Protégé what?

Hello everyone

I want to share my recent experience as I feel it applies to everyone. I am a member of a local toastmasters club and I was recently promoted to the role of Vice president of Education (fear, limiting beliefs, stress) were my initial reactions to this news but then I decided to take a step back and reflect. I was voted into the role for a reason, obviously the people around me felt that I had the skills required to take on this role. I am sure there is a lot of us out there that do not have faith in ourselves and we allow our negative self talk limit us from becoming whom god created us to be. Well I am here to share the little wisdom I have learned in the hope of encouraging you all to take the risks and chances that are out there for the taking. A great way to progress is to take on the role of a protégé especially when you are starting out something new.

A protégé per dictionary definition is ” a person who is guided and supported by an older and more experienced or influential person” . I am in toastmasters for a reason, I want to develop the skills necessary to spread my message to the masses, that message is mainly aimed at women but anyone can really make effective use of it. I am inspired to encourage people to proactively plan for their futures. The whys will eventually be explained but my own personal experience has awakened me to the fact that life happens and most of us are ill prepared to deal with emergencies. I am here to encourage people to consider the fact that “Life Happens” and to ask themselves whether they are adequately prepared to deal with these “Life Happens” situations. I wasn’t prepared but I am getting myself situated to deal with what life can potentially throw at me. I am also aware of the fact that I might not be the only person out there and I want to use my experience as a learning opportunity for others. Thus my seeking out toastmasters, I joined toastmasters in January of 2019 and in June 2019 I was voted in as Vice president of Education. Part of my toastmasters journey has required me to fulfill different roles that have made me a better person. I have evaluated speeches , I have timed speeches, I have run meetings and I have intently listened for mistakes . In the 6 months I have been enrolled in toastmasters I can confidently share that I have added to my skill set, but what I want to share with you more is my last project.

I was introduced to mentorship and coaching from the perspective of toastmaster’s international. My last project dealt with mentorship and coaching, but the interesting thing is that it required me to think back to a time to when I was a protégé. I was required to give a 5-7 minute talk about a time I was a protégé. This was easy I was able to recall the time I was a student nurse and had no idea what I had gotten myself into. I appreciated toastmasters for providing me with the opportunity to reflect on my life and humble me into the reality that life is all about learning. We become what we become due to the life experiences that come our way. As a protégé student nurse I was dependent on those that came before me to show me the way. As humans we are not born knowing everything but we are born with the capability to learn from others and as a consequence we are given the responsibility to share our knowledge to the next generation. We evolve through our life experiences, I am grateful for the fact that I can acknowledge my shortcomings and I am willing to learn. I might not be a protégé nurse anymore but I am a protégé in different things in life. I am willing to learn and I am willing to share my knowledge , if you come with an open mind and a willingness to humble yourself you will find that life is meant to be enjoyed and being opening to learning is a grand way of enjoying the life god designed for you. Next time you have a bad thought about someone asking you a question, try and have some empathy and think back to a time when you needed some help with something you didn’t know.

With Love and Gratitude

Dr Fatsani Dogani