Mentor And Protege

Dynamic Leadership

A Dynamic Leader is someone who doesn’t need the word leader in their title to take ownership of their area of influence. A Dynamic Leader is someone who measures his and other’s leadership abilities by their ability to empower others.

These 2 statements are taken from the webpage, SpeakStrong. I like the first statement that says that these people does not need the word Leader in their title. It speaks of substance and self-confidence, not seeking recognition from outside oneself. 

The second statement speaks of empowering others. This is in line with the 4th level of leadership spoken of in John Maxwell’s 5 Levels of Leadership – People Development (Reproduction). A leader reproduces himself in making other people leaders as well.

Dynamic Leadership is one of the 11 Pathways tracks in the new Toastmasters Education. In this project, the toastmaster has to share about a time when he/she was a protege, the impact and importance of having a mentor.

Introduction To Toastmasters Mentoring – Elaine Tan’s Pathway Project

“Introduction To Toastmasters Mentoring” is a compulsory project to be taken in all 11 paths of the Pathways Education.

This is a Prepared Speech Project presented by Elaine Tan and she shared about her experience when she was mentored by her best friend when she joined Toastmasters.

Speaker: Elaine Tan, ACB, CL, DL2

Pathway: Dynamic Leadership

Level 2, Project 3: Introduction To Toastmasters Mentoring

Title: The Power of Pairs – Mentor & Protege

Date: 20 August 2020

My Mentor, My Best Friend

Not every story of Mentoring is a typical one. You would probably think that a mentor would have to be someone older than the protege, but this is not necessarily the situation. You would probably think that a mentor should be someone who is full of empathy for the protege, but my experience will tell you that how this is exactly the contrary in my situation. 

Finally, you would also probably think that a mentor would always tell you truth, nothing but the absolute truth, so that she or he would help you to grow as an effective speaker. Well, I will only share this with you: life of a toastmaster though exciting but is never easy; especially when you have Distinguished Toastmaster J. J. as your mentor.

The Importance Of Mentoring

Today, I am going to share three things with you. First, why mentoring is important? Second, my personal journey as a toastmaster and the impact mentoring has on me? Third, how you as a toastmaster could benefit from mentoring?

Mentoring is extremely important to every toastmaster.  We all needed help when we were first embarked on our journey in Toastmasters upon joining that first Toastmasters Club. Our mentors who had started their toastmasters journey way before us had learnt a great deal through their hard works. 

They took up appointments as club officers, district officers; prepared one speech after another; visited other clubs to network as well as to enrich their toastmasters experiences; participated in speech contests. They were embodiments of great treasures of experience. Drawing from the wealth of their experience, they are there to guide us on how to deliver our first Prepared Speech Project: The Ice Breaker, when we were just noobs, who were wet behind the ears.

Mentors help us to know our strengths and weaknesses. He or she would offer objective advices on how we can develop our leadership and public speaking skills more effectively. This is essential if we are serious about being a better leader and a better speaker. The reason why I have entitled my project as “The Power of Pairs – Mentor and Protege” is because I have found that mentoring is enriching and meaningful to both Mentor and Protege. Not only do Protege benefit from the mentoring, but the mentor too will be able to grow and learn by sharing his/her personal experience with the protege.

My Youthful Aspiration

My personal journey as a toastmaster is quite an adventurous one. I was still a student when I joined The Open Alumni Toastmasters Club. My goal in life was to complete my education, leave school, and never ever have to worry about my pronunciation for the rest of my life.

For those who have already known me since when I was younger, (yes, when I was younger although I am still very young), speaking clearly was often a challenge for me.

My aspiration was to be a debt collector. My poor articulation makes me a perfect fit for the job. All I need to say is, “Owe money pay money!” clearly and thereafter I could mispronounce every other words. 

Debtors would have thought that I was just cursing them in a foreign language when I was just explaining to them the terms for the default payment. In fact, I would probably just frighten them into making the payment immediately. This was what I had planned for my career at that point in time.

My Toastmaster Journey

I had never imagined that I would ever become a toastmaster and subsequently have to deliver so many speeches. It was none other than my mentor J. J. who had disrupted my plan and changed my life completely by getting me to join the toastmasters club. You must be wondering how she managed to convince me, the aspiring debt collector, to join Toastmasters.

Actually, she did not convince me. She merely made a bet with me. She told me that I would have to join her toastmasters club if I were to win a prize money with the Big Sweep ticket that I had received from the Table Topic Master of the day. I attended my first Toastmasters Club Chapter Meeting during Chinese New Year, and the Table Topic Master gave each Table Topic Speaker a Big Sweep ticket, and  I actually received the winning ticket from him. 

Please do not get too excited over this old news. I need to clarify that I only won $300! Just enough for me to pay for my first year of membership with The Open Alumni Toastmasters Club. I also donated the rest of the prize money to the club, thinking that I could bribe them into sparing me from delivering more speeches in future.

J. J. was the youngest club member of The Open Alumni Toastmasters Club. She was over the moon when I joined her club because she was finally able to find someone to mentor. J. J. was not only my mentor, but she was also my classmate in Junior College. She was my best friend too. As a mentor, she saw ahead what others could not see about me and helped me to navigate a different course of life that I never dared dreamt about.

However, the ways that she had helped me were what I called the drastic measures. She made me delivered my first Prepared Speech Project at an Area Level Speech Contest. She tricked me into believing that it was only an ordinary Toastmasters Club Chapter Meeting. Among the audience who was laughing at me during the delivery of my speech, she laughed the loudest. She even told me that it was alright if the audience could not understand whatever I was saying so long as it was funny.

Nevertheless, I have to admit. It was because of my non-typical, extraordinary mentor, that I have become a better speaker and quit my job as a debt collector one year after I graduated from school.  I am now working in a ministry, talking to people from all walks of life, and not just saying “Owe money pay money!”.

Work With Your Mentors

If you are still new to Toastmasters, I would encourage you to work with your mentor closely, take up as many appointments and deliver as many Prepared Speech Projects as you can. Value the time that you have with your mentor. Schedule time to seek advice from your mentor. Discuss with her or him about your personal goals and aspirations as a toastmaster. 

Work on your strengths and weaknesses diligently. Just remember the power of pairs. If you can work closely with your mentor, I believe you will achieve great things that you can never imagine. Just like me, you can progress to become another great leader and speaker. If you have the opportunity, be a mentor of another toastmaster. Learning is a never ending journey and we will help one another to grow in the Toastmasters Club.