In August 2011, six months after launching Barkada Circle, I joined the Toastmasters Club in my neighborhood because I realized that in order to be a better storyteller, I had to first be a better communicator, especially in front of a group of people.
Public speaking was never my strength. I remember joining a number of speech competitions during my elementary years in school. I didn’t join voluntarily. NOOOO! English teachers would recommend a student to a jury based on the student’s performance in class and that student simply had no choice. He had to be a contestant. I did ok in English literature, but to this day I still wonder why my name was frequently thrown into the hat. The only reason that made sense was that the teachers had already picked a winner and I was simply a schmuck that guaranteed victory for their favorite student. So there I was, standing in front of an audience and a microphone stammering my life away. I never felt the need to do something about it because my true love was to draw and paint. Art still is and always will be my true love. My feeling had always been that I don’t have to talk about my art. It speaks for itself. It has to. That is, until August 2011.
After months of shaping the storytelling programs of Barkada Circle, doing two pilot workshops and getting feedback from early participants, I came to realize that I needed to improve my speaking skills. Literally days after this crossed my mind, my neighbor and friend told me she was thinking about joining a Toastmasters Club and found one just a few blocks west of our condo building. Francesca is a seasoned actor and playwright and lives below my floor. Despite being in a profession that constantly puts her in front of people, she still feels the need to better her communication skills. What did that say about me?
Francesca and I visited the local Toastmasters club one Saturday morning. The new experience got us and hooked. The people in the club were warm, supportive and showed that they truly cared about helping you succeed. Francesca and I became official members by the next meeting. Since then, we’ve enjoyed writing and delivering our own speeches while getting valuable feedback and coaching from the other members.
Having the confidence to communicate my passion for the mission of Barkada Circle and being able to have that passion come through and resonate with the person listening to me is exhilarating. Learning the skills to speak with clarity by using words that are potent with meaning helps me to capture a person’s attention with fewer words so I can be respectful of their time. Being who I am and showing what I can do in a way only I can, and people telling me that they want it from me, and people telling me that they need it from me, has shown me the true meaning of victory — not the kind that comes with winning a contest — rather, it’s overcoming the hurdles and limitations that, once upon a time, kept a young boy from reaching for what else was out there for him to discover. Today that boy lives in a world he could not have imagined.
A world where stories are colorful, sensational and real. Stories that make a difference in people’s lives. People who want their lives to change. Change that will help us tell a new story, a better story because it is one story that we all share.