Albert Einstein is said to have been credited with these quotes: “an unexamined life is a life not worth living”, and “doing the same thing over and over while expecting a different result is tantamount to insanity”.
Originally, I come from Ghana, a former British colony where English is the lingua franca. I also had the opportunity to pursue further studies in Canada, where I wrote and defended my thesis work in English.
I was feeling pretty confident that I had a good command over the Anglo-Saxon language. However, two incidents occurred later after school graduation in Canada which not only surprised me, but gave me the opportunity to thoroughly re-examination my communication skills.
Foremost, a harsh comment I received during an interview to the effect that “I possessed a thick accent”- an incident which negatively impacted my psyche for a while; and an embarrassment I experienced from a passenger while I worked with an airline company served as catalysts to my quest for excellent communication strategies.
Prior to joining Fluor Canada, I had no “Speakers Club” experience. I only received ad hoc tips on effective communication. Upon joining Fluor, I made further enquiries to take my communication skills to the next level. I reached out to Richard Burnwell, who subsequently introduced me to Fluor Communicators.
After joining the club, it took me some time to deliver my ice-breaker speech because I wanted to learn from senior speakers and feedback from evaluators. Within a short period, I came to deeply appreciate the philosophy of mentors to see growth in new club members. The coaching skills and mastery with which senior members delivered speeches motivated and challenged me right away.
Under the mentorship of Marcy Field, I have successfully been able to deliver two speeches without reading from scripts since becoming a member in May of 2024. I believe that with the help of Fluor Communicators and hence Toastmasters, I can confidently improve upon my communication skills tremendously.
Joining Fluor Communicators is one of the best decisions I have ever made.
REWARDING ROLE!
