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Motivational Speech on The Importance of Reading in English

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Motivational Speech on The Importance of Reading

Speech on the Importance of Reading: Discover the transformative power of reading with a motivational speech on the importance of reading. Engage your audience with a 1-minute, 2-minute, or 5-minute speech highlighting the significance of reading books.

Whether it’s a short speech or a presentation for class 10 or class 4, explore the immense benefits and joys of reading books in this inspiring speech.

Motivational Speech on Reading in English

Good morning everyone,

I stand before you today to talk about a powerful force that has the ability to transform lives, spark creativity, foster empathy, and broaden horizons – the force of reading.

Reading is much more than decoding symbols on a page. It’s a journey into new worlds, an exploration of ideas and cultures, a doorway to knowledge and wisdom. When we read, we converse with authors, both living and long gone. We learn from their experiences, their insights, their mistakes, and their triumphs.

Through reading, we learn to think critically, to question, to analyse, and to reflect. We step into the shoes of characters vastly different from ourselves, living lives we’ve never imagined. This helps us develop empathy and understanding, two key elements in human connection.

However, despite its many benefits, reading is often seen as a chore, especially in our digital age, with distractions abound. I want to change that perception. I want you to see reading not as a task, but as a privilege, a gift, an adventure.

Books can be your companions, your teachers, your solace. They can ignite your imagination, provoke thought, and inspire change. As George R.R. Martin said, “A reader lives a thousand lives before he dies. The man who never reads lives only one.”

So today, I encourage each and every one of you to embrace the power of reading. Make it a habit, make it a joy. Let it empower you, inspire you, and change you. Because the truth is, the more we read, the more we grow, and the more we understand.

Thank you, and happy reading!

Transforming your life through the power of reading

Discovering the joys of reading can truly transform your life. It opens doors to endless possibilities and enriches you in countless ways.

Let’s explore some of the remarkable benefits reading offers:

Amplify your vocabulary and communication skills: Immerse yourself in the world of books, and you’ll encounter new words and phrases that enhance your language prowess. Your communication skills, both written and spoken, will flourish as you learn to employ these newfound linguistic treasures.

Expand your knowledge and understanding: Books are gateways to a wealth of information and wisdom. By reading, you gain access to diverse perspectives, enabling you to comprehend and navigate the complexities of the world. Armed with knowledge, you’ll make informed decisions and engage more meaningfully with your surroundings.

Nurture critical thinking abilities: Reading serves as a catalyst for sharpening your critical thinking skills. Every page invites you to ponder the author’s message, evaluate evidence, and form your own opinions. Engaging with literature trains your mind to analyze, question, and reflect, ultimately enhancing your ability to navigate intellectual challenges.

Unwind and alleviate stress: Escape from the demands of daily life by immersing yourself in a captivating book. The act of reading provides a sanctuary, allowing your mind to unwind and find solace in another world. It offers a therapeutic escape, helping you reduce stress and rejuvenate your spirit.

Enhance the quality of your sleep: Incorporating reading into your bedtime routine can work wonders for your sleep. The soothing act of reading before sleep calms your heart rate and relaxes your muscles, paving the way for a more restful and rejuvenating slumber.

As you can see, the rewards of reading are plentiful. If you’re not yet an avid reader, I encourage you to embark on this enlightening journey today. You won’t regret it.

To help you get started, here are a few tips:

Discover your preferred genre: With an abundance of book genres available, you’re sure to find one that captivates your interests. Explore different genres until you discover your true literary passion.

Allocate daily reading time: Set aside even a mere 30 minutes each day devoted to reading. Cultivating a consistent reading habit will yield immense benefits in the long run.

Engage with a book club: Joining a book club allows you to connect with fellow book lovers. It offers an opportunity to exchange recommendations, delve into discussions, and broaden your literary horizons.

Visit your local library: Libraries are treasure troves of literary gems. Pay a visit and immerse yourself in the wealth of books they offer. Libraries often organize programs and events that foster a deeper appreciation for reading.

I hope this discourse has ignited a passion for reading within you. Embracing the world of words is a remarkable journey of learning, growth, and relaxation. So grab a book today and embark on an extraordinary adventure.

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Speech on Books for Students and Children

Speech on books.

Hello and a warm welcome to all my teachers and dear friends present in the Auditorium. I am here to deliver a speech on books. I would like to start my speech with a famous phrase of Ernest Hemingway which says, ” There is no friend as loyal as a book”. Books are like our fellow friend with no demands and complaints. They improve our knowledge, wisdom, and information, thus helping us in taking the right decisions in life.

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Books are the best option for self-learners to avail of information on all issues and topics. Great Authors, writers, and poets put all their emotions, thoughts and experience to make books important and beneficial for us. The treasure of books is inexhaustible, as they continuously extract the gold of art, literature, science, and philosophy for us. Books pass the knowledge from generation to generation which ultimately helps in the advancement of civilizations.

Types of Books

There are mainly two types of books, one is fictional while other is non-fictional. Fictional books are completely based on the author’s imagination, on the other hand, non-fictional are about a particular person, story, News or information. The different age group of people prefers different types of books like religious, comical, fantasy and educational.

The corporate world generally prefers business magazines and journals. Books under subcategory educational and guides, horoscope and scientific, articles and essays and many more. Generally, popularity in books depends on the age group and the mindset of people. Students prefer educational and professional books, kids mostly prefer stories and fantasy books, while the mature ones prefer the literature and novelistic books.

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Advantages of Reading Books

The habit of reading good books enables us to become well educated and informed. Books also help to change our physical and mental fitness in addition to building our lifestyle. Reading a book gives us kind of pleasure, energy, and confidence which we cannot find around any other place.

We feel fresh, happy and knowledgeable after reading a good book. When we feel down and negativity starts affecting us, books prove to be our best guide, inspiration and moral supporter. In the long run, we are not alone in the company of a good book.

The kingdom of books is vast providing pleasant pastime for many of us. Books spread our positive views and also popularize the fruits of our research and knowledge. Books are our permanent friends as they help enrich our thoughts. They inspire us to fight the odds and do great things in life.

In the current scenario of the advancement of science and technology, the utility of books is getting down. People are depending much on the Internet and social media platforms to gain knowledge. We must understand that Google gives us knowledge but books us wisdom.

