Greetings Fellow District 10 Toastmasters!
First off, I would like to take the opportunity to thank you for all of your hard work and efforts to make this year a success! It is because of your hard work and dedication to the mission and purpose of Toastmasters, we exist as a district.
We are coming down from a very motivating and high energy conference. For those of you who missed the opportunity to network and get to know Ryan and Chelsea Avery, you missed an extraordinary treat! I have never met a couple that are as deeply committed to their dreams and accomplishing their goals as they are! I believe that I wasn’t the only person motivated and rededicated because of their presence.
We had a wonderful day filled with educational modules, networking and connecting with fellow Toastmasters within our district and beyond (we had several visiting leaders and members from neighboring districts), and the icing on the cake was our International Speech and Evaluation Contest! Congratulations to Terry Begue, International Speech Contest Winner, and Anna Elsass, Evaluation Contest Winner! Terry will compete at the International Convention in August for a chance to bring home the title of World Champion of Public Speaking!
This year has been a whirlwind of both successes and great challenges. One thing I am learning as a leader is when it comes to growth, breaking outside of the box of complacency, and the need to groom and prepare emerging leaders to step up to the plate, there will be resistance, challenges and stumbling blocks placed on your path… the key is to keep looking forward and focus on the ultimate goal, which is achieving success.
No good thing comes easy – it requires hard work, persistence, dedication to the cause, accountability for personal actions, and responsibility for completing you end of the bargain to the best of your ability.
One of the things that I encourage each of you to remember as we enter into the final days of the Toastmasters year is that if you want to be successful, you still have the opportunity to set yourself up to do it! Continue to chart your personal and club’s course to being distinguished… We, your leadership team, will do whatever we must to help you reach your goals!
I leave you with an Aristotle quote that I recite daily – “We are what we repeatedly do… EXCELLENCE, then, is not an act, but a habit.”
Remember, what we say, do and think will have an either positive or adverse affect on us, as well as those around us! They effect the operations of clubs, the district and organization as a whole. As we finish out the year, let’s be reminded of this fact.
If we say we aren’t going to be distinguished – guess what? We won’t be!
If you say that you’re not going to finish your Competent Communicator designation – well, you get the picture I hope.
Say what you are going to do, and put it into action!
As always, I am only an email, LinkedIn or Facebook shout-out away! Please do not hesitate to contact me! Teamwork makes the dream work, and we are a TEAM!
See you at the TOP… There’s too much drama and non-productivity at the bottom for me!
Deonna Gene Moore, DTM
2012-2013 District Governor
(216) 469-9707
dgmdtm@gmail.com
