SPEAKER_01 0:50

We traveled virtually to Surabaya, Indonesia, the capital of East Java, and Indonesia's second largest city. It's for its pivotal role in the independent struggle. It boasts a fast length seatboard and vibrant, authentic Japanese culture. We go to Ela Steophilus and the Wikidata, also known as E.T., experienced Toastmaster, author, podcaster, and stand-up comedian. Let's go into follow his journey and find out what it takes to be such a multi-talented driven Toastmaster. Today's guest is Alaos Theophilus, better known on stage as E.T. Howling from Surabaya, Indonesia, Aleos is an author, speaker, podcaster, stand-up comedian, and facilitator who turns everyday life into sharp Hartford stories. A six years Toastmasters veteran, he sharpened his craft there and even helped power the 102-hour speaking relay, speaking into history. His Comedy Central style set, I got fired again, so I started talking to my rubber duck, combines the absurdities of work and life with tight storytelling, rule of three jokes, and clever callbacks. As the voice behind several podcasts and workshops, Allah teaches people to communicate with clarity, warmth, and a little mischief. You may also know him online as at Human911, now spreading laughter across 30 countries.

SPEAKER_00 2:38

Oh, hello! And uh how are you, mate? Very well, thanks. That's a lot. How do you find the time to do all that? Yes, actually I have a little time. But yes, I have so many doppelgangers who help me to work with me.

SPEAKER_01 3:05

Could you tell me tell us a little bit about yourself in your own words?

SPEAKER_00 3:11

Yes. Hello everybody. Hello, Brandon. I'm Ilios Thiovilus, or people call me Iti. It is easier to remember. And I'm from Sura Barinala, a non e Jang in East Jaffa. And these days I wear a few hats. Speaker, podcaster, stand-up comedian, and facilitator who loves storytelling and building things that make people laugh and think together.

SPEAKER_01 3:43

There's nothing I love more than that, thinking and laughing. So you're a man after my own heart. So tell me a bit, E.T., when did you join Toastmasters? And what was your first club?

SPEAKER_00 3:54

Well, well, thank you. As far as I remember, yes, I have a lot of brains, and most of them are little and tiny bits. And this is I joined Toastmasters about six years ago. Well, so around mid-2020. And my first home on the States was with a local club in the Indonesian Toastmasters community. And well, I don't want to mention its name because yes, I have left the club, but I have grown there. And now I'm in World Travelers Toastmasters in District 80, Singapore, where meetings were an early and important place where I cut my teeth. And in WTC, we arranged so many big events on the recent years. Like last year, we conducted 20 hours non-stop session with the speakers, our region advisor, and above. So even though you are district directors, you cannot still qualify for the event to be invited as a speaker. And we invited unedited speakers, international presidents, and yes, most of them are veteran dosemasters that have been serving us for more than decades. And this year, actually in the 1st of January, we also conducted 24 hours non-stop training. Well, not non-stop training, actually. It is New Year's celebration with Toastmasters all around the world. So we have 24 hours non-stop with all of our Toastmasters friends. And that's it. Why I love my club, World Travelers.

SPEAKER_01 5:40

Oh my goodness, that's that's really next level. That's uh very uh dedicated and passionate. I I love that degree of passion. I don't know that I could match it though. That's amazing. So shout out to World Travelers Toastmasters then. Why did you originally join Toastmasters?

SPEAKER_00 5:55

Oh yes. To be frankly honest, at the first, it is for the free foot. Someone called me to come to the meeting and said, there is a bountiful fast. You should come here, he should eat, we have banquet. And I got intrigued, interested, and yes. And that's the story of my joining actually, and then I'm staying because of the food for talks. And yes, just eating. I joined to get better at speaking on purpose and to turn the reverse rambling into clear stories to learn how to structure a message and to build state confidence so I could actually finish a speech without tripping over my own cards. Okay. Like just what I did right now.

SPEAKER_01 6:46

I think that's a fantastic draw draw card. Who can resist?

