Blue heron 1

COVER STORY

FACE TO FACE WITHDIVISION H GOVERNOR

THE STORY OFBLUE HERON

FAREWELL TOABRAHAM RAJU, DTM

VALUES OF HUMANRELATIONSHIP IN LIFE

THE PERILS OFINSTANT GRATIFICATION

EXCOM 2014-15

SUPER CHARGEDGAVEL CLUB

VALUE YOUR TIMEVALUE TOASTMASTERS

MAXIMISETOAST MASTERING

THE CHANGE AGENT

LET MONEY WORKFOR YOU

PICTURETALKS

BLUE HERON - T H E N E W S L E T T E R O F M I L L E N N I U M T O A S T M A S T E R S

PUBLISHERTM Bijoy [email protected]

EDITORTM Abdul [email protected]

EDITORIAL TEAMTM Calisto de SouzaMTM Rency Patcheco

PHOTOGRAPHYTM Abdul Nasser

ART DIRECTIONTM Abdul Nasser

GRAPHIC DESIGNTM Abdul Nasser

GUIDANCETM Sunil D Kottarathil, DTMMTM Rency Patcheco

THE TEAM

Meeting Venue:Foodlands Restaurant,

Airport Road, Abu Dhabi

Meeting Time:8-10pm alternate Tuesdays

PresidentBijoy Kuruvila050-3290980

VP EducationTM Kuldeep Kaushik

050-1063756

VP MembershipTM Dileep Raj050-6123692

VP Public RelationsTM Abdul Nasser

050-6713413

SecretaryTM Suresh Gopal

050-6719002

TreasurerTM Jayan Balakrishnan

050-4917028

Sergeant-At-ArmsTM Rajesh Babu

050-4685430

Past PresidentMTM Rency Patcheco

050-6611970

Catch us on webhttp://6664.toastmastersclubs.org

Facebookfacebook.com/millennim.toastmasters.auh

www.toastmasters.org

Disclaimer:Blue Heron is a newsletter by Millennium Toastmasters, Abu Dhabi. The publisher and the editor are not responsible for the writers’ views, opinions and ideas in the articles published here.

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mailto:[email protected]


http://6664.toastmastersclubs.org

https://www.facebook.com/millennium.toastmasters.auh

www.toastmasters.org


FACE TO FACE WITH DIVISION H

GOVERNOR

14 32

182028

241808

38

PICTURETALKS

34

1030

23 36

22 THE CHANGE

AGENTBy Dileep Abdul Razack

By Rency Patcheco

By Ahsan Ghori

By Ahsan GhoriBy Abdul Nasser

By Calisto de Souza

By Abraham Raju

By Shivaprasad Gowda By Rency Patcheco

By Rency Patcheco

By Shivaprasad Gowda By Suresh Gopal

LET MONEYWORK

FOR YOU

SUPER CHARGEDGAVEL CLUB

MAXIMISETOASTMASTERING

VALUE YOUR TIME VALUE

TOASTMASTERS

THE STORY OFBLUE HERON

VALUES OF HUMANRELATIONSHIP

IN LIFE

FAREWELL TOABRAHAM RAJU

CONGRATULATIONSTO WINNERS

THE PERILS OF INSTANT

GRATIFICATION

TOASTMASTERMEETING LIMERICK THE NEW BEGINNING

KASHMIR THROUGH THE LENS

EXCOM2014-15

COVER STORY

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Toastmasters International is a non-profit educational organization that teaches public speaking and leadership skills through a worldwide network of meeting locations. Headquartered in Rancho Santa Margarita, California, the organization has more than 292,000 memberships in more than 14,350 clubs in 122 countries. Since 1924, Toastmasters International has helped people of all backgrounds become more confident in front of an audience.

FoundedOctober 22, 1924

Updated BrandAugust 17, 2011

LeadershipGeorge Yen, International President Mohammed Murad, President-ElectJim Kokocki, First Vice PresidentMike Storkey, Second Vice President Daniel Rex, Chief Executive Officer

Benefits• Clearer communication • Improved leadership skills• Enhanced teamwork• Effective meetings• Increased productivity• Positive mentoring• Complements existing training programs• Cost effective

Number of Toastmaster ClubsWorldwide clubs: 14,350+ U.S. clubs: 8,500+ International clubs(Not including U.S.): 5,850+

Information source:http://mediacenter.toastmasters.org/media-kit

Toastmasters International MissionWe empower individuals to become more effective communicators and leaders.

Toastmasters International Values • Integrity

• Respect

• Service

• Excellence

Club MissionWe provide a supportive and positive learning experience in which members are empowered to develop communication and leadership skills, resulting in greater self-confidence and personal growth.

A Toastmaster’s PromiseAs a member of Toastmasters International and my club, I promise

• To attend club meetings regularly• To prepare all of my speech and leadership projects to the best of my ability, basing them on projects in the Competent Communication, Advanced Communication, or Competent Leadership manuals• To prepare for and fulfill meeting assignments• To provide fellow members with helpful, constructive evaluations• To help the club maintain the positive, friendly environment necessary for all members to learn and grow• To serve my club as an officer when called upon to do so• To treat my fellow club members and our guests with respect and courtesy• To bring guests to club meetings so they can see the benefits Toastmasters membership offers• To adhere to the guidelines and rules for all Toastmasters education and recognition programs• To maintain honest and highly ethical standards during the conduct of all Toastmasters activities.

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http://mediacenter.toastmasters.org/media


GREETINGS

MESSAGE FROM THE PRESIDENT

I am pleased and honored to begin my term as President of the distinguished Millennium Toastmasters club. I would like to express my sincere thanks and gratitude to our Past Presidents, EXCOM members and all other members who worked hard to make Millennium club a better destination for the people in Abu Dhabi who want to empower themselves by improving their speaking and leadership skills. It is especially gratifying to be working with an extra ordinary Executive Committee that has enormous energy and passion for development through better speaking, leadership and writing.

Face to face speaking is the best way of communication. Here the speaker is in a better position to get instant feedback from the listeners. But its mileage is limited. Writing has the added advantage of more accessibility to the people all over the world. Toastmasters clubs helps its members to inculcate writing skill by the issue of newsletters. Again it creates an opportunity to read and inspiration to write.

Toastmasters empower individuals to become effective communicators and leaders. Leadership involves sharing of information. Providing accurate and adequate information to the team members at right time and keeping them updated is critical for the success of every organization. It is true right from your family to Multi-National Company. We all must communicate clearly and vividly in a manner that most suits the circumstances. Various aspects of communication – the mode you used to communicate, the time you communicate, length of your message and way you present it, accuracy and reliability of your messages, the information required and expected by your followers, their physical and mental

conditions at the time of communication – all are important in determining the effectiveness your message. It should design and deliver in such a way that motivates the listeners to listen and readers to read. It will help the entire group to achieve both individual and group objectives.

Communication plays a vital role in the success of any roles you perform in your society. Toastmasters club helps its members to communicate information by both speaking and writing, in humble passionate and confident manner that ensure the end result.

Write your message; it will reach all over the world!

“COMMUNICATION PLAYS A VITAL

ROLE IN THE SUCCESS OF

ANY ROLES YOU PERFORM IN YOUR

SOCIETY”

Bijoy KuruvilaPresidentMillennium ToastmastersAbu Dhabi

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There is a fantastic girl’s high school based in London who celebrates a ‘Failure Week’ every year. The idea of this exercise is to encourage the students to aim high, take risk and dare to fail. During the ‘Failure Week’ the students stand up and proudly discuss about whatever they tried to do, how they failed and what they learned from the experience. The bigger the failure, the bigger the learning, and the bigger appreciation they receive. The clear message that the school wants to give to the students is that FAILURE = LEARNING!

If you celebrate only victory it’s dangerous. Such a practice will give a clear signal that we need only wins and not failures. However, no failure means no real learning, no real innovation and no real growth. Most of the obvious success stories what we know are in reality the result of a series of failures.

I’ve stated the above because I feel that most of us are not exploiting Toastmasters enough to our advantage and one of the reason is their fear of failure. Toastmasters is, in my opinion, a place to fail risk free. Members often stay away from taking challenging roles or projects due to the fear of failure. This goes against the very objective of Toastmasters since it’s a place where you should dare to try and fail till you get it right.

Millennium Toastmasters Club is one of my favorite clubs in Abu Dhabi due to its very friendly meeting environment and supremely talented members. It’s club where I’ve always felt at home. It’s no secret that this club has produced some of the finest Toastmasters in

Ravi Moosad, ACS ALBGovernor, Area 23

Ravi is an active Toastmaster since 2008 and is currently Area 23 Governor. He is a Chartered Accountant by Qualification and Technology Consultant by profession. He can be found online at www.moosad.com and can be reached at [email protected]

CELEBRATING FAILURE!

MESSAGE FROM THE AREA GOVERNOR

“ONLY THOSE WHO DARE TO

FAIL GREATLY CAN EVER ACHIEVE

GREATLY”- Robert Kennedy

Division H. I’m sure the new leadership at Millennium will build on the rich history of the club and take it to further heights.

In this new Toastmasters year, my message to all the Toastmasters is this. As the great quotation goes, if your dreams do not scare you, they are not big enough. So take yourself out of the comfort zone and dare to take up roles and projects that scares you. Give your best to the tasks you have taken. You may fail to win but never fail to celebrate your failure!

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www.moosad.com



According to Ted Andrews, the author of Animal Speak, Blue Heron stands for self-determination and self-reliance. They represent an ability to progress and evolve. These individuals know what is best for them and need to follow their hearts rather than the promptings of others.

Each individual is unique. Personality, style, character and everything in between is different from each other. These traits make us unique amidst a crowd and help us in creating our own signature essence…. Like the articles in this issue.

We received a unique collection of educational and inspirational articles. The importance of keeping personal relationship by TM Abraham Raju, DTM, the value of toastmasters by MTM Rency Patcheco, the ways of maximizing toast mastering by TM Shivaprasad Gowda and a truly inspiring cover story - the highlight of this issue- face to face interview with our Division Governor DTM Sunil D Kottarathil.

Don’t sit back and relax. Motivate and inspire the people around you by writing in the next issue of our newsletter. One last thing.. I look forward to your constructive feedback just so that we can give you a newsletter that is par excellence than its predecessor.

Enjoy reading.

Regards,

TM Abdul NasserVice President Public RelationMillennium Toastmasters, Abu Dhabi.E-mail: [email protected]

WELCOME ON BOARD

MESSAGE FROM THE EDITOR

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Dear All,

At last, the Blue Heron took off. Two months of hard work seems to have paid off. I would like to take this opportunity to thank each and every one of you who contributed, supported and guided me to make this a reality. Fellow toastmasters, EXCOM members, Division and Area Governors, I dedicate this newsletter to you all.

It’s a creation of absolute teamwork. From fellow toastmasters to division governor, from my daughter to my boss in office, from other club officers to toastmasters international, one way or the other all of them took part in the making.

When we selected the name Blue Heron from a big list of names, I knew it only as a bird. After I did a detailed research about its totem, I felt it is the right name for an aspiring toastmasters club’s newsletter. Thanks to TM Dileep Abdul Razack who proposed this name.

BLUE HERON STANDS FOR SELF-

DETERMINATION AND SELF-RELIANCE.

THEY REPRESENT AN ABILITY TO

PROGRESS AND EVOLVE.

-Ted Andrews

mailto:kpanaser%40gmail.com?subject=Blue%20Heron%20feedback


It was team work from the word “Go”. As soon as the new Excom got elected, the enthusiasm of the Millennium Club toastmasters got a boost to new sky rocketing levels. New blood, renewed vigor and the need to publish the news letter was felt. Our past president MTM Rency calls the new EXCOM handsome heroes & their (all Hunks) eyes light up emitting shades of pink on their cheeks. The enthusiasm of the toastmasters get a massive shot of boost resulting in million dollar smiles.

Team work, a family friendly atmosphere including the entire Millennium club forte was in full display during the 377th meeting when our VP - PR, TM Abdul Nasser announced that a Club TM news letter was in the making.

He conducted the first brainstorming session giving the “WOW” factor to the Millennium meetings which are always innovative & professional. It was a double whammy for everyone who attended this meeting.

He started his presentation explaining about the importance of an eye catching title to create an impression & he wanted the involvement of all toast masters in the naming of the News letter & rightly so, he placed a blank sheet on the podium . All those present were left wondering what is he up to?

He then gave slips of papers to everyone & thereafter each person was given a serial number. He , then, asked everyone to come and stick the paper bits in the blank sheets & soon the brain storming session began in real earnest. A questionnaire was given to each member and they were told to think about 5 names for the title & also explain why they chose that name. All present started working with absolute focus leading to 5 of those suggested names to be short listed.

Expressions, Podium, & Jumble mumble.

Our VP-PR, TM Abdul Nasser informed that he would be back after checking if these suggested names for the newsletter were used before and if they would prove to be appropriate. A couple of days later an e mail popped

THEBLUE

HERONBy Ahsan Ghori

N A M I N G O F T H E N E W S L E T T E R

8

Shut

ters

tock


up & oops… all three shortlisted names struck off. They were used by other clubs or the name wasn’t appropriate for a news letter title. So back to square one. VP-PR wanted everyone to think out of the box and flurry of emails filled in his mail box with names and all.

Our club president suggested Bean sprout & she says the name sounds vegetarian, but the entire perspective would lie on how you design the news letter title with the image of bean sprout to reflect growth, healthy environment, & encouragement to boost growth.

Whether the initiative boosted growth or not, don’t know, but it definitely did wonders to our new VPE TM Calisto and with a flash in the pan he suggested “From here to there “and added you can use derivatives of the above title inviting more e- mail sprouts for newsletter names from members. “Ping”, “Here to there”, what is the significance one wonders? He very subtly summed up that it was a personal journey that all of us make during our time we share @ Toastmasters and the experience, the people and above all the goals and expectations that we fulfill as a result of our fantastic journey with toastmasters from here to there.

