Standard Bank, Southgate mall. The DDCT Tour, Part 35 - Challenges of a Mixed Audience

   A public speaker here in South Africa at some stage will have to address an audience made up of people from other races in addition to one's own. And because of our country's recent past, this situation adds to the pressure while up there.

   Yours truly so far has been giving these motivational talks( DDCT) to mostly African audiences. And it has been relatively easy to do so because I was speaking to my own kind, so to speak.

   At this Standard bank branch, however, it was a true rainbow nation of staff members. Africans, Indians, Coloureds( of mixed ancestry) and whites were all in the house. In facing such a mixed grouping, I automatically felt an immediate need to do well.  

   And to deal with this added pressure, I  kept telling myself - before the talk started - that if indeed I have done my homework( i.e. I know my material, I have had a good night's sleep etc), I will come across well. Then, it won't matter to the audience if the speaker is African, Coloured, White or Indian. They will be happy because the speaker has delivered.

And I think the audience was in today's case.

                                                      SOME THANK YOU's 

- Mr Robert Thomson( the Manager) - For giving the go ahead.

- Ausi Farida - For organizing the logistics for this talk, and for those kind pre-talk and post-talk words. For buying a copy of our book(Feeling Good), as well.

- Standard bank staff - For that rousing welcoming applause before the talk commenced.

                                                       ===================

Our FEEL GOOD quote of the week:

"It has been my experience that there is one constant underlying
force that is ever-present regardless of status, background or situation.
For me this force explains human existence and all its limitations of
hopelessness and outstanding success: a persons's attitude or, to put 
it another way, the quality of the inner voice."

Jack Black( from the book - MINDSTORE)

                                                 ====================

THANK YOU UNIVERSE. THANK YOU FOR OUR 'FEEL GOOD MOMENTS'.

                                                  ===================

SO, SOUTH AFRICA AND THE WORLD OUT THERE, WHAT MADE YOU 

FEEL GOOD THIS WEEK?    

          

                              

FNB Easy Plan, Southgate mall. The DDCT Tour, Part 34 - Being Topical Does Not Hurt

   We started off by wishing all the ladies in the house a happy St Valentines Day for this coming Friday 14th February. Later, I briefly touched on the upcoming Oscar Pistorius murder trial.

   Th above two topics were weaved into the standard motivational talk that I normally give. The idea was to add some currency and freshness to the talk.

   Your content may be timeless( like we think ours is - LOL!), but adding to it something about a current news item or a subject currently in people's minds is not a bad idea. This will tell your audience that you are aware; that you read and are up to date news wise. You should have seen the smiles on the faces of the ladies when I started off with that Valentines Day wish. And just from these smiles alone, I can safely say this talk was a success.

                                                   SOME THANK YOU's

- Bra Xolani( the Manager) - For the permission.

- FNB staff - For lending me your ears.

                                                =====================

Our FEEL GOOD quote of the week:

"It may seem silly, however under the influence of 

positive words people are even stronger than

 normal, while negative words seem to sap their energy."

Jack Black( from the book - MINDSTORE)

                                                ==================== 

THANK YOU UNIVERSE. THANK YOU FOR OUR 'FEEL GOOD MOMENTS'.

                                                  ===================

SO, SOUTH AFRICA AND THE WORLD OUT THERE, WHAT MADE YOU 

FEEL GOOD THIS WEEK?    

          

                                                        
              

FNB, Dobsonville. The DDCT Tour, Part 33 - Do With What You Have

   It does happen sometimes that there are time constrains when you give a presentation. You may have budgeted to speak for a certain amount of time, but find that you have to do with less.

  This is an opportunity to improvise on your content. Cut out all the non-essentials. The joke that you thought was going to bring the house down, may have to be abandoned because telling it under these circumstances will eat into your core message. The essence of your talk - the 4 Steps Plus 1, in my case - is not negotiable. It must come out no matter what. 

   Listening with rapt attention by the Dobsie staff members and seeing ex-colleagues( bo-Ausi Faith) are some of the highlights I took from this Dobsonville talk, in addition.

                                                      SOME THANK YOU's 

- Ausi Yonela and Ausi Faith( the respective managers) - For the permission.

- Dobsie staff members( bo-Ausi Siphokazi, Amanda, Khosi et al) - For the enthusiastic reception of my message. 

                                                       =================

Our FEEL GOOD quote of the week:

"Many today find that as they become stressed they are

tempted to work harder, to put in extra hours and drive

further, thereby exposing themselves to more and more

stress. This leads to distorted perception, causing them not

to realize what is happening. The end result of course is 

fatigue, exhaustion or even collapse."