SPEAKER_00 6:49

What did you expect to get out of it? Wow, yes, thank you, Brandon. This is a wonderful question, actually. And yes, practical public speaking skills, it is like structure and the timing, the poker karate, and feedback that wasn't just nice but useful. I also hope to find a community where I could practice regularly and meet people who can give honest and kind feedback. To be frankly honest, Brendan, when I join another community, public speaking community, most of them say this to me. Ilios, you are too good to be true! You are wonderful, you are marvelous. Come on. I didn't sign up for this, and that's not what I get from Toastmasters. I get the sandwich feedback, sandwich evolution, and yes, I get better, I improve a lot in Toastmasters, and I think you know who I am now. I am just a regular member of Toastmasters, but I have been speaking more in 10 countries. I have visited more than 1,000 clubs. Yes. I think I have spending like more than yeah, 20 hours in a week in Toastmasters. Quite a lot.

SPEAKER_01 8:11

Look, I think obviously it's nice to get really warm feedback, but you know, as you know, it's the points for improvement that help you grow. So I get that. Visiting all those clubs, it must put you in a pretty unique position. Because, I mean, obviously, Toastmasters is a pretty standard program across the world. But having been to other countries, do you now really notice anything that you think may be uniquely Indonesian about your Indonesian club meetings?

SPEAKER_00 8:41

Yes, Brendan, correct. The meetings blend global toast master structure with local flavor, a lot of good switching between Bahasa, Indonesia, my natural language, and English. And also frequent family-oriented themes and humor that references local food, city life, and social norms. And for formal events, people will wear bactic. I think you know baktiks. No, I'm not sure actually. What's what's that? But baktick is I think it's like a pattern on our uniform or in our shirts. Yeah. I think you can search on the Google B A C I K. Sure, we might put a link in the show. Yeah. And or business casual for regular meetings, and it is relaxed. And culturally, sensitive topics like religion, highly priorizing politics tend to be handled carefully or even avoided. Instead, we use resource-based appreciation like testimonials, feedback, shares, and local stories to connect. Do the clubs welcome visitors? Of course, we welcome visitors. And now in WTC, we we are we are a helping member for 25 members from 10 countries and above. I forgot the exact number.

SPEAKER_01 10:11

Okay, well. Ilios T T, you were part of a team that broke a record in public speaking. Speaking into history, 102 hours, one record, and endless coffee. Could you tell us a bit about that?

SPEAKER_00 10:26

Yes. That project was a marathon speaking relay. A team effort to speak continuously over many days, exactly 102 hours. It is to represent one District 102 in Malaysia, actually. And I was part of the team, rotating on the stage, coordinating handoffs, and keeping energy up, and yes, endless coffee, of course. It was as much as a logistical challenge as a speaking one. Timing, stamina, and teamwork were everything. The experience taught me how to base a message, how to support other speakers, and how to keep an audience engaged and even under silly condition. And to be true here, terrible bragging, haha, just kidding. Actually, I want I was one of the 55 speakers that is selected to speak in the states. So we started on the states, started from Monday 9 a.m. and we ended on Friday p.m. The lesser speaker will talk around 20 minute uh 30 minutes and the heart or the yeah, I don't want to say the best, but the people that are selected as the main or the keynote, it is two hours. I get the chance to speak about podcasting for two hours. So they choose people based on their credibility and based on their specialty, and yes, I was being chosen as the one. The one that set the slot to speak two hours about podcasting.

SPEAKER_01 12:05

Wow. So you did everyone have like have to stay awake, or did you get time where you rostered, you know, sort of rotated and you got to have a bit of a sleep at some point?

SPEAKER_00 12:15

Yes, of course. We we have our schedule, our timetable. And yes, as a fellow speaker, I always support my other speakers. Yes, remember, if you are the speaker, you need LTS and you need support from your audience. And I'll be the one that is a good audience that will respond, engage with the audience, with the speaker engagement. So, yes, we need we provide those all logistical.

SPEAKER_01 12:46

How much sleep did you get during that 102 hours?

SPEAKER_00 12:51

Yes, I think I slept only two hours each day. Wow. Strong coffee. Yeah, strong, very strong.

SPEAKER_01 12:59

You also featured on Toastmasters magazines twice on June and July 2024. That's a high honor. How did that come about?