As the members slept dreaming of derivatives of “from here to there” early in the morning pops an email from our new president TM Bijoy Kuruvillah. He greets Good morning & suggests “voyage”. I think he dreamt about toast masters Journey and he says, Millennium has travelled a long journey and still travelling and will have to travel a long way hence Voyage is apt.

More names started coming in like Perspective, Think tank, Sound box, knock knock, Brain wave, Ping….Pulse ,Speakers Almanac & the like - short, fundamental and precise names. The philosophical new VP membership TM Dileep Raj jumped into the bandwagon of name hunters and he sent a few , in fact he was fond of birds & he sent quite a few like Red Hawk, the Blue heron & it swept our president of her feet. Ohh Woow, excitedly she said, you guys are my super heros!!!This is fabulous!!!! Smile in everyone’s face, great motivator

that she is! She gives her two pennies- Muse views, the voice platter & the Millennium Odyssey.

Every one going into lateral thinking mode in the name hunting process, I too, couldn’t resist anymore summing up the whole sequence of naming of the news letter. So I included in my write up for inviting the members for TM meeting as below:

“”Your attention please & the show begins….

I am just probing “contours” could be a nice title for the news letter. You are all wondering what happened to our VPE & why is he probing? Actually I am thinking lateral from here to there sort of a bean sprout. To quote the speech winner in the last meeting who used the loud speaker perfectly & his speech was like symphony. Wasn’t he marvelous communicator & the impact he had with his wonderful narration about the red hawk & the blue heron. The above narration is total jumble mumble for you all I Know, but believe me it has the impact of Expressions. Aren’t your grey cells activated & if you want to be the part of that impact attend the next meeting and dwell in to the marvel of millennium club. Millennium is environment friendly, innovative, inclusive, entertaining & with quality Speeches, speeches and more speeches it is a millennium delight always.

Come and enjoy the next meeting I promise you at the end of the meeting you will have the title of the newsletter for sure & go home with a spark…..All are welcome.””

And so it happened in the 378th meeting we had the second brain storming session for the naming of the news letter. This time the members had to decide between the pre selected titles The blue heron, Millennium Odyssey & The Perspective .The VPPR explained the rationale of each title & voting was called for. There was a tie between Odyssey and The blue Heron 2 times and finally the The Blue Heron was chosen by draw of lots. The naming of the news letter concluded and a new beginning & journey for the super Hero’s starts with beaming smiles every time we meet. Good Luck.

Ahsan GhoriPast Vice President Education

Born in Gods own country (kerala) in India,studied in three different states Kerala,Tamil Nadu & Karnataka. An engineer by profession who migrated to Gulf countries in early 1990s to make a living. He began his working life in KSA for as short period of time and for the past 20 years have been working in the UAE. Presently living with his wife & 3 kids. His passion always has been tennis as a sport & also likes writing letters in news dailies, playing with children. Believes in peace & dreams of seeing a world in harmony with peace.

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PresidentMTM Rency Patcheco050-6611970

VP EducationTM Ahsan Ghori050-8161375

VP MembershipTM Joe Thomas050-5824604

VP Public RelationsTM Zenith Jolly050-6513069

Secretary TM Rafih Qureshi056-3297231

TreasurerTM Bijoy Kuruvila050-3290980

Sergeant-At-ArmsMTM Rajitha056-6323143

PAST EXCOM2013-2014

INSTALLATION OF NEW

EXCOM2014 - 2015

It was the 378th Meeting of Millennium Toastmasters Club held on 24th June 2014, a day that marked the end of one epic Journey and the beginning of another for this dynamic Toastmasters Club. It was the meeting in which the new Club officers would take charge of leading the Club to new heights.

An Excom swearing in ceremony is indeed a moment of great pride and privilege. Not just for the Club Officers but also for the Club members and the Toastmaster conducting the ceremony. In this case, it was the Immediate Past President, MTM Rency Patcheco, who was endowed the honor of conducting the ceremony and she did so with grace, integrity and great sobriety. All Club officers were present except for the VPE, who for personal reasons could not attend.

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Bijoy Kuruvila

Born and brought up in a small Village in Kerala, India, Bijoy is a Commerce Graduate and completed his Masters in Finance from Sambalpur University, Orissa, India.

He is a certified Purchase Professional and works for National Marine Dredging Company, Abu Dhabi as Senior Buyer. He lives in Abu Dhabi with his wife and three children.

He is an active Toastmaster since the past two years and the former Treasurer of Millennium Toastmasters Club. He believes in personal development by developing others. He loves cycling, chess, farming and agriculture.

Kuldeep Kaushik

Born in India, Kuldeep Kaushik lived, studied and worked in India for a major part of his life. He is a part of Oman Insurance Company, as Asst. Vice President, heading the Technical Dept of Abu Dhabi Branch.

Holding a PG Diploma in Business Management, he completed his Masters in Commerce and is an Associate Member of the Chartered Insurance Institute, London.

Kuldeep is living in Abu Dhabi along with his wife and his 12 year old son. He loves to read, travel and network as well as engage in any activity that challenges him and brings out his people skills.

PRESIDENT VICE PRESIDENTEDUCATION

EXCOM 2014-2015

All Club officers were called to the floor and asked to stand side by side in order of the role ranking. MTM Rency read out the duties and obligations for each of them, starting with the SAA TM Rajesh Babu and followed by the Treasurer TM Jayan, Club Secretary TM Suresh Gopal, VP Public Relations TM Abdul Nasser, VP Membership TM Dileep Raj, VP Education (in absentia) and the Club President TM Bijoy Kurvila.

Each listened in earnest anticipation and diligence, while holding the Golden Gavel, in accordance to their turn, as a symbol of pledging their services and taking responsibility of their respective positions. At the end of the reading, they replied with “I will” and MTM Rency then conferred upon them their Club officer TMI pin, endorsing their installation as the New Leaders of the Millennium Toastmasters Club.

All Club members gave a huge round of applause to celebrate the new era of Toastmasters in Millennium TM Club.

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Continued on next page >


K.P. Abdul Nasser

A passionate photographer, artist and a graphic designer.

Originating from Trichur district of Kerala, India, Abdul Nasser lives in Abu Dhabi with his wife and 3 children. He works in an International Advertising Agency as an Associate Creative Director, for the last 22 years.

He studied applied arts from the College of Fine Arts, Trivandrum, Kerala, graduated in BA History from Calicut University and secured a diploma in Interior Designing from Jenson & Nicholson, India.

He is also a trainer of photography and winner of many photography competitions. His repertoire includes conducting photography exhibitions and workshops in UAE, Germany and USA. His other interests are painting, reading and travelling.

VICE PRESIDENTPUBLIC RELATION

Dileep Abdul Razack

Dileep hails from Kerala, India, and lives in Abu Dhabi with his wife and 4 children.

