Christine Mamuad

Christine Mamuad, left, and Yifang Xu

Christine Mamuad, DTM, is a technical program manager at NVIDIA Corporation in Santa Clara, California, United States, a company developing technology for artificial intelligence and self-driving cars. Christine collaborates with multiple cross-functional engineering and operations teams to develop and execute plans for new technologies. She is a member of the company’s corporate club, nSpeak.

Christine’s mentee, Yifang Xu, works as an engineer for the same company. When Yifang saw a flier posted in the corporate breakroom announcing a Toastmasters meeting, she attended and joined the nSpeak club.

Yifang, why did you choose Christine as your mentor?

In 2015, I watched Christine deliver a prepared speech at the nSpeak club meeting. Her vivid description, smooth delivery and precise choice of words touched me. I wrote a note on the evaluation form I filled out for her: “I liked every aspect of your speech. Could you be my mentor?” My journey in Toastmasters started there.

What was it like to give your first speech?

In preparation for my Ice Breaker, Christine encouraged me to make my ordinary story colorful—to think in details, paint a ­picture and structure my main points. After several iterations, I was able to deliver that first speech.

Every time I speak, she commends my achievements and points out the next workable area, raising the bar to a higher level. She has taught me to believe that I am interesting, to focus on a vision for my future and to remain passionate about what I do. I have learned to observe things around me beyond myself. And I have learned from her how to have a big heart.

How are you improving?

The best thing Christine has helped me with is believing in myself. I often looked at my weaknesses, which damaged my confidence. Christine helped me change my mindset to see that everyone has both weaknesses and strengths. Since I started paying more attention to my strengths, I’ve found that public speaking is more fun.

My emotional intelligence has grown dramatically. I feel much more willing to communicate with my family members, my kids’ teachers, my loan agents, etc. Basically, I feel encouraged to speak to people.

What do you hope to accomplish in the future, with Christine’s help?

I hope to become a DTM one day, just like her.

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