by Alberto Pineda
One beautiful morning, I dropped my shirts off at the dry cleaners. The lady there asked me, “Are you working from home?” I replied “Yea.” She replied, “I can’t work from home because I never finished college”. To which I responded, “I never finished college”. We stared at each other for a minute before I said, “You can do more than you think!”
This is my message today: “You can do more than you think!”
Several years ago, I was going through some tough life changes. At that time, I told myself whatever I do next, I am going to do it harder, louder, and bolder. But where do I start? A great CEO of a company I once worked for told me leadership classes propelled him into being the CEO he is. With this knowledge, I decided to join a Toastmasters club.
Let me tell you how Toastmaster has inspired me these last 5 years.
- In my job, I oversee the product’s quality. When someone does something wrong, I must correct them. I did not know I would use the same skills I use for giving evaluations. I now give my peers constructive feedback.
- English is not my first language, making it hard to talk to people. I realized they do not understand me because of my bad pronunciation. Toastmasters has given me a place to improve my grammar, enhance my pronunciation, add descriptive adjectives to my speech, and gain the confidence to share my inspiring message.
- Being a contest judge is a learning experience. As a Manager, I find rating skills particularly useful for personnel evaluations.
My favorite quote from Les Brown is, “It’s better to be prepared for an opportunity and not have one than have an opportunity and not being prepared.” Are you preparing for your next challenge? Do you have the experience needed for that next opportunity?
Act today. Your community needs you! Your future grand self is waiting for you! Give your Toastmasters club and journey your all. Share your message of growth with someone you think needs to hear it! Most importantly remember, you can do more than you think!
