My father used to say "Great challenges separate the Boys from among Men"!
Always, I bragged that I can manage. I know how to ask someone to work or perform specific task. This confidence was grounded on the premise that I got good managerial skills and had handled a number of projects to my credit. But this time, I fought, lost most of the battles and... barely won the war!
When I thought I could handle the chairmanship of the PRTC 15th Anniversary with ease, I was dead wrong!
Yearbook Project
It all started sometime in July when TM James shot an idea of compiling all the accomplishments PRTC and then print it like a yearbook. When I disclose this idea to some of my close friends in the club, they were all positive and supportive. They even suggested that I can use this as a project for my Leadership Excellence norm with Toastmasters International. Emboldened by the prospect of making a legacy for PRTC, I took the challenge of heading the 15th anniversary of PRTC. By August I formed the committees, started sending emails to inactive members explaining my purpose and at the same time soliciting for ideas how to improve it. TM Ramed Borja, TM Fritz Armada in Dubai, TM Obet Geronimo, and TM Ditas Tiamzon were among the first to respond and supported the project.
After long deliberation and exchanges of emails, we finally decided to hold a formal anniversary party with a Masquerade Theme – Parisian Style. Ladies were requested to wear evening gown plus mask and the men with tuxedo or coat plus mask. When it was announced in the club, there was overwhelming excitement and anticipations.
To our surprise, TM Oscar Vanderlipe declared that he will sponsor two round trip tickets to any destination to Europe for the winners of the best costume of the night.
Time table
By September, the Executive Committee (Execom) officially sanctioned the project and designated me as the chairman for the Crystal Anniversary.
I thought I had a good lead time, but the months of September and October came and go like a breeze. The tight PRTC schedule of activities and long holidays screwed our timetable and handicapped most of my committees. We failed to meet even once and I rely solely on emails and phone calls to coordinate with the team. Much as wanted to force them to set a deadline, I know I cannot do that. They were volunteers and not my subordinates. All I can do was ask for favor and wait.
By mid November, I started to borrow the Execom time and inserted anniversary as main agenda in the meeting. Thankfully, the beautiful people of Execom indulge my intrusion. Some members of the anniversary committees also joined such as TM James who heads the souvenir committee, TM Richard for the invitations, and TM Willy for the decorations. And almost all members of the Execom became part of the anniversary committee. TM Reina handled the awards, TM Arnold as assistant chair, TM Rolly for finance, TM Guiller and TM Sheila for concept and design, TM Perlito for invitation, and TM Roi for the program.
TM Ron's Case
Since September, we've been marketing that Dec 16 would be the anniversary date. Hearing no reactions from the members, we concluded that this would be an acceptable date for everyone. We even announced it to all other Toastmasters Club in the Division. Then on Nov 16th, after our regular toastmasters meeting, TM Ron started to question why we scheduled the anniversary on Dec 16th? He argued that by tradition, the anniversary should be on the first week of December or 10th at the most. TM Reina stood up and explained to the body that this was part of the term-schedule that was announce last September and was properly aligned between PRTC activities to give the Execom some breathing space.
I initially wondered why TM Ron questioned the schedule where in fact, he knew from the start and he didn't object. Later I discovered that he may not be able to attend the party because his vacation schedule was set on Dec 15th. Personally, I don't want TM Ron to miss the anniversary on two grounds: he is the recipient of most awards and he is the fulcrum of the party – he can easily swing the mood of the party to vibrant tempo. That is why I lobbied to the committee to move the date from Dec 16 to Dec 9. There were violent reactions, believe me, and I almost got crushed by the heavy opposition had it not been with TM Arnold who stood by my side.
I fully understand the furor of the committee. We were running out of time, we were financially flat broke, and we don't have warm bodies to execute the plans. TM Rolly has not started the collection and failed to produce a decent solicitation letter. TM James started to show paranoia on the possibility of completing the souvenir in time. We don't have layout, zero pictures, not even one article and we barely have a month to finish all. Only TM Sheila was upbeat enough to complete the marketing campaign and the concept design. As a leverage, TM Arnold and myself volunteered to shoulder the initial expense on the premise that the club will pay us in due time.
By November 23rd, we officially announce to the club that the party would be on Dec 9, 2010.
Crunch Time
The change brought havoc to our schedules.
The last day of submission for the application of the "The Outstanding Toastmaster of the Year" was moved a week earlier, we need to change the guest speaker due to unavailability of the Philippine Ambassador on the new date, we reduced the number of expected participants from 100+ to less than 60, and the harshest change: we reduce the pages of the anniversary souvenir by almost half. After removing the articles, 20 plus pages of pictures, highlights per president, and highlights of area governors – we were
left with only 66 pages. A far cry from the planned 150 pages!
Bleeding Time
The events during the week of the anniversary were so tense and mind blowing, I almost gave up. I even swear "this will be the last and I will never be involved again with Toastmasters". Honestly, there was pinch of truth when I uttered those words.
I was frustrated with my team. My committees failed to deliver the simple task assigned to them. TM Roi sat on the program too long and when I criticize his obviously run-the-mill programme, he went ballistic. I pointed out that he should have at least given the program some thought and not use recycled and uneventful sequences. TM Rolly failed to collect fees and for that I have to use my personal monies. Yes, I have to close my eyes when I bleed over SR3700 to cover all ends. Oh, I bought 40 pieces of assorted beautiful mask for everyone and that is aside from the 66 gifts my wife prepared. Another headache was TM James. He asked too much of my time when he assigned me to prepare the photo-timeline of PRTC. That alone took 3 days of my life. And to see him redoing what I
did, that was simply discouraging. Why didn't he do it himself in the first place? I could have used three days as a wide window for hunting possible donors and sponsors. And don't ask how difficult it was to find a printer that would deliver 80 copies in a day. I want to forget those horrendous moments.
But all of the above pain was bearable. I have resigned to the fact that these people were volunteers and not my minions. I have to make do of whatever was available and who were willing.
What had driven me to madness were those times when members – particularly inactive members – started complaining that I have not done enough for the anniversary. To add insult to the injury, these members insinuated that they may not come (I read boycott) due to security reasons. I did beg, bow down, swallowed mountain-full of pride (and saliva), and cried wolf just to convince them to come. Yet, they were cold and critical to the end.
During these crucial times I admit it was my beloved wife who kept my sanity intact. She was with me from planning, preparation and execution. Had it not been with her, I had easily given up.
Party Time
Now I fully understand why party goers often see only the glam and lime lights and do not appreciate the preparation that comes with it. We go to the party and enjoy – not talk about the bad things on it.
When the spot lights started shining, the camera flashes started firing, and when the guest in their gorgeous dresses started littering the ballroom area, all my qualms complains and pains simply vanish in the air. The overwhelming joy of watching the show running smoothly and successfully lifted my spirit. It was a thousand times more than enough to pay for our ordeal.
My wife was simply stunning with her peacock ensemble. She won the best costume for female category. On the other hand, TM Jojo in his Phantom-of-the-Opera suit won the male category, and Sarah Perez in her super sexy night dress with elaborate mask won the guest category.
There were small lapses along the way but it was too minor to notice. Overall, we have festive one-of-a-kind and a memorable masquerade party where everyone was enjoying.
See photos in the PRTC Facebook account. Follow this link
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?id=100001724364278&aid=15405
Learning by doing
I was happy, not only because I won the Toastmaster of the Year award, but because that night I have proven to myself I can also be a leader and not just a manager.
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