Has it really been 9 years? 😱 #zamangemok
This photo brings back fond memories of my youth, as a major milestone in conquering my fears and stepping outside of my comfort zone.
I’m not going to bluff you with a heroic origin story of how it all happened. The real reason I stepped into the role MC was because there were no other tasks left 😂.
Back in the volunteering committee, everyone pretty much snatched up all the other duties - registration, security, ticketing, marketing, etc - and the only remaining vacancy was the task that people run away from: MC.
Back then, I remember thinking: “This happens at almost all events! We always struggle to find MC at the last minute. We always ‘taichee’ this tasks to interns and fresh grads. Come on gais, when can we have more young talent step up and be the MC we need?!”
Then it hit me: Okay Faisal, enough talk. Put your money where your mouth is. Stop whining, get up and be the change that you want to see. “Allah will not change the state of a people until they first change what is in themselves” (Qur’an, Surah Ar-Ra’d 13:11).
In the volunteers meeting one week before the event, I told the committee, “erm, I can try to be MC if you want”. At that moment, I immediately felt that everyone let out a huge sigh of relief and joy.
If the meeting was captured on DVD, I can imagine the subtitles saying “Hooray! Someone’s picking up the slack!” 😂
It was a terrifying step up for me. I never had any experience in public speaking or MC-ing as a student, save for a few volunteering events here and there among friends. Experts claim that up to 77% of the population has a fear and anxiety of public speaking, and that includes me!
It was such a simple job: Welcome the audience, introducing the organizers, a brief background about the speaker, a short teaser about the topic, introduce speaker, and that’s it, you’re done! After he speaks, there’s nothing much to say because people want to go home anyway.
Easy right? 5 minutes, at most. Just fake it till you make it. After these 5 minutes, walk off the stage in the most pretentiously calm way you can possibly imagine, and then go backstage, vomit and faint. No worries. You got this, mate.
But in my mind, I took the ownership to take this responsibility seriously. I felt, there was more at stake here: The MC serves as the ambassador for the event. This was Mufti Menk’s first time in Malaysia. I need to give a positive first impression of our country and to make him feel welcome as our guest. And because this was the first time Dakwah Corner Bookstore would invite an international speaker; I would also technically represent their brand. For some strange reason at the time, I also felt a responsibility to give a lasting first impression on behalf of the bearded Malay boys.
Needless to say, I felt like my neck was on the line here. If I botch this up, I don’t think I’ll ever go onstage again.
But I knew the good news: At least I could prepare for it. This is my chance to implement “ihsan” in my actions. And boy, did I prepare. I spent at least 5-6 hours preparing for it: scripting it, rehearsing a 5-minute script again and again. Memorizing the script to the point so well to the point that I could make it “sound” as if I’m being impromptu. Fake it in a way that doesn’t seem fake.
And then the moment came, I went onstage to deliver the longest, most nerve-wracking 5 minutes of my life.
The next year when Mufti Menk came again, they invited me again as MC. And the year after that. And the years after that too. Perhaps I didn’t mess it up too badly after all (either that, or they’re still out alternative options).
Now, 9 years later in hindsight, it was one of the best decisions I’ve made, one that would set me up on a journey of personal growth that would boost my personal AND professional life; it instilled a self-confidence that I didn’t know I was capable of and opened up more opportunities such as The Straight Path convention.
At times, just when we think we are uncapable of something, all we need is that extra “push” to jolt us out of our comfort zone for us to break out of our stubborn shell.
“I learned that courage was not the absence of fear, but the triumph over it. The brave man is not he who does not feel afraid, but he who conquers that fear.” (Nelson Mandela)
#FearofPublicSpeaking #TriumphOverFear #TheBarakahEffect
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