He is an accomplished techno-management professional currently working as IT Advisor at Abu Dhabi Urban Planning Council. He has over 20+ years of vast experience in Strategic Planning, Balance Score Card, Business Continuity Management, Strategic IT Management, Project Management, IT/Corporate Governance, Compliance and Information Security.

He is currently pursuing Doctorate in Strategic Management and have multiple masters (MBA and MSc) in Finance and Information Systems.

He holds various professional qualifications such as CISA, PMP, CGBSC, SSBB.

Suresh Kumar Gopal

Suresh works with Nexus as an Associate Sales Manager and has been living in Abu Dhabi with his wife and two children for the last 16 years.

He manages a team of financial advisors and also looks after insurance and investment portfolios for large clients. He has got around 16 years of experience in the industry, graduated in M.Sc. Maths and secured M.B.A in Finance and presently pursuing CFA level 2.

He was the Senior Under Officer of NCC unit of his college and passed out with a ‘C ‘certificate in NCC. Attended many NCC camps including Army attachment and Advanced Leadership Course with rock climbing. He likes to travel and has thus far visited more than 12 countries. His other interests are reading and investments.

VICE PRESIDENTMEMBERSHIP

SECRETARY

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EXCOM 2014-2015

M.Sc


Jayan Balakrishnan

Jayan’s childhood and basic education was in Thrissur. After graduation he moved to Bombay and completed his professional qualification from Institute of Cost and Works Accountants of India. Spending 10 years in Bombay he moved to UAE in 1994.

He is a member of various social & cultural associations in UAE. He is also a member of Institute of Management accountants-USA. After serving various companies for 28 years he has set up Apt Management consultancy, a firm offering full fledged CFO services on an outsourced basis.

He is living with his wife. His son and daughter are currently doing their graduation in India.

TREASURER

Rajesh Babu Neelamana

With more than 10 years of experience in Life Insurance Sales, Rajesh currently works as Associate Sales Manager with Nexus. He graduated from Calicut University in 2002 with BSc in Mathematics. Since he left his home town in Kerala Rajesh has worked with well known Life Insurance companies in India.

In 2007, Rajesh moved to UAE and lives at Abu Dhabi with his wife and daughter. He enjoys reading books, travelling and you usually find him at home with family on weekends.

SERGEANT AT ARMS

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Rency Patcheco

Raised in UAE, Rency Patcheco lived, studied and worked in Abu Dhabi for a major part of her life. She is part of the Abu Dhabi Indian School alumni as well as the St. Agnes College alumni in Mangalore. A graduate in Business Management, she completed her Masters in Global Human Resources from the University of Liverpool, UK. Rency is a single parent to her 14 year old son. She loves to read, write inspirational blogs as well as engage in any activity that challenges her and brings out her people skills.

She joined Toastmasters in July 2012 and was immediately inducted as Club Secretary of Millennium Toastmasters Club and 8 months later, she took charge as the VPE and Acting President of Millennium Toastmasters Club. Rency is now looking forward to enjoying the Toastmasters journey from all other perspectives having completed a successful president term.

IMMEDIATEPAST PRESIDENT

EXCOM 2014-2015


DETERMINED TO ENHANCE QUALITY. DEVOTED TOBRING BIG SMILES. COMMITTED TO EMPOWER BUDDING LEADERS.Division H Governor TM Sunil D Kottarathil, DTM shares his thoughts, views and ideas on leadership inside and outside Toastmasters, with past Area 23 Governor TM Shivaprasad Gowda, ACB in an exclusive interview provided for Millennium Toastmasters Newsletter.

COVER STORY


DETERMINED TO ENHANCE QUALITY. DEVOTED TOBRING BIG SMILES. COMMITTED TO EMPOWER BUDDING LEADERS.



What difference has 1st July made in your life?July 1st was just another Tuesday with hectic schedule at work place. As far as toastmasters is concerned, it was just beginning of another year of service leadership, but this time with a more responsible and challenging position as a Division Governor. However, it was 1st April that made a difference, when the District Nomination committee announced my name as the nominated candidate for Division H Governor. It was a great honor and recognition.

What is your vision for your term as Division Governor?Division H has shown clear growth during past years. To sustain the growth and continue in the winning direction, we need to ensure the basics are strong. In

this aspect, while stepping into another wonderful year of excitement, Division H has set a vision focusing on the following three elements:-Bring smiles – ensure that each member enjoys his/her journey in toastmasters as he/she takes up roles and responsibilities.

Enhance Quality – promote the worthiness of each role in toastmasters educational program, thereby enhancing quality.

Empower leaders – promote service leadership and support true committed leaders in spreading values of toastmasters.

How did toastmasters help you in your daily life?Communication and leadership aspects are part of our daily life. One, who

• Served in all club officer positions.

• Achieved DTM in 3 years (1st July 2012).

• Member of 3 clubs (ISC, NMC Corporate, Humoroids Advanced).

• District Toastmaster of the Year Award during 2010-11.

• Silver Tongue Award during 2009-10.

• Lead to ISC Toastmasters and NMC Corporate Chapter to World #1

Position in Open House Showcase contest.

• Served as Sponsor for 3 clubs, Mentor for 1 club, Coach for 3 clubs.

• Served as Area Governor for Area 23 during 2011-12 period.

• Edited and published club newsletters for ISC and NMC Corporate

Chapter which won best newsletter Award.

ACHIEVEMENTS

Shivaprasad Gowda in conversation with Sunil D Kottarathil

“One of the key performance area for Division H this year, is

to strengthen our clubs, by working closely with

all club leaders and to ensure clubs are strong

enough to support each new member”.

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clearly understands the benefits of toastmasters education program can enhance his specific required skills. I have been tremendously benefited from toastmasters, on building confidence level and leadership skills. Keeping a balance between work, family, social commitments, while maintaining your hobbies is a daunting task, considering how fast paced life is, these days. But this is exactly where the skills polished through toastmasters, can make multi-tasking, a much needed skill, more easy and stress-free.

Tell us about your everyday routine, in your day, what part of time is spent in toastmasters activity?Leaving home at 7am, on a regular working day, I am back from work by 7 p.m. It is the short constructive break time in between the hectic daily schedule, I utilize effectively for toastmasters. Taking a ten minute break after each sub task and engaging myself in creative thoughts and plans, helps me move closer to my vision and also rejuvenates my energy which helps me keep up with a demanding work culture. What is your educational background?Education is measured by the character development rather than the degrees or titles one holds. My parents, being teachers, always emphasized importance of effective education. Their encouragement and motivation drove me to complete my masters in Marine Technology (offshore structures) from Indian Institute of technology, Kharagpur,

India, after completing my Bachelor of Technology in Civil Engineering in 1991.

Tell us about your family.Jaya, my very understanding and supporting wife who works as a structural engineer and two daughters studying in Indian School, Abudhabi, are my strengths in life.

What are your hobbies?A creative hobby is a must to feel you have a fulfilled life. Given my nature of involving myself deeply in any activity that I take up, I find myself discovering a plethora of creative aspects to them. Thus these the activities become hobbies for me. Some of the hobbies gone through, at various phases of life include reading, painting, sketching, chess etc.

