Sunday, July 14, 2013
I decided to attend the Transformational Leadership Programme (TLP) conducted by Rajan to ensure that I do not lose the momentum gained during the Train the Trainers Programme which got over with the graduation ceremony on June 30th. I missed the first session of the new programme on July 7th as I was away in Kerala.
There are about 50 people attending this programme. Rajan is a good story teller and they come easily to him. He believes in the entertainment aspect of his programmes, with long, winding, meandering stories.
I should remember to make use of the jig chanting aloud – impression, repetition, association. This is surely an effective way to remember the names of all the 50 participants. I was able to remember most of the names, though I am not sure how many of them I will be able to recall come next Sunday. This is a very young crowd.
Most of the time went in each of the participants narrating an interesting and memorable childhood incident for about 2 minutes each. After that Rajan narrated how he developed himself as an effective speaker. From being a less than average student in school and college, he went on to become good speaker through his grit and a lot of hard work.
What came out of his story was the support given by his father to overcome his weakness in English, Rajan’s never-say-die attitude and the confidence that he built over time to achieve one mile-stone after another.
I must find the stories in my life which speak of bravery, overcoming, commitment, leadership, teamwork. I must learn to bring them alive in my own unique way transferring all the energy at my command.
Rajan asked everyone to come prepared with a 90 second presentation on an activity done for the first time. He himself gave a presentation twice, the first time with a lot of energy and passion, the second time in a matter of fact manner. No one would connect to a trainer if he does not speak with passion and energy. I have to remember this when ever I face a gathering – be passionate to transfer information and transforming people.
Training is a fantastic profession. I have to vividly picture myself accomplishing a lot in this field. I have already spent a lot of time and money in these two trainings and now is the time to start stretching to look for opportunities.
As Rajan said in his presentation, life holds a lot of promise for those who are willing to work with dedication on their areas of weakness. Where I have to work on is my discipline and formation of good habits.
I reached the venue of the class about 7 minutes late and I felt bad. I want to be on time everywhere. A trainer cannot afford to be lax with his schedules and time.
The First Meeting of My Batch mates at Subbu’s House.
Ten of us – 3 ladies and 7 of us men – met on Sunday around 6.30 pm to discuss about how we can help one another to take our first tentative steps in training.
The discussions were not focused and did not have an agenda as we were meeting for the first time. People talked about how TrainersHub could evolve and help aspiring trainers to find their feet and become prosperous eventually.
Mostly people spoke about the rough haul during the initial one or two years. Chandrika spoke about how she can help us to get training sessions in schools or colleges – of course without pay initially.
Then everyone spoke individually sharing their hopes, plans, fears…. Some of them had very good ideas. Param is likely to take a courageous decision to partially or fully leave his comfortable corporate job. Vigneswari has also done some home work. I spoke about my plans to start with my webs site and blog.
It is a fantastic idea to meet at least once every month, to hold on to hope, share success stories and learn from others’ experiences as they venture out into this new area. The most important benefit is being in the midst of people who set themselves high standards of endeavor. One is defined by the company one keeps. The people one associates with surely influences his aspirations, strivings and accomplishments.
Almost all my batch mates have impressive credentials. Quite a few of them hold doctorates, some in very high positions, many are highly networked. I feel naked in their presence. Yet, I must win the trophies of life that matter. To start with, I must push the boundaries of my physical limits in the mornings. I must believe in myself and give everything I have got to turn around the business in a big way. Every ounce of energy I possess should be used to stretch myself in all aspects of life I choose to focus on.
I must find ways of not letting myself be eaten away or distracted by unkind cuts inflicted by the timid of heart or failures in life. I have given others far too much importance and have not done enough for myself.
Subbu took care of all of us very well. He kept feeding us lovely snacks, coffee and other stuff. The next meeting will be at Vigneswari’s house in Thiruvanmiyur on 3rd August.