“Perhaps I can give it a try?” - the Journey of a thousand miles begins with one step.

 “Perhaps I can give it a try?”

That was the first step triggered my entire experience volunteering as an MC. 

The year is 2012. Mufti Ismail Menk comes to Malaysia for the first time, in the event titled Mufti Menk Live in KL, MMKL2012.

A few days before the event. Logistics for the speaker, venue, ticketing, registrations, promotions. Ready. All good to go.

Only one problem. 

“Hey ermm… who's the Emcee?”

Silence. Followed by panic. We didn't have anyone. 

I considered: Perhaps I could give it a try?

Then, reality check: Whoa, why me? I’ve never done public speaking or debates back in school. I’m clearly not fit for the job.

But wait. We have time to prepare. Just come up with a script, memorize, read it well, and keep rehearsing. Leave a good impression for the organizers, that’s enough. Step up! 

I spoke up.

“Err.. perhaps I can try?”

A huge sound of relief can be heard in the meeting room, to fill up this much avoided task. 

Now, the task was simple enough: just introduce the speaker, introduce the event, welcome the audience, give a background of the organizers. 5 minutes, max. 

But for an introvert who isn’t a natural speaker, who wasn’t “born with the talent”, that was not easy! The prep time for those few minutes.. i spent more than 5 hours to prepare. Scripting, practicing, rehearsing, repeat. 

Fast forward, the next year in 2013: Mufti Menk comes back to KL. “Bro Faisal, can you become the MC again?”

One more time? For real? Hmm.. okay then. Perhaps, we can try to do even better. Improve a little bit more.

2014, repeat.

2015: The event gets upgraded to a full-blown convention: The Straight Path (TSP). Adding speakers such as Dr. Muhammad Salah, Sheih Saeed Rageah, Abdul Rahim Green. Wow, big event. 

“Bro Faisal - can you be our emcee?”

Gulp. No way. One talk, sure. But a convention? That’s totally different level!

Okay. Another opportunity to challenge ourselves. Let’s give it a try. 

Alhamdulillah, I get invited to the next TSP. And the next. And since then, I’ve become the emcee every year. Every event, an opportunity to improve, and opening more doors, as stepping stones to something greater in meeting new people, experiencing new events. 

Now, 12 years later, in 2024, I was invited to become emcee for the very first Perlis International Sunnah Convention (PISC), masha Allah.

The reason I’m writing this isn’t to tell you how “great” I am. Quite the opposite. I really just a normal guy who doesn’t have any “talent” in public speaking. Over the years, I slowly learn, slowly develop. But it all starts with the courage to take that first step.

The reason I’m writing this is a rally call for my friends out there to step up. Be the change you want to see. Seize the opportunities as they come, because they may never come again. Step out of your comfort zone, to try new things and tackle new challenges. Dare to fail, keep improving. 

The journey of a thousand miles begins with one step.

“Cuba je.. mana la tahu” - menjadi Emcee PISC2024

 

Demikianlah titik permulaan saya dalam pengalaman sebagai emcee sukarelawan. 

Tahun 2012. Mufti Ismail Menk datang ke Malaysia pada kali pertama: Mufti Menk Live in KL, MMKL2012.

Beberapa hari sebelum event: Semua dah bersedia. Logistik utk speaker, selesai. Venue, settle. Tiket, sistem pendaftaran, promosi.. good to go. 

Satu je masalah.

“Chup.. korang takde emcee ke?”

“Eh.. yelah…!”

Habis semua panic. Korang kenal tak, siapa2 brothers yg boleh jadi MC? 

Silence. Loud sigh: Payah betul cari emcee melayu lelaki yang berbahasa inggeris. Rare species. 

Aduh.. Jam. Macam mana ni? 

Kemudian, saya terfikir: Sampai bila kita nak mengeluh “susah nak cari emcee melayu yg cakap English”?

Mungkin saya boleh try..?

Eh, sat sat… takkan aku kot.. aku tak pernah ada pengalaman emcee. Tak pernah public speaking atau berdebat waktu zaman sekolah. Bagi la orang lain. Don't make a fool out of yourself, bro. 

Tapi, terfikir: Ada masa nak prepare. Just buat skrip, hafal, baca dengan baik.. peluang untuk leave a good impression.. cukup ah. Try la. Cabar diri sikit, luar comfort zone. Mudahkan penganjur.. Jadi spare tire. At least ada la bidan terjun ready untuk islamic. Lepas ni takde la pening kepala sangat cari Emcee. Apa kata kita buat something crazy: step up and be the change we want to see? 

Faisal: “err.. I boleh cuba?”

Kedengaran suasana lega dalam bilik mesyuarat. Happy. Akhirnya ada orang step up buat kerja yang orang tak mau.

Waktu tu, tugas saya sempoi je. Setakat introduce speaker, introduce to event, background tentang penganjur.. saya kira, 5 minit je max. Tapi cuak weh.. saya ambik masa lebih daripada 5 jam untuk prepare. Tulis skrip, praktis, rehearse, ulang, praktis, ulang.

Fast forward tahun seterusnya, 2013: Mufti Menk datang lagi. “Bro Faisal, boleh jadi Emcee lagi?”

Oh, jemput saya one more time? Biar benar. Masha Allah. Okay, ni peluang saya buat lagi bagus. Cuba improve sikit lagi. 

2014, Mufti datang. Jemput saya lagi. Okay, cuba improve lagi. Prep time reduce dari 5 jam ke 3 jam. 

2015: Acara dinaiktaraf kepada tahap konvensyen: The Straight Path (TSP). Menambah penceramah lain seperti Dr. Muhammad Salah, Sheikh Rageah, Abdul Rahim Green. Wow. Big event. “Bro Faisal, boleh jadi Emcee?”

Gulp.. bair benar. Konvensyen? That's a totally different level. Okay2. Bro cuba.

Alhamdulillah, dijemput lagi TSP seterusnya. Semenjak TSP yang pertama tersebut, setiap tahun saya jadi emcee. Setiap acara, saya improve, dan setiap acara, laksana batu loncatan, satu per satu membuka pintu baru, kenalan baru, dijemput emcee event lain. 

Sehingga lah kini.. 12 tahun kemudian, tahun 2024. Dikurniakan peluang, dijemput menjadi emcee untuk Perlis International Sunnah Convention (PISC) yang pertama, 2024. masha Allah. 

Tujuan saya menulis ni bukanlah nak cakap saya hebat. Quite the opposite. Saya ni tak pandai pun. Over the years, slowly belajar. Tapi segalanya bermula dengan memberanikan diri mengambil langkah pertama.

Tujuan penulisan ini adalah sebagai pengajaran bagi sahabat2 lain untuk step up. Be the change you want to see. Seize opportunities. Step out of your comfort zone to try new things and tackle new challenges. Dare to fail, keep improving.

The journey of a thousand miles begins with one step.