How can you reach to the aspirations of a new toastmaster?Any new member joins toastmasters for a reason. It is very important to understand his need so that we can guide him on how to explore the elements of toastmasters education program effectively for his personal growth. One of the key performance area for Division H this year, is to strengthen our clubs, by working closely with all club leaders and to ensure clubs are strong enough to support each new member.

What is your advice?A) to a new toastmaster. Grab the opportunity. Don’t hesitate to utilize the toastmasters education

program for your specific growth requirement. Set goals and ask help.

B) to an experienced / seasoned toastmaster.Explore new areas of toastmasters education program, don’t be satisfied with the tip of the iceberg. Give back to toastmasters fraternity by promoting service leadership and by taking up higher responsibility.

If you are given an opportunity to serve as an International Director in toastmasters, how can you make a change and how would you contribute.In toastmasters, any position, at any level, is a one year opportunity to sharpen one’s leadership skills. What really matters is not the title or position, but how one utilizes the opportunities for one’s own growth while making a difference in the world. The opportunities to serve the community in a better way must never be missed.

According to you, what toastmasters should be after 5 years, say by 2020?Toastmasters, in another five years will emerge as a brand name globally recognized for communication and leadership training. We will see the fraternity expanding to more regions across the world. Corporate world will embrace toastmasters as an essential player in their Human Resource Development and training sections.

Best wishes TM Sunil.

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I began my Toastmasters Adventure in July 2012. It’s been 2 fantastic years so far and I know it’s only going to get better moving forward. When I say “Fantastic” … it includes the good, the bad, the ugly and the unexpected ups and downs that leave you wondering “what just happened” or “what exactly did I say or do that this happened”. I have been in doubt, second guessed myself, made tons of mistakes, blunders, embarrassed myself in front of others and realized it a second too late and then some!! But thankfully, through it all I had some really great friends who stuck by me, encouraged me, motivated, gave justifications to my obvious mistakes even when I knew very well they were only saying it to make me feel better.

There were many times I felt I should quit, that I was not doing justice to my role, my personal life took on many setbacks, went through a roller coaster of emotions and off and on, missed a few meetings because my courage failed me. No amount of anti-depressants could revive me…. Of course I didn’t take any medication. There was a small phase where I did get addicted to alcohol, it may have been my darkest time – and somewhere deep down I knew I didn’t want to stay there. I had hit rock bottom and it was here I was ultra thankful that our outgoing VPE TM Ahsan was managing club activities without my presence. He is a huge blessing to this Club and I can never repay him for the magnitude of his support.

I’m sure by now you are depressed already from what you have read – just two paragraphs that summarized the low points of my past 2 years and I’m not done stating my purpose for writing this brief. I always tell all TMs,

that your work, family and friends take priority. Then you can pay attention to Toastmasters. If I have to be true to myself, and in the past 2 years what kept me floating through my stormy days, it was Toastmasters. It gave me a singular purpose to keep on going until the next meeting. This was important because I had found it hard to just get through each day.

My dear friends, you may think Toastmasters is just a name of an organization without any life of its own. My experience has taught me otherwise – Toastmasters is a living thing that has many a time breathed life into me, taught me to pick myself up, dust off the dirt and exhaustion, and move forward with head held high, with integrity and with dignity. If you can give Toastmasters your time, this living breathing entity will not let you down. On the contrary, it will raise you up to new heights – the likes of which you may never have seen before. Value your time. Value Toastmasters.

VALUE YOUR TIME.VALUE TOASTMASTERS.

TOASTMASTERS IS A LIVING THING THAT

HAS MANY A TIME BREATHED LIFE

INTO ME - MTM Rency Patcheco

MTM Rency PatchecoImmediate Past President,Millennium Toastmasters Club, Abu Dhabi

By MTM Rency Patcheco

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VALUE YOUR TIME.VALUE TOASTMASTERS.

Abraham Raju, DTM, Mob. : +91-9495509570E-Mail : [email protected]

In our lives, we are keeping relationships with many people in different ways. It includes relatives, colleagues, friends etc. But do we ever remember that these relationships are in-fact the links that connects us with this beautiful world ???

Most of the time, we take our relationship with others, very easy and extremely casual . But we should never forget, that strong and deep human relationships, are necessary, for our mental and physical well-being. And it is essential to live a successful life.

We do not realize the importance of human relationship, because we are living among them. But if we ask people, who experienced solitude in their lives, we would understand and appreciate , how much they value, their relationship with others.

It is ,indeed , our inter-personal relationships, that keep us linked to this world. If our personal relationships, are built on strong and unselfish love, then, certainly, we would experience, happiness & satisfaction in our lives. On the contrary, if we have a history of ruined relationships with others , then our lives, will be weird and distorted and shallow . No doubt that this destruction can cause a great impact on us.

The relationships, I have, with my beloved Toastmasters and others, are very deep and genuine. That is the reason when my link with them was broken , I felt shattered. Yet, however, these memories are enough for my revival and my deep belief in human

relationships . The testimonies of your love and sincerity, will give me hopes and courage.

Healthy and deep rooted personal relationships always provide power and direction in our lives. We always need to pay good attention to build and foster genuine relationship with others. If we ignore it for our selfish motives, there is no doubt, that it may cause harm to our lives.

Hence , in conclusion , Let us build strong and sincere relationships with others and let us be successful in LIFE.

VALUES OF HUMANRELATIONSHIP IN LIFE.By Abraham Raju, DTM

WE ALWAYS NEED TO PAY GOOD ATTENTION

TO BUILD AND FOSTER GENUINE

RELATIONSHIP WITH OTHERS.

- Abraham Raju, DTM

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Toast mastering is a continuous journey of self improvement. Be it in communication, leadership, personality development and lot more.

I still remember the day I joined Millennium Toastmaster Club. I had a burning desire and I had a dream….. To be a good speaker and leader.

Do I still have the same dream? Is my desire still burning?....Did I fulfil my dream to some extent if not fully? What can I do to further fuel my desire and get better, day after day?

I want to ask each and every member of the club this question and most importantly - did you achieve your goal of joining a Toastmaster club?

BE NOT AFRAID OF GROWING SLOWLY, BE AFRAID ONLY OF STANDING STILL- Ancient Chinese Proverb

By Shivaprasad Gowda

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We should never forget the reason we have joined Toastmaster Club - to benefit ourselves.

For the new members and also old members (like me) let us again remember few basics on how to conduct ourselves during Toastmaster meetings to gain maximum benefits out of it:

• Decades of research has gone into the Toastmasters manual, make it your best friend always refer it for any roles.• Rehearse your speech, till you feel comfortable, there is no substitute to practice. • Discuss your speech with your mentor or any senior club member in order to improve it further.• Be 100 % attentive when other members speak (improve your listening skills).• Never loose any opportunity to take up any communication or leadership role/s coming your way. • Improve your last performance in every role you take.• Commit yourself at the earliest, to next meeting role/s, once committed, do your best (put your 100%).• Last, but not the least, enjoy every moment of the two (2) hours you spend with the Club.

