian, ah-counter, toastmaster of the day etc. I too won the Best mom award in one of the ta-ble topics session. I am really proud to say that I am

TM Vinod

Before joining TCS Infinity Toastmasters (TM) I used to think Public speakers are born with the speaking skills. But after joining I re-alized that public speaking is meant for all. The best part I enjoyed in each TM meeting is evaluation session. I found this club to be very encouraging, helpful and key factor for each speaker's improvement.I enjoy watching and participating in various contests of this club. Never I had seen a meeting so well organized and structured as that of Toastmaster Meet-ing. The way each meeting is being carried out is really awesome. Only disappointment is the mission statement because single state-ment is not enough for describing such a fan-tastic club.

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It has been really wonderful journey till now in Toastmaster. I completely enjoyed each and every moment in this club. Its toastmasters which unlocked my potential . Now I realize that I could speak even a general topic in front of public. I am sure rest of my Toastmaster journey will unlock so many things.

TM Krishnakanth

I am very proud to be part of TCS Infinity Toast mas-ter club. From this Toast master's club I have learnt impromptu speaking skills and how to speak in pub-lic. Also I got a chance to meet new people from dif-ferent projects. This is very helpful for me and I am so happy to be member of Toast Masters Interna-tional!

TM Hema Varshini It fills my heart with pride and joy to look back my journey with Infinity Toast Master so far. I have de-livered few prepared speeches that gave me the real opportunity to analyze my strengths and weaknesses in my speech delivery. Table topics session is a good brain exercise that enabled me to improve my thinking capability. I look forward to complete all the speeches of competent com-munication and leadership manual.

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TM Indira

I am very thankful for the inception of the TCS Infinity Toastmaster’s Club at Velachery. I think this is one of the best things that happened at my workplace in the past year. Not only did Infinity toastmasters provide an arena to improve my public speaking skills, it also gave me an op-portunity to recognize the talents within me and showcase them in front of other members and guests of the club. The meetings proved to be an interesting escapade from the monotonous routine at work for an hour every week. We could participate as a speaker or a role player, which also gave us different experiences at the club. The club also treated guests with utter warmth and involved them in all the activities, which ultimately encouraged many new members to join; thereby increasing the club’s strength. Personally, it was delightful for me to get back in touch with such activities, which were forgotten for a while when I started working. I am looking forward to many such wonderful sessions here.

TM Jyothsna

The moment I heard of toastmasters from my Project Lead

asking me to join the club sounded vague and I really had

no idea what was it all about and more over public speaking

which I felt was not my cup of tea, but soon after attending

the first meeting I got addicted to the club in such a way

that my Wednesdays are fulfilled only by attending the

toastmasters meeting and giving a speech before a group of

people was no more intimidating. In addition to this espe-

cially the recognition and appreciation you get even for

small contribution you make to the club motivates you so

much that you will never give up contributing. All together

the whole experience so far filled in positive energy and

confidence in me. Looking forward for more learning from

the future meetings.

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TM Sundarraman

My Journey with Toastmaster started because my

lead "Vinu Kumar" had suggested me to take it up.

The first meeting when I attended I was not confi-

dent enough of joining because I felt the SAA at that

particular day was acting a little rude. I know I cant

judge a group by one specific person so I thought of

taking chances to attending the meetings. The actual

turning point that made me attend the session of

Toastmasters was my Ice breaker. Though I stumbled

at few places as a speaker the audience still appreci-

ated my speech and the speakers too started using

my quotes as reference at later point. Not to forget

are the current ExCom members who were always

the reason behind my staying back with this club.

TM Sasi Toastmasters, a sheer way of self realization and

development of communicative and expressive

skills. It has helped me in uplifting my social inter-

action and the ease I find in midst of crowd.

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TM Kamakshi Having been a part of Toastmasters for just three months, I would call myself a 'toddler' compared to all experienced speakers of TM community. I had heard of Toastmasters three years before and been tempted to join but was apprehensive of the idea of impromptu speaking, in particular. When TCS Infinity club was inaugurated, I attended the demo meeting and liked what I saw - and realized that leaping feet-first into things of which I was wary is the best way to become comfortable with them. I always feel encouraged at the meeting, whether I give a speech or host the meeting. Thanks Toastmasters. I am always inspired at In-finity Toastmasters. My toddler experience has not been completed yet. Toastmaster is indeed a great journey and I enjoy every moment of it .

TM Manaswini Being part of Toastmasters boosted my confidence to speak in public. Its a great privilege to be able to listen to incredible bunch of people. I do believe that it is a great opportunity for professional as well as personal growth. More than all, I have made many new and wonderful friends here .

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Six months ago, I stepped into the Infinity Toastmas-ters’ club-Velachery unwillingly, because it was en-forced in my project. I can never give my heart and soul to anything that is being forced on me, so was my journey with Toastmasters did start. After attend-ing the initial two meetings as a guest, I couldn’t re-sist the urge of delivering my CC #1 Icebreaker speech. But when I approached the club’s VP-education I was told that only members are allowed to deliver prepared speeches. Without any second thought, I acted swiftly to obtain my Membership with Toastmasters’ International and delivered my CC #1 Icebreaker speech with a Big BANG!!! Now who can stop me from attending the TM meetings every Wednesday? From then, my thirst for Toastmasters’ never quenched. That’s how my ‘reluctance’ in the beginning transformed into strong ‘adherence’ to-wards Toastmasters’ and my journey continues….!

TM Adarsh

I am with this club for the past four months. I always wanted to have a platform where I can improve my communication skills, where people can give their feedback about how I speak, which in turn will be helpful for my personal develop-ment. This is the platform which exactly matches with my expectations. I hope to continue here and be a part of mutual development process.

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TM Sneha

"What??? But Why? Is it Compulsory?" These were the questions that crossed my mind im-mediately after my manager said that we have to join Toastmasters. I walked into the Infinity Toastmasters demo meeting unwillingly. "Hmm! This is not bad. I'll attend 2 more meetings and then decide if I’m going or not" is what I have thought after the demo meet-ing. But after that, there was no turning back. Wednesday has become the best day of my week and TM became an integral part of my life. TM is not only about improving my communication and public speak-ing skills, but also about learning them in a better and fun-packed way. Most importantly, it has boosted my self confidence. It has given me the insight of my areas of improvement and positive points. Above all, TM has given me a convivial atmosphere with so many good friends.

TM Ekambaram

I don’t exactly remember how or when my journey be-gan, but it’s almost six months since I have been asso-ciated with Infinity Toastmasters and now the time has come to celebrate its silver jubilee. It has helped me learn a lot in public speaking and also to get to know many people. I’m proud to be associated with Toastmasters and looking forward to make the utmost use of it in terms of learning and fun! :-)

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Ignite 2013