Jack Black( from the book - MINDSTORE)

                                            ====================

THANK YOU UNIVERSE. THANK YOU FOR OUR 'FEEL GOOD MOMENTS'.

                                             ===================

SO, SOUTH AFRICA AND THE WORLD OUT THERE, WHAT MADE YOU 

FEEL GOOD THIS WEEK?    

          

                                      

FNB, Dube. The DDCT Tour, Part 32 - Good To Arrive Early

   I am tempted to start this post by saying, "Nice one, Ausi Rachel and your staff." But then I will be guilty of saying something I may have said before about other places. In this case, however, I do not mind to sound like a scratched vinyl record, because it needs to be said.   

          "A very, very nice one, Ausi Rachel and your staff. What a talk!"

   Now back to Public Speaking 101. Arriving at a gig early is invaluable, I am discovering. An early arrival gives one an opportunity to acclimatize. This acclimatization process helps one to come across well during the talk because you will be more relaxed.

   I was at the Dube branch as early as 7.15am for a talk that was to start at  8am. While waiting outside the premises I got a chance to get to know the security gentlemen( bo-Bra Mike and Tsatsi). The chat to Bra Mike was interesting. He wanted to know why I left FNB. To him a steady 9-5 job - at a bank nogal - was priceless. But I explained that what I do now - motivational speaking, running a blog and selling our book - are my passions. These three I am prepared to pursue despite there being no guaranteed income as yet, I told Bra Mike.

   Once inside, there was also still enough time for one to have tea/coffee or a glass of water, and to make small talk with the staff members. All of these pre-talk actions are great tools for making one feel at home in a new environment. And this familiarizing bore fruit during the talk.

                                             SOME THANK YOU's

- Ausi Rachel( the Manager) - For the 'Yes'. And for collating those book orders. 

- Dube branch staff( bo-Ausi Marvelous, Progress, Bongi, Gugu, Omphile, Yvonne, Thulisile and bo-Bra Thabo, Shepherd et al) - For the hugs scene that went on forever, and was a thrill to witness.

                                                    ====================

Our FEEL GOOD quote of the week:

"An event has no meaning until we make sense of it

through our belief systems and trigger a reaction in our

bodies that will be either negative or positive depending

on the status we give the event."

Jack Black( from the book - MINDSTORE)

                                          =====================

THANK YOU UNIVERSE. THANK YOU FOR OUR 'FEEL GOOD MOMENTS'.

                                             ===================

SO, SOUTH AFRICA AND THE WORLD OUT THERE, WHAT MADE YOU 

FEEL GOOD THIS WEEK?    

          

                                          

        

FNB, Fordsburg. The DDCT Tour, Part 31 - What Makes for a Great Atmosphere?

   What creates a good vibe during a speaking engagement, in other words.

This is a question  I have been grappling with since I started doing the DREAMS DO COME TRUE( DDCT) talks. It is a question I am sure a lot of people who do public speaking ask themselves.

   But what do we mean by a great atmosphere?

Among other things, it is an instance where the speaker is flowing easily as they give their talk. An instance where the members of the audience are completely with you. Where you expect them to nod in agreement with a certain point, they do; where you expect them to see a funny side, they do. Most importantly, during such a talk there will be one incident which happens that the speaker did not anticipate, but which will serve to add to the talk's positive energy( Hello Roger).

   There are many things that contribute to making a talk work, no doubt. But I think one of the main factors is the simple matter of how the audience members are seated. This, plus your proximity to them.

   At this FNB branch the staff members were seated in a horseshoe formation, with me standing at the open end. And they were very close to me. With a stretched hand, I could have touched some of them. From this set up the energy during this talk was palpable. The saying that a performer/speaker feeds off the energy of their audience was so true in Fordsburg's case. It all felt really good from the speaker's side.

                                                  SOME THANK YOU's

- Ausi Waheda and Bra Ben( the respective Managers) - For your 'go ahead'.

- FNB staff - For the embrace.

- Bra Roger( the Financial Planner) - For the conversation after the talk.

- Eric - For buying a copy of our book(Feeling Good).

- Errol - For purchasing our book as well. And for that selfie. Do pass my regards to Anto.

                                                 ====================

Our FEEL GOOD quote of the week:

"...by working to develop more of your right

brain(the seat of intuition, imagination, rhythm etc) - together

with managing your stress, becoming more positive, and

learning to set goals - you will sense a dramatic change in

how you experience life."