You all will agree, we have definitely improved our communication and leadership skills after joining Toastmaster Club. Do you think the acquired skills are enough? Is it the end of learning or just the beginning?

I want to quote Calvin Coolidge (30th President of United States) “All growth depends upon activity. There is no development physically or intellectually without effort, and effort means work”

Nothing stops us from getting maximum benefit from our Club?.

Be your own motivator and keep raising the bar, always evaluating your present performance with your own last performance. I am sure we can excel by doing this and we can keep our passion as high as it was on our first day.

Best of luck and I wish you all happy toastmastering.

Shivaprasad Gowda

A Mechanical Engineer working in ADNOC in their Procurement Services Division. Married with two kids.He lives in Abu Dhabi since 2003.

He has been a member of Toastmasters since 2005, having completed ACB in communication track and being past Area Governor of Area 23. He is passionate about farming, cooking, meditation. He likes to watch movies and read fiction novels whenever he has time. His motto in life is ‘never expect anything from anyone- Expectation leads to disappointments’.

21


We all crave for change in the external world. When we see something which we don’t like, we blame others. We don’t like the way others are doing things and we want others to change the way we think is right without even lifting a finger.

Stephen Covey introduced the concepts of “The circle of concern” and ”The circle of influence” in his famous book “7 Habits of highly effective people” . A Circle of Concern encompasses the wide range of concerns we have, such as our health, our children, problems at work, the amount of government borrowing, or the threat of war. A Circle of Influence encompasses those concerns that we can do something about. They are concerns that we have some control over. (Stephen Covey, 1989)

We are always trapped in the “circle of concern” and think that, there are people out there to look after those “big issues” and choose to be doing nothing instead of thinking that “Oh I

THE CHANGE

AGENTBy Dileep Abdul Razack

- VP Membership

can do something small from my circle of influence which can improve the situation”. Every day we get frustrated about the something which affected our plans.

A beautiful example of the above is the actions by Nobel Prize winner Dr. Mohammed Younus, the inventor of micro financing who eventually established Grameen Bank in Bangladesh. Mohammed Younus is Bangladeshi Economist from Chittagong University who led his students on a field trip to a poor village. Near to his college, Dr. Mohammed Younus observed some poor bamboo workers particularly ladies are hardly making any earning despite their hard work to make bamboo products and selling to the middle man. They interviewed a woman who made bamboo stools, and learnt that she had to borrow the equivalent of 15p to buy raw bamboo for each stool made. After repaying the middleman, sometimes at rates as high as 10% a week, she was left with

“BE THE CHANGE THAT YOU WISH TO SEE IN THE WORLD.”, - Mahatma Gandhi.

22


a penny profit margin. Had she been able to borrow at more advantageous rates, she would have been able to amass an economic cushion and raise herself above subsistence level.

Realizing that there must be something terribly wrong with the economics he was teaching, Dr. Younus tried to approach local banks who refused to fund the workers due to lack of “Credit worthiness”, because they are poor. This became a “circle of concern” for Dr. Younus. He took the matters into his own hands using his “circle of influence”, and from his own pocket lent the equivalent of 17p to 42p basket-weavers. He found that it was possible with this tiny amount not only to help them survive, but also to create the spark of personal initiative and enterprise necessary to pull themselves out of poverty.

Against the advice of banks and government, Yunus carried on giving out ‘micro-loans’, and in 1983 formed the Grameen Bank, meaning ‘village bank’ founded on principles of trust and solidarity.

You will observe in Bangladesh today, Grameen bank has 2,564 branches, with 19,800 staff serving 8.29 million borrowers in 81,367 villages. On any working day Grameen collects an average of $1.5 million in weekly installments. Of the borrowers, 97% are women and over 97% of the loans are paid back, a recovery rate higher than any other banking system. Grameen methods are applied in projects in 58 countries, including the US, Canada, France, the Netherlands and Norway. (Grameen, 2014).

It is important to think what we can do rather blaming others for not doing their part. You can be the change agent, at your society, at your work why not at home even.

References

(Stephen Covey, 1989) 7 Habits of Highly Effective People.

(Grameen, 2014) http://www.grameen-info.org sited on 03-Jul-2014

The toastmaster meeting is one to remember;Smiling faces in the hall welcome you as you enter.

The Sergeant at Arms you find right on time, at the center.TM mission is his usual rhetoric as the first speaker.

Looking at the audience, he does sternly utter“Switch off the phones or keep them on vibrator!”

“Taboo it is to talk about religion, sex or discriminate gender!”Then invites the Club President to take over.

The President addresses the audience with vigorAnd begins the meeting, bringing everything into order.

A round of applause -- the President hands over And the enthusiastic TME is now the leader.

One after another, the role players explain their roles properAs the Timer, Word master, Quiz master and Table topic master.

Each speech is like music, as the speakers deliver.The meeting is like a symphony for that matter

The main key notes are from the speakers & the evaluator;But the Table-topic is the one which makes everyone quiver.

The final judgment & suggestions by the general evaluatorBring us to the climax, as the TME the show master

Calls upon the President to hand over a trophy to each winner,Who run up to the center and pose for a picture.

Bang goes the gavel; the meeting is declared over.Aren’t these meetings a real motivator?

Its time for dinner & a pleasant slumber.The toastmaster meeting is one to remember.

TOASTMASTERMEETINGLIMERICKBy Ahsan Ghori

23

http://www.grameen-info.org

http://www.grameen-info.org



By Rency Patcheco

FAREWELL TO ABRAHAM RAJU

Millennium Toastmasters Club Abu Dhabi was founded on the turn of the millennium in the year 2000, and hence

the name of the club. One of its founding members, a gentleman so kind and revered among our toastmasters

fraternity, DTM Abraham Raju, attended his last meeting on Tuesday, 13th May, 2014, a meeting in which all who attended had the rare opportunity to bid him farewell.

- 375th meeting of Millennium Toastmasters Club



It was the 375th meeting of Millennium Toastmasters Club and how fitting for a milestone meeting to be marked by honouring our most Senior Toastmaster, DTM Abraham in a farewell – the end of one journey and the beginning of a new one – as he leaves UAE for good, to retire back in India. For DTM Abraham of course, his spark for learning and teaching will live on always. For the rest of us, the vacuum he leaves behind is a real challenge to fill up! His warmth, humility, reliability, always assuring & comforting nature is incomparable. All that Millennium Toastmasters Club has grown to be, is a living accolade to the humble, yet undeniable pillar of

“SAYING GOODBYE TO ANYONE YOU LOVE

AND HOLD DEAR IS OVERWHELMING”

- Rency Patcheco

fortitude, called DTM Abraham Raju. He taught us to be Leaders in the most humble way possible .... by Serving others!

We were duly honoured to have MTM Shukla Datta and TM Sudha Datta in the meeting to grace this occasion. MTM Shukla gave an educational session par excellence on the Club Succession Plan & DCP program and also spoke about her first book “Live Life Like Never Before”... It is an inspiration and a blessing indeed. Our speaker TM Zaini who successfully completed his CC Project 8 with a distinguished dose of style and class, was evaluated brilliantly by TM Sudha.