We should never stop reading, while reading we always get something new that is valuable and informative in our future. Books take us to a journey with the author which widens our outlook. Books our minds with noble thoughts and awaken our soul.

Although books are very useful we must be very cautious while choosing one. Some books can mislead and spoil our life. A person reading a good book with a positive mindset is ultimately an asset to society and the country as well.

Our country is a land of great personalities whose biographies are available to us through books. We must step out and read them for the advancement of the country and its civilization. I will conclude my speech with a famous phrase of Fran Lebowitz which says “Think before you speak. Read before you think”

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How To Write A Speech That Inspires You Audience: 13 Steps

Learn how to write a speech that will effectively reach your audience.

A good speech is a powerful tool. Effective speeches make people powerful, whether in the hands of a world leader trying to get people to believe their ideology or in the mouth of a teacher trying to inspire students. A well-written speech can lift the hearts of a nation in times of war, inspire people to action when complacency is commonplace, honor someone who has died, and even change a nation’s mind on a particular topic, which, in turn, can change history.

Excellent speech writing is a skill that you must learn. While public speaking may come naturally to some people, the sentence structure and nuances of a powerful speech are something you must learn if you are going to gain the audience’s attention.

So how can you learn how to write a speech? The writing process is a little different than the process you’d use to write a paper or essay, so here is a guide that can help.

Materials Needed

Step 1: define your purpose, step 2: determine your audience, step 3: start your research, step 4: choose the right length, step 5: create an outline, step 6: craft the introduction, step 7: write the body, step 8: use transitions, step 9: conclude your speech, step 10: add some spice, step 11. implement spoken language, step 12: edit your speech, step 13: read it out.

Research materials
Audience demographic information

Before you can write a speech, you must know the purpose of your speech. You can deliver many types of speeches, and the purpose will determine which one you are giving. While there may be more than these, here are some common types of speeches:

Informative speech: An informative speech strives to educate the audience on a topic or message. This is the type of speech a teacher gives when delivering a lecture. “ First World Problems ” by Sarah Kwon is an excellent example of an informative speech.
Entertaining speech: This speech strives to amuse the audience. These are typically short speeches with funny, personal stories woven in. A wedding guest giving a speech at a wedding may be an example of this type of speech.
Demonstrative speech: This speech demonstrates how to do something to the audience. A company showing how to use a product is delivering this type of speech.
Persuasive speech: This speech aims to persuade the audience of your particular opinion. Political speeches are commonly persuasive. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s famous “ I Have a Dream ” speech is an example of a persuasive speech, as it called the government to make changes that protected civil and economic rights.
Oratorical speech: An oratory is a formal speech at an event like a funeral or graduation. The goal is to express an opinion and inspire the audience, but not necessarily to persuade.
Motivational speech: These speeches inspire people to take action, such as to improve themselves or to feel better and happier. For example, a coach may deliver this kind of speech to his players during halftime to inspire them to win the game. Steve Jobs’ 2005 Stanford Commencement Address is an excellent example of a motivational speech.
Eulogy: A Eulogy is a funeral speech. This speech is given to the mourners at someone’s funeral and talks about the excellent character rates of the person who died. “ Eulogy for Rosa Parks ” is a famous example of this type of speech given by Oprah Winfrey in 2015.
Explanatory speech: This final speech type describes a situation or item. These speeches often have step-by-step instructions on how to do a particular thing.

Your audience members are an essential part of the speech writing process. Consider taking notes about your audience before you start writing your speech. You can even make a fake audience member you are writing toward as you prepare your speech. Even though they do not directly impact what you talk about, they should impact how you talk about it. Therefore, you must write your speech to reach that particular audience.

For example, if you are writing a speech for an audience that does not agree with you, you will need to bring more facts and figures to persuade them of your opinion. On the other hand, if you are writing a speech for an audience already on your side, you must encourage them to hold the line. To get to know your audience, consider factors like:

Income level
Pain points
Questions they might ask

Before you outline or write your speech, you must know some facts about the big idea or speech topic. So perform some research, and take notes. See if you can find any new or surprising information in your research. If it was new and surprising, it also might be to your audience members. You can use this research to make the essential points of your piece.

Finally, know the required length of your speech. Speeches usually have time limits, not word count limits. You will need to know the desired length before you can start writing the speech, or you will end up with a speech that is too long or too short. The length of your speech will vary depending on where you are giving it and who your audience is.

Generally, a 20-minute speech is standard when delivering a speech to adults in a professional or academic setting. However, if you are a student who is preparing a speech for a classroom, you may be limited to three to five minutes. Sometimes speakers will get booked to take on a 60-minute session, but if you talk for 60 minutes, you will lose the attention of some of your audience members.

Remember, some of the most famous speeches in history are very short. President Abraham Lincoln’s “ Gettysburg Address ” was less than 300 words long and took less than two minutes to deliver. President Franklin Roosevelt’s “ Day of Infamy ” speech lasted less than 10 minutes. However, knowing your speech’s length can be challenging after you prepare it. Generally, a double-spaced page of writing will take about 90 seconds to speak. Thus, a 20-minute speech will take about 13 typed, double-spaced pages if you type out your entire speech.

Consider using a words-to-minutes calculator to determine how long your speech likely is. Remember that the average English speaker speaks 140 words a minute. You may get up to 170 words a minute if you speak fast. If your speech is slow, it may be as little as 110 words a minute.

How to write a speech: Create an outline

Now you are ready to start writing. Before you write a speech, you must create an outline. Some public speakers will speak from an outline alone, while others will write their speech word-for-word. Both strategies can lead to a successful speech, but both also start with an outline. Your speech’s outline will follow this template:

Introduction: Introduces your main idea and hooks the reader’s attention.
Body: Covers two to three main points with transitions.
Conclusion: Summarizes the speech’s points and drive home your main message.

As you fill in these areas, answer these questions: Who? What? Why? and How? This will ensure you cover all the essential elements your listeners need to hear to understand your topic. Next, make your outline as detailed as you can. Organize your research into points and subpoints. The more detail on your outline, the easier it will be to write the speech and deliver it confidently.

As you prepare your speech, your introduction is where you should spend the most time and think. You only have moments to capture your audience’s attention or see them zone out in front of you. However, if you do it right, you will cause them to turn to you for more information on the topic. In other words, the introduction to a speech may be the most memorable part, so it deserves your attention. Therefore, you must have three main parts:

Hook: The hook is a rhetorical question, funny story, personal anecdote, or shocking statistic that grabs the listener’s attention and shows them why your speech is worth listening to.
Thesis: This is your main idea or clear point.
Road map: You will want to preview your speech outline in the introduction.

