Toastmaster Inspiration

This weekend Jenn and I attended the District 53 Spring Toastmaster conference in Bloomington CT. The main event...The International Speech Contest.

For those of you unfamiliar with Toastmasters, it is an organization that focuses on speaking in front of people, and also surprisingly to me, it also aids in leadership skills. You can get more information by going to toastmasters.org.

But back to the conference and the speech contest. Six speakers competed, each one with an inspirational story to tell. Here is what I heard to be the key point of each speaker.

1. Look beyond your obstacles. He used the demonstration of gazelles who can jump 8 to 20 feet caged in by a 5-foot fence. The ones who escape, stop looking at the fence and look at what lies beyond.

2. Light a candle. The speaker told us of his hope to change the world and the teacher who encouraged him to look for opportunities to make one life better. As we help one person, we will be changing the world.

3. Relationships matter. We were encouraged to nourish our relationships each day.

4. Turn the page. Past hurts and failures do not have to determine our future, we can put a period on the event and turn the page to write a better future.

5. Find the key to freedom. The speaker came in with a ball and chain attached to his ankle symbolizing grudges we hold onto. The key? Forgiveness.

6. Time is life. Again, an emphasis on the importance of relationships. Appreciate your loved ones while you can.

What did I get from the conference? Appreciate my family and friends, don't let grudges and grievances affect my future actions, don't get sidetracked by obstacles and find a way to make someone's life a little better. Enjoy life!