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The TMI calendar year of 2013-2014 is nearing its end and in this time and space I have witnessed the growth of some fine & remarkable toastmasters. Life is so shaky, with earthquakes and tremors of varying sorts to knock you off your feet. But these toastmasters have stood their ground and stayed committed to the cause of their own personal development. One such is TM Suresh Gopal, the table topics master, who made us all think on our feet, while we were still seated!! Amazing topics! Kudos to TM Abdul Nasser, an artist in every respect and not just one eye, but both eyes that love photography - All the pictures here are his own works of art!

Commitment doesn’t end there – TM Jayan was a perfect tick-tock, I mean Timer! TM Rajesh, our ever-smiling SAA who took on dual role with Thought of the Day, TM Binoy Thomas, gave us a Word – Penchant – and TM Bijoy, our treasurer, who kicked butt with the Ah-counter!! Yes, I am amazed ... I am in awe of them all. They have grown before my very eyes – and I have been with Millennium TMC for only 2 years. What then should a man who has dedicated 14 years to this wonderful club feel like.

Saying goodbye to anyone you love and hold dear is overwhelming. Saying Goodbye to DTM Abraham Raju – its damn near impossible!!

MTM Rency PatchecoImmediate Past President,Millennium Toastmasters Club, Abu Dhabi

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TM Shivaprasad Gowda presenting bouquet to TM Abraham Raju, DTM

MTM Shukla Datta presenting her first book “Live Life Like Never Before” to Abraham Raju, DTM.

Best Speaker TM Zaini. Best Table Topic Speaker TM Ahsan.



SUPER CHARGEDTO LEARN, THE FUN WAY!

M I L L E N N I U M G A V E L C L U BBy Rency Patcheco

Like every new year’s beginning, 2014 also began with new hopes, dreams and aspirations…. Each unique in its own way. This is especially true for the Millennium Gaveliers who are all set to conquer new heights this year, and

what better place to start than at the Abu Dhabi Bowling Center.

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It was the annual fun day for the oldest Gavel Club and its members on 11th January 2014, the day we made it all come together for a fun filled “morning through till afternoon” bowling competition. The whole group was split into 3 teams led by 3 very enthusiastic Millennium Toastmasters namely TM Abdul Nasser, the new VPPR, TM Jayan, the new Treasurer and TM Suresh Gopal, the new Club Secretary. The winner of the bowling competition would be awarded a fabulous prize – exclusive candy pack with toys from Candelite – and the title of Millennium Gaveliers Bowling Champion 2014. You would think this is good enough motivation for our Team Leaders to lead their teams to victory ….. well, almost.

While the teams themselves busied about competing with each other, our Team Leaders themselves were so excited that they took a fourth lane to spark off a tiny competition of their very own. I joined in! Turned out, neither of them had ever bowled before and this was their first time….. I was so pleased to hear this, winning

could not have been easier!! I was wrong…. TM Jayan mastered the game in no time at all and made a clean sweep to victory in a heartbeat! Proud and amazed at the same time…. Each one’s potential is hidden deep within, you will never know what you can accomplish until you venture outside your comfort zone!

The competition amongst the Gaveliers on the other hand was so different. Almost all of them had neck to neck scores, each looking at the scoreboard at where or how far they have reached. The moments were amazingly captured by VPPR TM Abdul Nasser especially of every Gavelier in such awestruck animation! By the end of it, we had our winners … Gav. Nilesh, Gav. Ved and Gav. Bhagat. Congratulations Gaveliers, well played.

A memorable day indeed, it throbbed with energy, vibrancy and electrifying enthusiasm. Each and every Gavelier was reliving their moment all the way back home…. And yes, every kid got a wonderful Candelite Gift… including the 3 big Kids!

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By Calisto Francis de Souza

30



We live in very perilous times. At the risk of sounding like the prophet of doom, I would suggest that we are running a danger of imploding and the danger that stalks us is known as Instant gratification. In other words, it’s the need and the necessity of getting things now and now itself.

Self gratification is a peril which afflicts us in our day to day life. Let me take you down memory lane couple of decades back. When the first phones were there, the old rotary type phones. Where calling and hearing a voice at the other end of the wire seemed to be like a sound coming out of the heavens. Fast forward that to the first fax machine. When you could receive a letter or a quotation in seconds instead of waiting. Note the passage of time. Already we had stated on this

trip of Instant gratification. Now fast forward this to the e-mail. It seemed to be a wonder, a bolt from the heavens when you could send a message and receive a message from somebody within seconds. However today we have all bypassed these technologies. Today is the day of Whats app and Twitter and FB.

My friends, a point to ponder: what are the implications of this changing face of technology. And is it only technology that is changing? What about the impact on us, as individuals? What changes have we as persons, as a Mr. X or a Ms.Y undergone? What is the impact on the children of today?

When I was young I was taught the virtues of patience, of frugality, of needing rather than wanting. My parents taught me that these virtues help in building up character. But children of today are not aware of this. Instead they are exposed to advts which promise instant gratification . Advts such as that if you use the products you will become immediately beautiful. Or strong or rich or handsome or flowing into the money. The children of today are becoming brainwashed. Imagine a child of today’s times. What and who will he be when he grows up? What will be his value system? What will he do when he as an young adult faces the first serious roadblock in his young

life. How will he react? How do you think he will react? Have we equipped him to face the roadblocks of life? Are we not condemning him to a life full of pain and turbulence?

Even in education today the courses which are most in demand are courses which will give you the fastest reward. People do not have the patience to undertake research in sciences and engineering. Students will undertake glamorous courses as hotel management, fashion design which give lucrative immediate returns. Again the instant gratification.

And now we are coming to the crux of the matter. How do we resolve this very important moral dilemma which is facing people today. How do we get back to the old fashioned values of patience, hard work. Frugality and integrity. How do we focus today’s children on to the great values that shaped great destinies of the past. Will we ever see larger than life personalities like Napoleon, Julius Caesar, Mahatma Gandhi. If you would look around, all modern day heroes have feet of clay.

I l l u s t ra t i o n b y A b d u l N a s s e r

31

Calisto Francis de SouzaMillennium Toastmasters Club, Abu Dhabi

LET MONEY WORK FOR YOUBy Suresh Kumar Gopal

I l l u s t ra t i o n b y A b d u l N a s s e r

BLUE HERON - T H E N E W S L E T T E R O F M I L L E N N I U M T O A S T M A S T E R S32

All of us are aware of the current rate of inflation. However, rarely we are aware of its real impact in our life and how to reduce it.

A recent World Bank report shows the rate of inflation in India last year as 10.9%. In simple terms it means the cost of goods and services had gone up from 100 to 110.9 in the last one year, which we understand without much difficulty. This does not scare us much. Until we comprehend the impact of this number in long term. Suppose we can buy something today for 100,000 then how much it will cost us in 20 years, with the same inflation rate. Our gut feeling may be it will cost us twice as much, as we tend to think. Actually it will cost us nearly 8 times, yes that is nearly 800,000.