SPEAKER_00 13:09

Well, actually, it is one of my best friends in Toastmasters. If you have read Toastmasters magazine for several months, or yes, I had been reading it since I have been a member, like six years in a row. I had never missed to read the magazine to witness it. And I connected to this lady, Diane Winding Lan, TTM, I think you know. She wrote several articles there, and when she conducted surveys, and I helped her to sort to give my insights, and two of them was about how to retain members and how to get members. And yes, people know me because I bring the audience. I have my loyal audience. So in my average club meeting, we have around 30 to 50 participants in every single meeting. We have meetings pre-weekly, and the highest when it was corona or COVID, I think we have one of rates. The last is 50, and the highest is 100 to 200 in a one meeting. Just a regular meeting. Are they online? Online, yes. It is a regular meeting, just a cut regular meeting, nothing special. That's a big number. Do you have do you have a favorite Toastmasters experience? Yes, two favorites. First, tonight I finally delivered a tough personal speech and saw multiple people connect and come after work to say, that was my style too! And the second, the theme energy of the Marathon record attempt. Yes, seeing community show up for something wild and meaningful. And actually, the one that I deliver, it is very personal to me because I got broken bone in my leg. I could not practically work for two years. Yes, I got I got injured and then I inserted the metal pan there. And I need six months to recovery, and after one year to be fully recovered, I need to remove the pen that helped me, and another six months to recover. So yes, I said it, it is totally two years I could not work properly, and I feel pain a lot. And when I say this in the on the steps, well I I draw people emotion. Some of them are crying, some of them are laughing, and yes, some of them are coming to me and say that word. That was my story, too. That's what makes me I would like to cry, like this is my family. This is the outcome that I would like to stay for.

SPEAKER_01 16:00

Sounds like a very difficult time for you, but you turned it into something that you know you connected with other people. It sounds like you really got them. If you can tap into people's emotions, you really touch their heart, haven't you? Yes.

SPEAKER_00 16:13

And yes, the one of the session I have delivered a keynote in Nurses Toastmasters to 675, Philippines. It is one of my stories here. And I won second place in um not second, sorry, third place in my recent club contest by delivering this yes, a short transition of it, seven minutes. And yes, I was very grateful for sharing this experience because I was sharing the state with the district champion. Actually, we have district champion in our club, and not only one seat, one country, but more than one country. So I was feeling grateful. I was turned, and yes, the the feeling is so deep. I feel the connection with by our group.

SPEAKER_01 17:02

Wow, that's amazing. Has Toastmasters led to any other opportunities you didn't expect?

SPEAKER_00 17:08

Absolutely, Brandon. Toastmasters opened doors into podcasting like this. If not Toastmaster, I would not be invited by you. And speaking geeks, yeah, a lot of them. Like I said, I have been spoken to 10 countries. I was never expected to get this chance if it was of Toastmasters. Most of them are Toastmasters' friends. And workshop facilitation. I think I have been given hundreds and even yes, thousands speaking opportunities like Table Topics, actually. I have been there for thousands of Table Topics. And community events like Link ID session. It is my own community. It is a business community based on Indonesia. It is local, but we have like business owners there that we refer our its business. So for example, you have podcast coast session or you are a podcast coach. I will direct I will refer you to other business owners to put them into your podcast or promote their business with your podcast, something like that. And it also led me into stand-up stages, which is I start from three to five minutes as the open micer, and then five to seven minutes as the opener, and then I have been headlining too. It is 15 to 30, and I often have my own spatial show. It is one hour, and yes, it was so beautiful. And into collaboration that turned into paid work and project that I wouldn't have met otherwise.

SPEAKER_01 18:50

Any examples of that of the paid work?

SPEAKER_00 18:54

Yes, I got invited as like the facilitator of soft-skill education, mostly about branding. So yesterday I got invited to speak about branding for one hour in India.

SPEAKER_01 19:10

And I I think I read somewhere you facilitated for one of the ministers.

SPEAKER_00 19:16

Yes, yes. Okay, that's one of my home clubs back then. We invited the Ministry of Tourism back then. The tourism and creative economy. That must have been quite an honor. Yes, it is during the G twenty. During the G20, I think you know.

SPEAKER_01 19:44

I see. Um has has Toastmasters had an influence on other aspects of your life?

SPEAKER_00 19:51

Yes, of course, Brendan. Toastmasters change how I tell everyday stories. Well, I was a very boring person at that time. I could not tell stories, I can only tell data, statistics, and yes, just numbers. And people listen to me actually, but they don't engage with me. But yes, since I'm Toastmasters, I'm using I'm using Belka storytelling, and then I'm using presentation in a storytelling mode, a lot of it, at family gatherings, on LinkedIn, on states. It sharpened my listening, my empathy, and my ability to structure any message from a joke to a training module. It also helped me to turn a difficult life moment. Well, actually, I go paint craft. I got pain craft at 28 and into a creative people. So, yes, a lot of it. If it is not of Toastmasters, I think I have been died. I have no media or I have no family to tell. I have no friends, actually. I have no family members that really care about me. And to be frankly honest, my Toastmasters member more than my family. I feel like they are my second family.

