By TM Dipti Jain
December has a funny way of making us reflective.
Not in a deep, dramatic way but in a “Wait… when did I start speaking up so easily?” way.
As this year wraps up, I realised something interesting:
My voice today is not the same one I started the year with. And no, I didn’t find it magically on January 1st.
Toastmasters quietly trained it one meeting at a time.
Very polite.
I spoke when asked.
I shared ideas after thinking them through ten times.
I waited for the “right moment” (which, honestly, rarely arrived).
Toastmasters meetings gently interfered with that habit.
Table Topics don’t wait for perfection.
Evaluations don’t sugarcoat.
And meeting roles don’t allow hiding.
Somewhere between answering impromptu questions and hearing “Good point, but here’s how you can make it sharper”, my voice started getting clearer and quicker.
This year, Toastmasters reminded me that: