Believe You Can!

Opening Address at Katong TMC on 21 January 2010

Believe You Can


Good evening, fellow toastmasters, ladies and gentlemen. Welcome to the year 2010. Do you know this is the year that great things CAN happen in your life? How many of you believe that?

In December last year, I went to Guangzhou for my TCM practical. Our club member Zhang Bin happened to be Guangzhou at that time so we met up. Having done some internet research before going there, I told him I would like to visit Baiyun Mountain since I was yearning for the great outdoors. 'Sure, no problem.' he said. 'A walk in the mountain should take us about 3 hours. Let's meet at 9am.'

On Sunday morning, two of my classmates and I met up with Zhang Bin and his girlfriend and the 5 of us set off happily to conquer the mountain. The air was cool and crisp and we started perspiring after climbing up the interminable steps leading into the gardens. 3 hours later, it was 12 noon, time for lunch but we had only climbed up, we hadn't even started coming down yet. Zhang Bin kept saying, 'We're almost there.' At first we believed him. Then we realised in China, when you say 'we're almost there' it could mean anything from 10 minutes to 2 hours. In fact, we were still 2 km away from the exit!

My legs were trembling with fatigue, my muscles were shouting out in pain. I wanted to surrender and say, "No more, please no more!" I had obviously underestimated the grandeur of the mountain and overestimated my own athletic ability. I persuaded my friends to take the tram down but Zhang Bin said no adamantly. 'That would be tantamount to cheating,' he opined.

So with constant encouragement from my friends, and with the 'can-do' attitude, I persisted and finally 5 hours after we have started off, we arrived at the southern exit. It was only then that I saw the map of the mountain and realised its vastness: Baiyun Mountain, made up of 30-odd peaks, measures 7 km from south to north, and 4 km from east to west. The highest peak, Moxing Ridge (Star-scrapping Ridge) stands in the center of Baiyun Mountain, measuring 382 meters in height. And we had not even conquered it!

As a driver in Singapore, I always park as near to my destination as possible. If I had to walk for 10 minutes, I would complain. But in Guangzhou, I walked for 5 hours! That would have seemed like an impossible feat but I did it! It is indeed an achievement! And frankly I would not have been able to do it without my friends by my side encouraging me.

In the same way, in Toastmasters, we can achieve great things, impossible feats because of our dreams, our perseverance and our fellow toastmasters' unstinting support. If not for your support, I would have failed, I would have faltered. There are so many times, as club President, I felt discouraged and disheartened. But because you were there for me, I never gave up. I never gave up myself, I never gave up on you, and I never gave up on the club.

I urge all of you to be that pillar of support and strength to each other in times of need. When the VPE or club President needs you to present a project speech, or be an  appointment holder, or organise a contest, or whatever it may be, accept the invitation graciously. Your support means the world to your fellow toastmaster.  It is also an opportunity for you to learn and to grow.

Fellow toastmasters, are you here to become better speakers? Are you here to become better leaders?  How about champion speakers? Hold on to your dream! Believe you can. Believe in yourself. Get support from your fellow toastmasters and make that dream happen this year!