SPEAKER_01 21:14

I love that. And also love that you, you know, showed the strength of character to turn a difficult life moment, your bankruptcy, into something, you know, a creative pivot, as you put it. You know, it's like if life gives you lemons, make lemonade. I I love that. Well so, what led you to become a stand-up comedian? And was that hard? Did Toastmasters help at all in that regard?

SPEAKER_00 21:36

And yes, after business bankrupt at 28, I started to write about the absurdities of work and those little observations that make people nod and laugh. It's hard in the best way, in finding out work. And how to fail fast and iterate. And those muscles help massively. The skills translate directly. Story structure. Rule of three. Callbacks. I mean, technical control and handling feedback. For example, I use a toast muscle speech structure to shape an 8-minute set about business bankruptcy and talking to my rubber duck. The same narrative are thicker pass lines and clear callbacks. So every time people see rubber ducks now, they remember about me. And every time people see someone who is bankrupt, they will relate to me. And a lot of them are already like anchoring in their mind. If you not pick off Ghostmasters, I don't think so. I will do one.

SPEAKER_01 22:49

I love this the theme of bankruptcy and rubber duck. That's absolutely got me hooked and intrigued. Is there anywhere we can see that speech? Is it recorded online anyway?

SPEAKER_00 23:01

Yes, thank you. So, yes, for the audience of Brandon's podcast here, you could go to my link that will be put on this Brennan's podcast show on the description. Go there and find my startup comedian performing there. And actually, there is one of the plot ways here. I have delivered an Indian set, and the Indian people say that I'm more Indian than they are. Oh yes. So, yes, that's that's how I demonstrated how good I am as an impersonator. I can even impersonate an Indian, even though I'm not an Indian.

SPEAKER_01 23:41

I'd love to say that as well. Notice uh E.T. Your social media handle is at humor991. I get the humor bit, but where does the 991 refer to?

SPEAKER_00 23:55

Well, it's it's my brand play on the idea of emergency humor. And yes, a nod to humor 911, but with my own twist. Yes, I think you know the 911. Of course. It's meant to be memorable, a little cheeky, call in the laugh! And it's both brand continuity and a tiny inside jokes. So basically, like Ghostbusters, you know, right? Ghostbusters. Do you know what you want to call? Ghostbusters. And yes, if you need some comedy, you know what you call Humor 911.

SPEAKER_01 24:33

Sorry, I thought it was 991. I think that's why I missed it. Sorry, I said that wrong. So it's human 911, I get it. Another thing that intrigued me on your profile is you're a certified Canada World Youth. Can you tell us a bit about that?

SPEAKER_00 24:47

Yeah, so it was during my youth surfaces. I was interning into one of the Canada NGOs, surfing country with the marginal. So those who are need help in education. I was graduated from the English department. It is English education. So basically, I teach English to people, like teaching English as a foreign language, but more into soft skills. So we help develop people that graduated to get into work and then to get their own business. So they have two pathways. One that will help you to learn more of how to get work in six months, and the other one is to get funded by investor in one year. So yes, I have been there, done that for both pathways. I facilitated them. Okay, that's wonderful.

SPEAKER_01 25:50

As we mentioned before, you're an experienced podcaster with your podcasts. One of your podcasts is What's on My Mind by ET. How did you find that experience? And do you have any tips for me and other wannabe podcasters?