Here is an example of a good introduction for a persuasive speech from Jamie Oliver’s TED Talk about children and food:

“Sadly, in the next 18 minutes when I do our chat, four Americans that are alive will be dead from the food that they eat.”

This shocking statistic gets the audience’s attention immediately. In his speech, Oliver details why America’s food choices are so poor, how it affects them, and how we can teach children to do better.

Here is an example of an informative speech about pollution and what can be done about it. This introduction follows the template perfectly.

“I want you to close your eyes for a minute and picture a beautiful oceanfront. The sound of the waves crashing on the sand while seagulls fly overhead. Do you have it? Now I am going to say one word that will destroy that image: Pollution. What changed in your mental picture? Do you now see sea turtles with bottles on their head or piles of debris washing on shore? Marine pollution is a massive problem because plastic does not decompose. Not only does it use up many resources to create, but it rarely gets disposed of properly. We must protect our natural areas, like that beautiful beach. Today I am going to show you how destructive the effects of plastic can be, how it is managing our natural resources, and what steps we can take to improve the situation.”

Now you are ready to write the body of your speech. Draw from your research and flesh out the points stated in your introduction. As you create your body, use short sentences. People can’t listen as long as they can read, so short and sweet sentences are most effective. Continuing the theme of the marine pollution speech, consider this body paragraph.

“You might be thinking plastic isn’t a big deal. Let’s think for a minute that you’re at the beach drinking bottled water. According to “The Problem with Plastic,” an article by Hannah Elisbury, one out of every six plastic water bottles ends up in recycling. The rest become landfill fodder. Worse, many get dropped in nature. Perhaps you are packing up at the end of your beach trip and forget to grab your bottle. Maybe your kid is buried in the sand. Now it’s adding pollutants to the water. That water becomes part of the drinking water supply. It also becomes part of the fish you eat at your favorite seafood restaurant. Just one bottle has big consequences.”

As you write the body, don’t stress making every word perfect. You will revise it later. The main goal is to get your ideas on paper or screen. This body paragraph is effective for two reasons. First, the audience members likely use water bottles, which resonates with them. Second, she uses a resource and names it, which gives your work authority.

It would be best to use transitions to move from each speech section. This keeps the audience engaged and interested. In addition, the transitions should naturally merge into the next section of the speech without abruptness. To transition between points or ideas, use transition words. Some examples include:

Coupled with
Following this
Additionally
Comparatively
Correspondingly
Identically
In contrast
For example

You can also use sequence words, like first, second, third, etc., to give the idea of transition from one thought to the next. Make sure your speech has several transition words to drive it through to completion and to keep the audience engaged.

In his speech “ Their Finest Hour ,” Winston Churchill uses transitions well. Here is an excerpt from his conclusion:

“ But if we fail, then the whole world, including the United States, including all that we have known and cared for, will sink into the abyss of a new Dark Age made more sinister, perhaps more protracted, by the lights of perverted science. Therefore, let us brace ourselves to our duties and bear ourselves that, if the British Empire and its Commonwealth last for a thousand years, men will still say, “This was their finest hour.”

Notice that he uses “therefore,” “so,” and “but.” Each of these transition words effectively moves the speech along.

Your conclusion needs to restate your thesis but differently. It should personalize the speech to the audience, restate your main points and state any key takeaways. Finally, it should leave the audience with a thought to ponder.

Here are some practical ways to end a speech:

Use a story
Read a poem
State an inspirational quote
Summarize the main points
Deliver a call to action

Here are some examples of fantastic conclusions:

Here is an excellent example of a concluding statement for an inspirational graduation speech: “As you graduate, you will face great challenges, but you will also have great opportunities. By embracing all that you have learned here, you will meet them head-on. The best is yet to come!”
A CEO that is trying to inspire his workforce might conclude a speech like this: “While the past year had challenges and difficulties, I saw you work through them and come out ahead. As we move into the next year, I am confident we will continue to excel. Let’s join hands, and together this can be the best year in company history!”
In “T he Speech to Go to the Moon, ” President Kennedy concluded this way: “ Many years ago the great British explorer George Mallory, who was to die on Mount Everest, was asked why did he want to climb it. He said, “Because it is there. Well, space is there, and we’re going to climb it, and the moon and the planets are there, and new hopes for knowledge and peace are there. And, therefore, as we set sail we ask God’s blessing on the most hazardous and dangerous and greatest adventure on which man has ever embarked.” Many speechwriters say something like “in conclusion” or “that’s all I have for you today.” This is not necessary. Saying “in conclusion” could cause your audience to stop listening as they anticipate the end of the speech, and stating that you have said all you need to say is just unnecessary.

Now that you have the basic structure, you’re ready to add some spice to your speech. Remember, you aren’t reading a research essay. Instead, you are making an exciting and engaging spoken presentation. Here are some ideas:

Consider giving your speech some rhythm. For example, change the wording, so it has a pace and cadence.
Work to remove a passive voice from your sentences where possible. Active speaking is more powerful than passive.
Use rhetorical questions throughout because they make the listener stop and think for a moment about what you are saying.
Weave some quotes into your speech. Pulling famous words from other people will make your speech more interesting.
Where possible, use personal stories. This helps your audience engage with you as the speaker while keeping the speech interesting.

You may not use all of these ideas in your speech, but find some that will work for the type of speech you plan to give. They will make it more exciting and help keep listeners engaged in what you are saying.

Writing a speech is not like writing a paper. While you want to sound educated with proper grammar , you need to write in the way you speak. For many people, this is much different from the way they write. Not only will you use short sentences, but you will also use:

Familiar vocabulary: This is not the time to start adding scientific terminology to the mix or jargon for your industry that the audience won’t understand. Use familiar vocabulary.
Transitions: Already discussed, but spoken language uses many transition words. Your speech should, too.
Personal pronouns: “You” and “I” are acceptable in a speech but not in academic writing.
Colloquialisms: Colloquialisms are perfectly acceptable in a speech, provided the audience would readily understand them.
Contractions: We use contractions when we speak, so we also use them in speeches, while some writing platforms and assignments do not allow them.
Repetition: Repeating words and phrases makes them memorable. This helps emphasize the main ideas and works well in speeches.

