CC-9 Project: Persuade with Power 

The ability to persuade – to get other people to understand, accept, and act upon your ideas – is a valuable skill. Your listeners will be more likely to be persuaded if they perceive you as credible, if you use logic and emotion in your appeal, if you carefully structure your speech and if you appeal to their interests. Avoid using notes because they may cause listeners to doubt your sincerity, knowledge, and conviction. 

Time:	5 - 7 minutes
Objectives:	•	Persuade listeners to adopt your viewpoint or ideas or to take some action.
	•	Appealing to the audience’s interests.
	•	Use logic and emotion to support your position.
	•	Avoid using notes

SEEING IS BELIEVING! SO LET’S TALK ABOUT CHANGE- by Manisha Mago

Good afternoon toastmasters, friends and guests. Can anyone tell me in which state was Mahatma Gandhi born? Correct! 

In December that’s where I went on a 10-days road tour with my family. We visited Vadodara, Rajkot, Gir Forest, Somnath temple, Bhuj and then the Rann of Kutch. In the land of the Mahatma, I got a first-hand experience of the much talked about progress and development of Gujarat. In most cities I saw huge hoardings of the famous leader of this state. One line that started coming to my mind during the tour “Be the change that you want to see in the world”. Yes, these are the inspiring words of the great Mahatma that resonate till today in the inspiring land of Gujarat!!

They say seeing is believing. I saw progress in Gujarat. I saw a change in Gujarat. I saw unprecedented growth that has put Ahmedabad, a city of Gujarat on the world map as the 3^rd fastest growing cities of the world as per Forbes magazine. I saw real development brought about by the exemplary administration of a visionary leader! AND now I see hope for my INCREDIBLY beautiful country, India!!! 

At the Rann of Kutch I saw that a barren dessert area has been converted into a beautiful, luxurious tourist attraction due to strategic planning and publicity. The Rann provides unprecedented employment opportunities to locals in those remote villages. I read somewhere that according to central govt's Labour Bureau's report, Gujarat has the lowest unemployment rate in country. Here was a real example. Not just this tourism endeavor, but even the amount of thorny green bushes cultivated in these otherwise sandy and barren villages was really commendable. And what’s more, I had unexpectedly superb access to WiFi at this remote village of Dhordo in the little Rann of Kutch. All due to excellent leadership and governance.

As we planned to visit so many places in Gujarat, we were on the road practically for all the ten days. My husband was the sole driver, and he had to drive a lot. On some days it was two hours and on some days he drove for almost ten hours. But thanks to the fantastic road infrastructure throughout Gujarat, he drove without any stress. I’d heard that Gujarat roads are of international standards. I saw that the roads were indeed superb. Butter smooth, without any undulations! No traffic jams, no crisscross lane-cutting, no holdups. So we could actually complete a road trip of around 500 kms from Rann of Kutch to Ahmedabad in under 6 hours, including an hour for lunch break and tea break! On the way, I also noticed most rivers were running in full spate, offering the most clean and green panoramas in urban India. No slums and no garbage on the river banks. An example of excellent infrastructure and administration.

I’d heard that Gujarat has "high speed wireless Broadband service and continuous power supply with no outages in its all 18,000 villages. And sure enough, enroute to Bhuj, I saw these countless wind mill farms that generate electrical power using wind energy. Another example of excellent leadership and planning.

My husband also operates his security business in Gujarat, and through him I got first-hand evidence of many of the efficient e-governance systems, minimal bureaucracy culture in Gujarat. Gujarat’s aggressive tourism and marketing strategies are in the news, we’ve all heard about them.

These are just a few of the many examples of what a democratic state government with an authoritarian style leadership has been able to achieve.

So, if this is what good leadership and effective governance can do in Gujarat, it made me think why can’t we have such progress in all states of India?

You see my friends, politics trumps economics. Good economic principles can only be implemented when the local and central administration operates in tandem. Without proper implementation at a micro level, growth strategies are useless. Today India does not need promises. It needs commitments and dedication. It needs a change. Folks, I urge you to vote wisely to bring about this change. Vote for leaders with a vision, a proven track record, and a passionate commitment to delivering that vision. And most importantly, as citizens it’s not enough to just vote for the change we need in India. Like the Mahatma rightly said, we also have to BE the change that we want to see in India. Jai Hind!!!