SPEAKER_00 26:03

Okay, so yes, first of all, I think the listeners should join Dostmasters. Yes. In Those Masters, there is a podcast project, and you will learn more about it. And some people are reaching out to me because they know who I am. I'm a podcaster with big audience and big collaboration. And I basically like I'm a broad ruler. You mentioned my name, my fans, my loyal fans, my loyal audience will listen to you. So it is easy numbers for them. And actually, you start with a story plan. Yes, after you join those masters, you will understand about story plan. Outlet and R. You can use the hero's journey. Most of them are used by the world champion of public speaking. Or Pixar formula for episodes. It is mostly used by those who are doing the speech projects. And keep episodes consistent in length and schedule. So, for example, for my site, I use my old formula. This is one of a kind different than others. I'm doing monologue. So every episode it is one hour format and it is scheduled daily. So I was doing hard grinding on my podcasting back then. I recorded six months' episodes in at once. So the highest number that I have recorded in one day is six hours. Or it equals six episodes. So you can just imagine how hard it is for me. But nothing less, I have my own secret here. I basically turn my e-books into audiobooks. So I have written 14 ebooks and I've made the second season of my episodes. It turns out to be 150 episodes. And the season one, it is about podcasting itself. If you want to be a podcaster, you just need to turn tune into my podcast, and then boom, you'll be a podcast just to listen by one season. And then the second session, it is about network marketing. Yes, I was network marketer in the last 10 years. And in the third one, it is to the business in conventional. Yes, I have been a businessman for 10 years also, even though it is bankrupt. But yes, I have been done. I have been there on the top at the time on the entertainment industry. I have all my own agency, I have all my own models, even Girl Band, if you know Girl Band like Wracking, if you know, like something like that. As for example, and yes, like talent, I'm doing talent scouting. And then the fourth session is about sales. Yes, I have been working in the sales industry for the last yes, also 10 years. Actually, it all starts in 10. And I was again started in 2020. So basically, like my milestone happened on that time. And the fifth session, it is also about how to become a professional mocker. So it relates back to my certification of Canada, the Youth Canada International. And sixth session, the sixth session is about psychology. So, yes, personal development. And last but not least, the seventh season. It is based on my business finance. And yes, I was a Thank you Capital for the last seven years. And yes, I have been funded several businesses and to go public. And a lot of it, I think if I keep on talking about this, people will whoa, you've done a lot, like what you have said before. I have only 24 hours, but I've done a lot. And thanks to God for that. Yes. So yes, I for the season one, it is aired for every Monday. So season two, every uh every Monday on 7 p.m. And then you can go with there like Tuesday 2 p.m. Wednesday 3 p.m. Thursday 4 p.m. Friday 5 p.m. Saturday 6 p.m. And last but not least Sunday 7 p.m. for all seven seasons. It's all already planted six months before. So yes. People said how come? Well, I said I have been a planner for years or for for my life. So yes. No surprises there. And invest in decent audio for the meeting and the quiet room and listener forgive a lot, but not bad sound. Practice all stage, record a Toastmaster speech and edit it with an episode. You can put it as your podcast idea. You can make your Toastmaster speech into an episode. And use guests to build audience, but press them with clear prompts. So I would like to say kudos to Brendan here for preparing a good question beforehand. And that's how you can get better answer by your guests. So yes, they can prepare. You can also prepare for the next question, something like that. And repurpose clip audio into short LinkedIn or Instagram videos. So yes, I believe that Brendan will edit some of this and will put some insights or some sound effects there. And CTA, finish with one clear action. Either it is subscribe, share, or join your WhatsApp group. And finally, last but not least, edit ruthlessly. Keep the best 60 or 70% of material and lose the rest. Well, technically it is like you are, well, discarding those your lovely one, or you are just cutting ties with your lovely friend, and yes, you need to let go of someone or something like that in your life. And that's my tips, Brandon. Thank you.

SPEAKER_01 32:31

Edit ruthlessly. Any tips on which 30 to 40% to edit out of this podcast?

SPEAKER_00 32:39

Well, well, well, I think let the audience decide that once they listen, and you can make like the what do you call it? Clips of it. So after you put all the full the full question, you can give like audience feedback and you can give yes. Let's part with you thing it to be removed and that you want. You don't run anything if us brought brutally honor's feedback, something like that. So yes, we you are not the judge. Even me is not the judge. It is the audience that's just us.

SPEAKER_01 33:12

Fair enough. I know you say that E.T. also not only stands for your full name, but also stands for eternally thankful. So I'm eternally thankful for your time today and coming on the show, E.T. It's been an absolute pleasure.

SPEAKER_00 33:28

Thank you, Bradan. I am E.T. Ilios to your fellows, and also I'm eternally thankful to be invited to your podcast, Bradon. Thank you.

SPEAKER_01 33:52

Thanks for listening to today's show. One of the key elements of Toastmasters is evaluations. This is how we grow and improve, both by encouraging comments for things we've got right and points for improvement. We all learn and benefit from these evaluations, not just the first of being evaluated. Any feedback in the comments is greatly appreciated.