Now you are ready to edit your speech. Remember, spoken language is acceptable, but grammar errors may not be ideal. As you edit, pay attention to the length of sentences. Shorten any long ones. Also, watch for those transition words. Add them in if you need to. Remember, a well-written speech takes time. Put in the effort to revise and improve it, and you will be rewarded with an effective speech that is easy to deliver. If you still need help, our guide to grammar and syntax explains more.

Now that you have written your speech, you are ready to read it. Read it out loud at your average speaking speed, and time yourself. This will tell you if you are within your allotted time limit. However, reading it has another benefit. When you read the piece, you can determine if it flows smoothly. You may catch grammar issues or poor transitions that you can change. Look for places where the speech may be hard to speak and adjust those sentences to make them more accessible.

After you update the speech, practice it again. Reading it, revising it, rereading it, and repeating it will help you create a speech that flows well. This process will also help you become familiar with the speech so you can deliver it confidently when your speaking engagement comes.

Looking for inspiration? Read our round-up of argumentative essays !

write a speech on reading inspiration day

Nicole Harms has been writing professionally since 2006. She specializes in education content and real estate writing but enjoys a wide gamut of topics. Her goal is to connect with the reader in an engaging, but informative way. Her work has been featured on USA Today, and she ghostwrites for many high-profile companies. As a former teacher, she is passionate about both research and grammar, giving her clients the quality they demand in today's online marketing world.

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10 of the Most Famous and Inspirational Speeches from History

By Dr Oliver Tearle (Loughborough University)

What makes a great and iconic speech? There are numerous examples of brilliant orators and speechmakers throughout history, from classical times to the present day. What the best speeches tend to have in common are more than just a solid intellectual argument: they have emotive power, or, for want of a more scholarly word, ‘heart’. Great speeches rouse us to action, or move us to tears – or both.

But of course, historic speeches are often also associated with landmark, or watershed, moments in a nation’s history: when Churchill delivered his series of wartime speeches to Britain in 1940, it was against the backdrop of a war which was still in its early, uncertain stages. And when Martin Luther King stood in front of the Lincoln Memorial in 1963, he was addressing a crowd who, like him, were marching for justice, freedom, and civil rights for African Americans.

Let’s take a closer look at ten of the best and most famous speeches from great moments in history.

Abraham Lincoln, ‘ Gettysburg Address ’ (1863).

The Gettysburg Address is one of the most famous speeches in American history, yet it was extremely short – just 268 words, or less than a page of text – and Abraham Lincoln, who gave the address, wasn’t even the top billing .

The US President Abraham Lincoln gave this short address at the dedication of the Soldiers’ National Cemetery in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania on 19 November 1863. At the time, the American Civil War was still raging, and the Battle of Gettysburg had been the bloodiest battle in the war, with an estimated 23,000 casualties.

Lincoln’s speech has been remembered while Edward Everett’s – the main speech delivered on that day – has long been forgotten because Lincoln eschewed the high-flown allusions and wordy style of most political orators of the nineteenth century. Instead, he addresses his audience in plain, homespun English that is immediately relatable and accessible.

Sojourner Truth, ‘ Ain’t I a Woman? ’ (1851).

Sometimes known as ‘Ar’n’t I a Woman?’, this is a speech which Sojourner Truth, a freed African slave living in the United States, delivered in 1851 at the Women’s Convention in Akron, Ohio. The women in attendance were being challenged to call for the right to vote.

In her speech, Sojourner Truth attempts to persuade the audience to give women the vote . As both an ex-slave and a woman, Sojourner Truth knew about the plight of both groups of people in the United States. Her speech shows her audience the times: change is coming, and it is time to give women the rights that should be theirs.

John Ball, ‘ Cast off the Yoke of Bondage ’ (1381).

The summer of 1381 was a time of unrest in England. The so-called ‘Peasants’ Revolt’, led by Wat Tyler (in actual fact, many of the leaders of the revolt were more well-to-do than your average peasant), gathered force until the rebels stormed London, executing a number of high-ranking officials, including the Archbishop of Canterbury and Lord Chancellor, Simon Sudbury.

Alongside Tyler, the priest John Ball was an important leading figure of the rebellion. His famous couplet, ‘When Adam delved and Eve span, / Who was then the gentleman?’ sums up the ethos of the Peasants’ Revolt: social inequality was unheard of until men created it.

Winston Churchill, ‘ We Shall Fight on the Beaches ’ (1940).

Winston Churchill had only recently assumed the role of UK Prime Minister when he gave the trio of wartime speeches which have gone down in history for their rhetorical skill and emotive power. This, for our money, is the best of the three.

Churchill gave this speech in the House of Commons on 4 June 1940. Having brought his listeners up to speed with what has happened, Churchill comes to the peroration of his speech : by far the most famous part. He reassures them that if nothing is neglected and all arrangements are made, he sees no reason why Britain cannot once more defend itself against invasion: something which, as an island nation, it has always been susceptible to by sea, and now by air.

Even if it takes years, and even if Britain must defend itself alone without any help from its allies, this is what must happen. Capitulation to the Nazis is not an option. The line ‘if necessary for years; if necessary, alone’ is sure to send a shiver down the spine, as is the way Churchill barks ‘we shall never surrender!’ in the post-war recording of the speech he made several years later.

William Faulkner, ‘ The Agony and the Sweat ’ (1950).

This is the title sometimes given to one of the most memorable Nobel Prize acceptance speeches: the American novelist William Faulkner’s acceptance of the Nobel Prize for Literature at Stockholm in 1950.

In his speech, Faulkner makes his famous statement about the ‘duty’ of writers: that they should write about ‘the human heart in conflict with itself’, as well as emotions and themes such as compassion, sacrifice, courage, and hope. He also emphasises that being a writer is hard work, and involves understanding human nature in all its complexity. But good writing should also remind readers what humankind is capable of.

Emmeline Pankhurst, ‘ The Plight of Women ’ (1908).

Pankhurst (1858-1928) was the leader of the British suffragettes, campaigning – and protesting – for votes for women. After she realised that Asquith’s Liberal government were unlikely to grand women the vote, the Women’s Social and Political Union, founded by Pankhurst with her daughter Christabel, turned to more militant tactics to shift public and parliamentary opinion.

