Story - Swap, parallel paths, Personalized Paths

Parallel path? What I that? It is not, two path of one member done at the same time! I mean by it two different paths by two toastmasters, even achieved in different clubs, but going towards the same direction and with same theme and aim. Finished a year ago.

When I begun Pathways, 20 month ago, I was firm in my opinion: "I did not join Toastmasters to become a leader!"Firstly, I lead most of my life, did not need "more" and secondly, I joined to find companionship and like minded people to listen to my stories. 

Well, I knew that I learned in a few years how be member of then to lead in a committee, how to lead an Area or a Division, but what I wanted to learn was better speaking skills! 

In just a few months, from end March to August, I did learn not to judge a book by its cover, and not to choose a path by its title. In this case, not to refuse a path because of its title. 

Leadership Development? I would never begun it if I did not need what is INSIDE it! Leadership Development is all about organizing meetings. Smaller, then bigger and bigger. At the end, thinking and speaking of the lessons learned by doing them. I did it, with a twist.

When Paul E. White Chief Pathways Ambassador and Master Storyteller, become member of our online club Witty Storytellers online, we decided to collaborate and create, together, an International story-swap between different storytelling toastmasters clubs. Some storytellers were from onside meeting in the Virginia University and others telling their stories through Zoom, from all over the world, but all members (or future members) of Witty Storytellers. 

That was the final aim, and we did it with 15 storytellers just a year ago. We found them, choose them, Paul determined the Agenda, who will come after whom, after listening and giving feedback to all. Me going through Leadership Development and Paul through another path, from August to 2 December 2017 when the story-swap took place. 

We decided to dedicate our both paths to Storytelling and the importance of storytelling in our lives. We swapped stories before we told them, after we told them, with each other, offered advices to each other and to the storytellers, and for months, learned and got inspired from each other. We completely PERSONALIZED our Path, two different paths! It worked wonderfully! 

We begun with our family stories, our own personal stories from youth and later, and for me also how much stories helped me, from Paul, how much stories helped in his work too.

So far, Leadership Development is the path I remember best and with most delight. 

On the way, I also learned how much collaboration helps and indeed, probably without really realizing, even some leadership skills.