JACK BLACK( from the book - MINDSTORE)

                                           ===================== 

THANK YOU UNIVERSE. THANK YOU FOR OUR 'FEEL GOOD MOMENTS'.

                                             ===================

SO, SOUTH AFRICA AND THE WORLD OUT THERE, WHAT MADE YOU 

FEEL GOOD THIS WEEK?    

          

     
   
         

FNB, Protea Gardens mall. The DDCT Tour, Part 30 - Other Voices on Succeeding

   Here at Protea Gardens there were other speakers who gave us some notable tips on how to succeed in life.

   Ausi Grace Mathibe( from the FNB Smart House division) said that she has her goals written up in her diary. This diary she carries with her all the time. She is therefore able to read her goals every day wherever she is.

   In my view, one of the benefits of saturating your mind with your goals is that you may start off not knowing how to achieve some of your more ambitious ones, but with this regular reading of them you will then start getting ideas on how to achieve them. The challenge will then be for you not to be afraid of trying these ideas out as they come to you. Sure some of these ideas won't work out, but one of them will definitely take you closer to you goal or even help you to achieve it.

   Next up was Bra Sipho Moorosi( the branch's Financial Planner). He started by asking us, "How do you know if you are a child of God?"

When God looks at you and sees his image in you, then you are a child of God. This state of reflecting the image of God you attain by being virtuous in all aspects of the word. It means you are fair, you are generous, you are patient, you don't harm you fellow human being...so on and so forth. Our quest in life, Bra Sipho seemed to be saying, is to try get to this state of moral excellence where we reflect God with every fibre of our being.

                                         SOME THANK YOU's

- Ausi Karabo and Ausi Noleen( the respective Managers) - For giving us the platform. And for the cake and the juice thereafter.

- FNB staff( bo-Thabo, Lunga, Mpho, et al) - For lending me your ears, AGAIN.

- Tshepo - For the interesting chat after the talk.

- Ausi Grace - For the invitation.

                                             ================

Our FEEL GOOD quote of the week:

"..if these were the 1970s I could say with all the confidence
that we were probably using 20 per cent of the brain. If it
were the 1980s I would say 10 per cent. In the 1990s we were
using a fraction of 1 percent. In other words, we are only scratching 
the surface; we are nowhere near fulfilling our potential."

Tony Buzan( as quoted in the book - MINDSTORE)

                                                   =================== 

THANK YOU UNIVERSE. THANK YOU FOR OUR 'FEEL GOOD MOMENTS'.

                                                   ===================

SO, SOUTH AFRICA AND THE WORLD OUT THERE, WHAT MADE YOU 

FEEL GOOD THIS WEEK?    

     
  

FNB, Gandhi Square. The DDCT Tour, Part 29 - All 'Thank You's' Welcomed

   The hosts show their appreciation for our motivational talk in many ways.

Some are full of smiles at the end of it all. Others will come out and say it in words, "That was very good, Thapelo."Others still, show it through the warm and lingering hugs.

   In a few cases we have been offered breakfast( Hello Yvonne. Hello Katiso). In some instances the hosts have offered material support in the form of buying copies of our book(Feeling Good). This latter gesture was the case at this FNB branch. After the Manager( Ausi Tyron) suggested it at the end of the talk, everybody willingly chipped in to purchase a copy of the book.

   Whatever method is preferred by my hosts, I am always grateful. Doing the talks by itself is a reward for me. It is something that I have come to adore as much as the writing process. In addition to this passion I have developed for public speaking( of the motivational kind), it is an honour to be in this position where I am given a chance to motivate and inspire people in my own small way.

                                                      SOME THANK YOU's

- Ausi Tyron( the Manager) - For the authorization. Given at the right time too.

- FNB staff - For your material support. Much appreciated ladies and 1 gentleman.

- The lady staff member who walked in when the talk was in progress already. An act which later gave us one of the funniest moments of this talk.

                                                       =================

Our FEEL GOOD quote of the week:

"Without imagining bright futures and solutions to our

challenges there is no future, only grinding continuation

of present reality. We need dreamers in this world."

JACK BLACK( from the book - MINDSTORE)

                                         ====================

THANK YOU UNIVERSE. THANK YOU FOR OUR 'FEEL GOOD MOMENTS'.

                                             ===================

SO, SOUTH AFRICA AND THE WORLD OUT THERE, WHAT MADE YOU 

FEEL GOOD THIS WEEK?