Her emphasis in this speech is on the unhappy lot most women could face, in marriage and in motherhood. She also shows how ‘man-made’ the laws of England are, when they are biased in favour of men to the detriment of women’s rights.

This speech was given at the Portman Rooms in London in 1908; ten years later, towards the end of the First World War, women over 30 were finally given the vote. But it would be another ten years, in 1928 – the year of Pankhurst’s death – before the voting age for women was equal to that for men (21 years).

Franklin Roosevelt, ‘ The Only Thing We Have to Fear Is Fear Itself ’ (1933).

This is the title by which Roosevelt’s speech at his inauguration in 1933 has commonly become known, and it has attained the status of a proverb. Roosevelt was elected only a few years after the Wall Street Crash of 1929 which ushered in the Great Depression.

Roosevelt’s famous line in the speech, which offered hope to millions of Americans dealing with unemployment and poverty, was probably inspired by a line from Henry David Thoreau, a copy of whose writings FDR had been gifted shortly before his inauguration. The line about having nothing to fear except fear itself was, in fact, only added into the speech the day before the inauguration took place, but it ensured that the speech went down in history.

Marcus Tullius Cicero, ‘ Among Us You Can Dwell No Longer ’ (63 BC).

Of all of the great classical orators, perhaps the greatest of all was the Roman statesman, philosopher, and speechmaker, Cicero (whose name literally means ‘chickpea’).

This is probably his best-known speech. At the Temple of Jupiter in Rome, Cicero addressed the crowd, but specifically directed his comments towards Lucius Catiline, who was accused of plotting a conspiracy to set fire to the capital and stage and insurrection. The speech was considered such a fine example of Roman rhetoric that it was a favourite in classrooms for centuries after, as Brian MacArthur notes in The Penguin Book of Historic Speeches .

Queen Elizabeth I, ‘ The Heart and Stomach of a King ’ (1588).

Queen Elizabeth I’s speech to the troops at Tilbury is among the most famous and iconic speeches in English history. On 9 August 1588, Elizabeth addressed the land forces which had been mobilised at the port of Tilbury in Essex, in preparation for the expected invasion of England by the Spanish Armada.

When she gave this speech, Elizabeth was in her mid-fifties and her youthful beauty had faded. But she had learned rhetoric as a young princess, and this training served her well when she wrote and delivered this speech (she was also a fairly accomplished poet ).

She famously tells her troops: ‘I know I have the body but of a weak and feeble woman; but I have the heart and stomach of a king, and of a king of England too’. She acknowledged the fact that her body was naturally less masculine and strong than the average man’s, but it is not mere physical strength that will win the day. It is courage that matters.

Martin Luther King, ‘ I Have a Dream ’ (1963).

Let’s conclude this selection of the best inspirational speeches with the best-known of all of Martin Luther King’s speeches. The occasion for this piece of oratorical grandeur was the march on Washington , which saw some 210,000 men, women, and children gather at the Washington Monument in August 1963, before marching to the Lincoln Memorial. King reportedly stayed up until 4am the night before he was due to give the speech, writing it out.

King’s speech imagines a collective vision of a better and more equal America which is not only shared by many Black Americans, but by anyone who identifies with their fight against racial injustice, segregation, and discrimination.

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Readings on Inspirational Short Stories

If you were out on the road, and you ran out of gas, the chances of reaching your destination would be nearly zero. In life, motivation is the gas that propels you towards your goals, and inspiration is the source of that fuel. Below we’re going to post a guide full of motivation-fueling inspirational posts. Feel free to stop in any time you need a little boost.

Table of Contents

Inspirational short story on fatherly advice

One day a son came to his father when he was looking for advice:

Dad, he said, I can’t do it anymore. Practice exhausts me, and I’m not getting any better. I don’t think it’s my destiny to play soccer. The father smiled a little smile, looked at his son and said:
You know son, every person in life has dreams, goals, and wishes. They’re the driving factor in our lives, helping to keep us on the correct path. There is no guarantee of reaching them, but it’s important to fight for what you believe in, and to learn to persevere. It is only through that perseverance that we find true growth and achievement in our lives, because the most important things always come at the highest price. That price will be your effort, and your struggle as your earn your way through life.

Quitting is certainly easier, but it is the path to ruin. You may feel like the smart thing to do is to give up and find a new goal, but that will begin a horrible cycle and you’ll never see your dreams fulfilled. If you take that path once, it will become familiar, and as life progresses, it will become worn. The next time you find yourself up against an obstacle, you’ll quit again. And gradually, steadily, the size of those obstacles will get smaller and smaller, until it’s the only path you take.

Remember this: never give up, never quit, and never back down from the difficulties of life. You won’t always win, but it’s through failure that we learn the most. What’s important is that you get back up, dust yourself off, and try again.

Short inspirational stories about happiness

There was once a boy who belonged to a wealthy family. One day, the father took his son on a trip to show him how poor people lived. They stopped by the farm of a poor family, and stayed with them for a few days. When they left, the father asked the son if enjoyed himself.

“Oh yes!” said the boy.
“And did you notice how they lived compared to us?” asked the father?
“Well, sure dad,” said the boy.
“And what did you learn?” asked the father.
“Well, we only have one dog, but they have four. We have a pool in the backyard, but they live next to an endless river. We have large street lamps, and bright lights, but they block out the stars the other family enjoys every night. We have a fenced in yard, but they have acres and acres of fields. We buy food, but they grow it. Our fences are there to separate and protect us from the people around us, but they have friends who protect them.”
The father was stunned.
The boy thought for a moment more, and then added: “Thank you, dad, for not being afraid to show me how rich we could be”.

The true wealth of life is not in the material things that possess us, because happiness cannot be measured in dollars. Love, friendship, and freedom are far, far more valuable assets.

5 Amazing Inspirational Readings

This section contains various readings by authors, poets, presidents, and motivational speakers. All of them have something in common: they’ve reached the top of their respective fields. Heed their words and prosper by them.

“And Still I Rise”. An epic, inspirational, and classic poem by Maya Angelou. This reading was performed on April 5, 2007. And if you’re interested, you can check out more motivational Maya Angelou quotes here.

“The Mask”, by Maya Angelou . An inspirational reading, created on August 8 th , 2010.

An inspirational speech by John F. Kennedy :

Will Smith on success, work ethic, and what it takes to be great. “I know who I am, I know what I believe, and I’m willing to die for it.”