Inflation erodes the future value of money. Because of inflation, our hard earned savings are being spent without our knowledge, over a period of time. Because of this phenomenon, it becomes very important for all of us to guard our asset against inflation. We earn money to spend for our present living and then keep aside a portion, for our financial security and to ensure better future for our children.

This is where many prefer to keep all their savings in a bank. They think bank is providing an interest to our capital and therefore it is growing. Think again. We know that banks fixed deposit rates are generally lower than inflation.

So even though our surplus money grows in the bank, the purchasing power is going down, owed to the gap between inflation rate and interest rate provided by the bank. Generally it is 2 to 3 percent. In other words our value of savings in real terms is going down by 2-3 percent per year. This

does not mean we should not keep money in the bank. It is important to have money in the bank for our short term requirements and emergencies.

However for long term financial requirements it is advisable to have our investments where we can get real returns, meaning returns higher than inflation. That is where real estate and shares comes into picture. These assets can provide us a rate much higher than inflation, over a long period of time. These assets may be volatile in short term. However they offer superior returns over long term out pacing inflation rates. We work hard to earn money. Then it is our responsibility to ensure that our money also works hard for us.

“FOR LONG TERM FINANCIAL

REQUIREMENTS IT IS ADVISABLE TO HAVE

OUR INVESTMENTS WHERE WE CAN GET

REAL RETURNS, MEANING RETURNS

HIGHER THAN INFLATION”.

- Suresh Kumar Gopal

Suresh Kumar GopalSecretaryMillennium Toastmasters ClubAbu Dhabi

BLUE HERON - T H E N E W S L E T T E R O F M I L L E N N I U M T O A S T M A S T E R S 33


Kashmir Through The LensTM Abdul Nasser

They say a picture speaks a thousand words but there are times when even a thousand and one words would not be able to do justice to certain expressions of Life, rare breathtaking moments that are captured in the blink of an eye through a camera lens!

This is one of those moments in my life. A photographic journey through the mystic valley of Kashmir (India).

Even the most eloquent of speakers are at a loss for words when they meet and experience the glorious snow clad mountains, sparkling waterfalls, luscious green meadows, grassy slopes and vibrant Mughal Gardens of this enchanted land.

I was glad at that moment that I had carried my camera along and I captured some brilliant pictures. They will narrate what my soul experienced. Let the picture do the talking.

Abdul NasserM: +9712 50 6713413Email: [email protected]

PICTURE

TALKS

34

/nasserphotographix


www.nasserphotographix.com

https://www.facebook.com/nasserphotographix



BLUE HERON - T H E N E W S L E T T E R O F M I L L E N N I U M T O A S T M A S T E R S 35


Vice President Public Relation TM Abdul Nasser presented the Millennium Toastmasters promotional poster and flyer in the presence of Area Governor TM Ravi Moosad, President TM Bijoy Kuruvila and Past President MTM Rency Patcheco during the meeting.

The new EXCOM started their term with a big bang on the 5th of August 2014 at the Foodlands Restaurant, Abu Dhabi. It was a wonderful evening with lots of activities like releasing the first club promotional poster and flyer, prepared speeches, humorous session and Table topics. Moreover, the meeting was blessed by the presence of Area 23 Governor TM Ravi Moosad.

Humorous session conducted by MTM Rency Patcheco. Table topics master TM Rajesh in action.

Guest Indeewari attempting Table topics

THE NEW BEGINNING

36

379M E E T I N G

#


Best Speaker - TM Kuldeep Kaushik

Best Evaluator - TM Suresh Kumar

Best Table Topic Speaker - TM Jayan

TM Ravi Moosad doing the General Evaluation of the meeting.

THE WINNERS

DATES TO REMEMBERSEPTEMBER - DECEMBER 2014

30 30

212403

311228

19TEAM BUILDING

WORKSHOP4-6 PM Venue: TBA

‘FIND YOUR WORD’ SEMINAR

4-6PM Venue: TBA

INTER-CLUB QUIZ COMPETITION

2- 6PM Venue: GASCOJUDGES TRAINING9AM Venue: ADCO

CLUB OFFICERSTRAINING

9AM Venue: ADCO

CHECK YOUR CLUBDCP STATUS

(DISTRICT AWARDS)

FUN EVENTFASHION SHOWCOMEDY SHOW

4-7PM Venue: TBA

ENSURE YOURCLUB GETS

SMEDLEY AWARDENSURE MEMBERS

DUES RENEWED

SEPTEMBER SEPTEMBERSEPTEMBER

OCTOBER OCTOBER NOVEMBER

NOVEMBER DECEMBER DECEMBER

Information Source: TM Sunil D Kottarathil, DTM

Vice President Membership TM Dileep Raj presenting the Mission 2016 to the club members.

The visionary V P Membership TM Dileep Abdul Razak presented his strategic plans to take the Millennium Toastmasters Club to

the number one club position in the UAE by 2016.

MISSION 2016

37


• Division Ambassador for Gavel Clubs • Member, District 20 Public Relations Team• Recognition for the Fashion & talent show (First of its kind in Division H)

MTM Rency Patcheco TM Abraham Raju, DTM

TM Vyankatesh Tak

C L U B A W A R D S

Distinguished Toastmaster- DTMAdvanced Communication - Silver (ACS)Advanced Communication - Gold (ACG)

Competent Leadership (CL)

Competent Leadership (CL)

EDUC ATIONAL AWARDS

TM Ahsan Ghori

For sponsoring a brand new TM Club under Area 23 - Etihad Airways Club

For leading, organising and conducting the Division›s first EVER

Fashion and Talent Show

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DIVISION HO R G A N I S A T I O N C H A R T

DIVISIONH

GOVERNORSunil D Kottarathil,

DTM

AREA23

GOVERNORRavi Moosad

ACS, ALB

AREA11

GOVERNORAlok Tuteja

ACS, ALB

AREA55

GOVERNORRaj SekharACS, ALB

AREA2

GOVERNORAna Maria Paler

ACB, ALB

AREA26

GOVERNORRomeo Dias

ACS, ALB

AREA9

GOVERNORSwaminathan S

ACS, ALB

NMC CommunityInner Universe

KeraNBAD One

ACIODULSCO

BashariaAbjad (Arabic)

IntilaaqahAbu Dhabi Refinery

Oxy Speakers

NMC CorporateAl AinMussafah

Al JaziraSpectrumISCETA Ascon StarFML AD Team Voice

Abu Dhabi ChapterAchievers

Ro’YahTebodin

Al Riyadah

MillenniumAbu Dhabi ICAI

Humoroids AdvancedEtihad Airways

Community Clubs Corporate Clubs

Education & QualityTM Salwa Al MarzouqiMarketingTM Derick D’SouzaTrainingTM Pratima Mishra

MTM Rency Patcheco050 6674150

TM Ashit Korgaokar055 5730709

DIVISION MANAGERS DIVISION AMBASSADORS- GAVEL CLUBS

Information source: TM Sunil D Kottarathil, DTM.

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