Inspirational poems

“promises to keep”, an inspirational poem by william arthur werd.

I will do more than belong, I will participate. I will do more than care, I will help. I will do more than believe, I will practice I will do more than forgive, I will forget. I will do more than teach, I will inspire. I will do more than dream, I will work. I will do more than give, I will serve. I will do more than earn, I will enrich. I will do more than live, I will grow. I will do more than be fair, I will be kind. I will do more than be a citizen, I will be a patriot. I will do more than be friendly, I will be a friend.

“You will never see me fall”, an inspirational poem by Joyce Alcantara

You may see me struggle but you won’t see me fall. Regardless if I’m weak or not I’m going to stand tall. Everyone says life is easy but truly living it is not. Times get hard, people struggle and constantly get put on the spot. I’m going to wear the biggest smile even though I want to cry. I’m going to fight to live even though I’m destined to die. And even though it’s hard and I may struggle through it all. You may see me struggle… but you will NEVER see me fall. “Still I Rise”, an inspirational poem by Maya Angelou

You may write me down in history With your bitter, twisted lies, You may tread me in the very dirt But still, like dust, I’ll rise.

Does my sassiness upset you? Why are you beset with gloom? ‘Cause I walk like I’ve got oil wells Pumping in my living room.

Just like moons and like suns, With the certainty of tides, Just like hopes springing high, Still I’ll rise.

Did you want to see me broken? Bowed head and lowered eyes? Shoulders falling down like teardrops. Weakened by my soulful cries.

Does my haughtiness offend you? Don’t you take it awful hard ‘Cause I laugh like I’ve got gold mines Diggin’ in my own back yard.

You may shoot me with your words, You may cut me with your eyes, You may kill me with your hatefulness, But still, like air, I’ll rise.

Does my sexiness upset you? Does it come as a surprise That I dance like I’ve got diamonds At the meeting of my thighs?

Out of the huts of history’s shame I rise Up from a past that’s rooted in pain I rise I’m a black ocean, leaping and wide, Welling and swelling I bear in the tide. Leaving behind nights of terror and fear I rise Into a daybreak that’s wondrously clear I rise Bringing the gifts that my ancestors gave, I am the dream and the hope of the slave. I rise I rise I rise.

Inspirational prayers

An inspirational prayer by st. francis de sales :.

Do not look forward to what may happen tomorrow; the same everlasting Father who cares for you today will take care of you tomorrow and every day. Either He will shield you from suffering, or He will give you unfailing strength to bear it. Be at peace, then. Put aside all anxious thoughts and imaginations, and say continually: “The Lord is my strength and my shield. My heart has trusted in Him and I am helped. He is not only with me but in me, and I in Him.”

An inspirational prayer from Psalm 7: 6,7,8

I have called upon Thee, For Thou wilt hear me, o Lord, and hear my speech. Show Thy marvelous loving kindness, O Thou that savest by Thy right hand those who put their trust in Thee from those That rise up against them. Keep me as the apple of thine eye; Hide me under the shadow of Thy wings.

An inspirational prayer from The Bible, Lamentation 3:31-33

For the Lord will not cast off forever: but though he cause grief, yet will he have compassion according to the multitude of his mercies. For he doth not afflict willingly nor grieve the children of men – See more here.

A compendium of daily motivational quotes

These are some of our favorite daily motivational quotes. Revisit them, and read them each morning to set yourself on the correct heading for the day.

“Whatever the mind of man can conceive and believe, it can achieve.” Napoleon Hill
“Two roads diverged in a wood, and I took the one less traveled by, And that has made all the difference.” Robert Frost
“I attribute my success to this: I never gave or took any excuse. ” Florence Nightingale
“You miss 100% of the shots you don’t take.” Wayne Gretzky
“The most difficult thing is the decision to act, the rest is merely tenacity.” Amelia Earhart
“Definiteness of purpose is the starting point of all achievement.” W. Clement Stone
“Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn’t do than by the ones you did do, so throw off the bowlines, sail away from safe harbor, catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore, Dream, Discover.” Mark Twain

20 Inspirational quotes and words of encouragement

“The only person you are destined to become is the person you decide to be.” Ralph Waldo Emerson
“Start where you are. Use what you have. Do what you can.” Arthur Ashe
“How wonderful it is that nobody need wait a single moment before starting to improve the world.” Anne Frank
“Life is a succession of lessons which must be lived to be understood.” Helen Keller
“When you get into a tight place and everything goes against you, till it seems as though you could not hang on a minute longer, never give up then, for that is just the place and time that the tide will turn.” Harriet Beecher Stowe
“You must do the thing you think you cannot do.” Eleanor Roosevelt
“If you don’t pay appropriate attention to what has your attention, it will take more of your attention than it deserves.” David Allen
“Character cannot be developed in ease and quiet. Only through experience of trial and suffering can the soul be strengthened, ambition inspired, and success achieved.” Helen Keller
“It is by going down into the abyss that we recover the treasures of life. Where you stumble, there lies your treasure.” Joseph Campbell
“In essence, if we want to direct our lives, we must take control of our consistent actions. It’s not what we do once in a while that shapes our lives, but what we do consistently.” Tony Robbins
“Our greatest weakness lies in giving up. The most certain way to succeed is always to try just one more time.” Thomas A. Edison
“You are never to old to set another goal or to dream a new dream.” C.S. Lewis
“Even if you fall on your face, you’re still moving forward.” Victor Kiam
“Be miserable. Or motivate yourself. Whatever has to be done, it’s always your choice.” Wayne Dyer
“Learn from the past, set vivid, detailed goals for the future, and live in the only moment of time over which you have any control: now.” Denis Waitley
“Do you want to know who you are? Don’t ask. Act! Action will delineate and define you.” Thomas Jefferson
“The key is to keep company only with people who uplift you, whose presence calls forth your best.” Epictetus
“Act as if what you do makes a difference. It does.”William James
“Learning is the beginning of wealth. Learning is the beginning of health. Learning is the beginning of spirituality. Searching and learning is where the miracle process all begins.” Jim Rohn
“I’d rather attempt to do something great and fail than to attempt to do nothing and succeed.” Robert H. Schuller

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7 Excellent Tips for Writing a Perfect Motivation Speech

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None of this is about morality, or religion, or dogma, or big fancy questions of life after death. The capital-T Truth is about life before death. It is about making it to 30, or maybe 50, without wanting to shoot yourself in the head. It is about simple awareness – awareness of what is so real and essential, so hidden in plain sight all around us, that we have to keep reminding ourselves, over and over: ‘This is water, this is water.’” – David Foster Wallace

David Foster Wallace inspired millions of people with the This Is Water commencement speech to Kenyon College class of 2005.

Some people have the talent to write an impressive speech, get on stage and mesmerize the audience with their words. How do they do it? Can you do it, too?

The Elements of an Impressive Speech

If you want to understand what makes a great speech, you should listen to some of the most influential speeches ever made. In addition to This is Water , here are few more suggestions:

· The Fringe Benefits of Failure, and the Importance of Imagination by J.K. Rowling

· There’s More to Life than Being Happy by Emily Esfahani Smith

· How to Live Before You Die by Steve Jobs

· But the Blind Can Lead the Blind by Vera Jones

What do you notice about these speeches?

· They are memorable

· They are structured

· They are straightforward

· They are REAL

In short, those are the elements of a great speech. Yes; it takes some talent to write a brilliant speech. The good news, however, is that you can get better at it.

You Can Do It, Too!

Find the Purpose of Your Speech

Elena Roberts, a professional writer from EssayGeeks , shares an important tip: “Before you even pick the topic, find the purpose of your speech. I’m a motivational speech junkie. I listen to speeches every day, but that doesn’t mean I like wasting my time. I can easily spot a speaker who knows nothing about the audience and introduces a random topic, mostly based on personal experience. Then, I close the tab and search for another speech to listen.”

The first step is to understand your audience. If you’re giving a speech to students, you should address their struggles and give them solutions. If you’re talking to children, you should bring the speech to their level.

Your speech should share information, teach knowledge, and motivate people to take action in a relevant way.

Make It Memorable

When you listen to a great speech, some of the words stick with you for a long time. You may even pin few quotes and go back to them later on. People don’t want to hear the same things over and over again. They want new approach to age-old questions.

It’s important to be as unique as possible. Express your personality from the very beginning.

Open with a Bang

The moment you get on stage and start the speech – that’s when your audience is most willing to listen to you. Do not waste that moment.

Here are few suggestions for an opening that can engage the listeners:

· Intriguing questions

· An interesting anecdote that’s related to the theme

· A brief story with a clear point related to the theme

· Surprising facts or statistics

· A meaningful quote that inspired you to tackle that topic

Be Straightforward

You don’t see a great speech with digressions and lengthy openings. The best ones get straight to the point.

Focus! Don’t waste the time of your audience.

Have a Structure

Why do you think people write their speeches? Why don’t they just get in front of the audience and speak?

It’s all about the structure. When you speak without following an outline, you tend to make digressions. That’s a good way to lose a listener.

Great speeches have a clear structure that holds the attention of the audience. Develop an outline and write a speech with a clean logical flow.

Do you know why people love motivational quotes and speeches? They can see someone understands what they are going through. If your audience doesn’t believe you’re authentic, they won’t take your fake message.

Be human. Share things you’ve been through. Give advice you believe in. That’s the most important secret to a brilliant speech.

7. Call Them to Action

What’s the whole point of listening to a motivational speech? These people want to change something. They want to make their lives better. They want to help other people. Your speech should give them a trigger to do that and a direction to aim for.

Writing a great speech is a huge challenge. Inspiring people, however, is a priceless experience. The result is worth the effort.

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Speech Writing /

Success in Life Speech: Short and Long Speech

Updated on
Mar 6, 2024

Success in life speech : India’s former President Dr APJ Abdul Kalam once said, ‘ Man needs his difficulties because they are necessary to enjoy success.’ Success is not given or gifted. Success is earned with commitment and perseverance; whether it is academic or professional success. Everyone aspires to be a better version of themselves and wants to live prosperous lives. But do you know what it takes to become successful?

‘ Man needs his difficulties because they are necessary to enjoy success.’ – Dr APJ Abdul Kalam

On this page, we have listed down some speeches on success in life samples. These will help students with their speech-writing topics.

Table of Contents

1 2-Minute Speech on Success in Life
2 Long Speech on Success in Life
3 10 Quotes on Success in Life
4 10 Motivational Lines for Success in Life

Master the art of essay writing with our blog on How to Write an Essay in English .

2-Minute Speech on Success in Life

‘Good morning my friends, teacher (s). My today’s speech topic is ‘Success in life’. Which person comes to your mind when you think of the most successful person in the world? Is it Elon Musk? Or Mukesh Ambani? I am sure it is some top-level businessman or celebrity.

Lifelong happiness, financial security, personal development, a positive atmosphere, leading a healthy lifestyle, etc. are all signs of success. Who doesn’t want these things in life? We all wish for a better life for ourselves and our loved ones. But first, there are certain things we must focus on and take action on.

Having a goal is very important. Goals act as our guiding stars, providing direction and purpose. Let me tell you something; success is a journey and not a destination. We all have our role models. Some of us like movie stars, some sportspersons, others any businessperson or any popular figure. If you look at their life journey, they all started from somewhere and drafted a plan for themselves.

Success demands sacrifice, discipline, and hard work. Life is not just rainbows and sunshine. There will be obstacles along the way, but it’s your determination and resilience that will propel you forward. Embrace challenges as opportunities to grow and learn, and remember that setbacks are not failures but stepping stones to success.

Bruce Lee, the famous martial artist and actor, didn’t earn fame overnight. Bruce Lee’s success was not only physical but also rooted in his philosophical approach to life. Here’s one brilliant quote by him, ‘Absorb what is useful, discard what is not, add what is uniquely your own.’

Next time you see a successful person, don’t just look at the car he is driving or the expensive watch he’s wearing. Think how hard he might have worked to achieve all those luxurious things.’

Also Read: Speech on Self-Confidence in English

Also Read: Speech About Life for Students

Long Speech on Success in Life

‘Hello and welcome to everyone present here. Today, I stand before you to present my ‘Success in Life speech’. Our every action must have a purpose. There are ups and downs in life, challenges that will shake you off your foundation, emotional breakdowns, and sometimes bad luck. But what if you bounce back all the challenges that stand in your way? Can you imagine your success, which is solely based on your hard work, determination, discipline, and perseverance? Take a moment and think about what your successful life will look like.

Depending on your interests and hobbies, think of a goal that you wish to achieve. With a specific goal or target in mind, you can work in the right direction and focus solely on your purpose. If you ask me, I would take some time to reflect on my aspirations and let them serve as beacons lighting my path toward success.

Success is not achieved overnight. It’s a lifelong process. Usain Bolt, the fastest man on the planet won his first Olympic gold medal after 10 years of deliberate practice. He achieved success because he believed in himself and his hard work.

Nothing good comes for free. It requires sacrifice, determination, and a lot of hard work. The journey to success is not always smooth. It is marked by challenges, obstacles, and moments of self-doubt. In times like these, when you feel like giving up, resilience becomes your greatest ally. Resilience, it’s the ability to bounce back from setbacks, to learn from failures, and to persevere in the face of adversity.

Do not let the absence of challenges define who you are, but rather how you respond to them.

Success is intertwined with a commitment to continuous learning. We need to embrace every opportunity life offers, as it can expand our knowledge, develop new skills, and to adapt the ever-evolving world.

Surround yourself with like-minded people, people who inspire you, support and challenge you to influence your mindset and shape your journey toward success. You can’t stop the inevitable, but you can learn from the mistakes you made.

We are all in the same boat here. What we do today will define who we become tomorrow. So let’s cheer each other, and focus on our goals, not materialistic things. We all have only one life. Let’s make it count.’

Also Read: 18th Birthday Speech for Students

10 Quotes on Success in Life

Here are 10 popular quotes on success in life. Feel free to add them to your speech or any writing topics.

‘Success is no accident. It is hard work, perseverance, learning, studying, sacrifice, and most of all, love of what you are doing or learning to do.’ – Pelé

‘Self-belief and hard work will always earn you success’ – Virat Kohli

‘Success is not final, failure is not fatal: It is the courage to continue that count.’ – Winston Churchill

‘Success is stumbling from failure to failure with no loss of enthusiasm.’ – Winston S. Churchill

‘Success is to be measured not so much by the position that one has reached in life as by the obstacles which he has overcome.’ – Booker T. Washington

‘Success is not the key to happiness. Happiness is the key to success. If you love what you are doing, you will be successful.’ – Albert Schweitzer

‘The only place where success comes before work is in the dictionary.’ – Vidal Sassoon

‘Success is not the result of spontaneous combustion. You must set yourself on fire.’ – Arnold H. Glasow

‘Success is not how high you have climbed, but how you make a positive difference to the world. – Roy T. Bennett

10 Motivational Lines for Success in Life

Here are 10 motivational lines for success in life. Feel free to use them in your speech topics.

‘Dream big, work hard, and never give up.’

‘Your only limit is you—break through it!’

‘Every small step counts toward your big goals.’

‘Believe in yourself; you are stronger than you think.’

‘Embrace challenges; they are stepping stones to success.’

‘Success is not final, failure is not fatal—keep going.’

‘Turn obstacles into opportunities and setbacks into comebacks.’

‘The road to success is under construction—build it with determination.’

‘Your attitude determines your direction—choose positivity.’

‘Be the energy you want to attract; radiate success and positivity.’

Ans: ‘Hello and welcome to everyone present here. Today, I stand before you to present my ‘Success in Life speech’. Our every action must have a purpose. There are ups and downs in life, challenges that will shake you off your foundation, emotional breakdowns, and sometimes bad luck. But what if you bounce back all the challenges that stand in your way? Can you imagine your success, which is solely based on your hard work, determination, discipline and perseverance? Take a moment and think about what your successful life will look like.

Ans: ‘Success is no accident. It is hard work, perseverance, learning, studying, sacrifice, and most of all, love of what you are doing or learning to do.’ – Pelé

Ans: Success requires determination, willpower, discipline, hard work and perseverance. Whether it’s about personal, academic or professional success, you must set your mind clear and focus only on what is important to you.

Shiva Tyagi

With an experience of over a year, I've developed a passion for writing blogs on wide range of topics. I am mostly inspired from topics related to social and environmental fields, where you come up with a positive outcome.

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Speech on International Literacy Day

International Literacy Day is a special day celebrated on September 8th each year. It aims to highlight the importance of literacy to individuals and society.

On this day, people around the world join hands to promote the power of reading and writing. It’s a day to remember how words can change lives.

1-minute Speech on International Literacy Day

Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, today we gather to celebrate a very special day, International Literacy Day. This day reminds us of something very important, something that helps us grow, learn and understand the world better, and that is – the power of reading and writing.

Imagine a world without words, where we cannot read stories, write letters, or even understand signs on the road. It’s hard to imagine, isn’t it? That’s because literacy, or the ability to read and write, is like a magic key. It opens doors to knowledge, opportunities, and a better future.

But sadly, not everyone has this magic key. There are many people, both children and adults, who cannot read or write. They are like birds with wings, but cannot fly. They have dreams, but lack the tools to chase them. International Literacy Day draws attention to these people and inspires us to help them.

It’s not just about reading and writing. Literacy also means understanding numbers, using computers, and even knowing about our health. In a world that is rapidly changing, being literate means being ready to adapt and grow.

So, let us celebrate International Literacy Day by promising to help those who cannot read or write. Let us share our books, our time, and our knowledge. Let’s remember that every person who learns to read and write is a star that shines a little brighter in the sky of humanity.

2-minute Speech on International Literacy Day

Ladies and Gentlemen, Boys and Girls,

Today, we gather to celebrate a very important day, known as ‘International Literacy Day.’ This day is like a big birthday party for the wonderful world of reading and writing. Imagine a day when we all come together to say, “Hooray! We can read and write!” That’s what International Literacy Day is all about.

Every year on the 8th of September, people all over the world celebrate this special day. It was started by a group called UNESCO, which is like a big team of people from different countries who work together to make the world a better place. They decided to have a day for celebrating literacy because they know how important it is to be able to read and write.

Being able to read and write is like having a magic key. This key can open many doors. It can take you to far-off lands through the pages of a book. It can help you learn new things, like how to bake a cake or build a rocket. It can also help you share your thoughts and ideas with others. Without this key, many doors remain closed. That’s why we need to make sure everyone, everywhere, has this magic key.

Sadly, not everyone in the world has this magic key yet. There are many children, just like you, who don’t get to go to school. They don’t have books to read or pencils to write with. They don’t have teachers to help them learn. This is why we celebrate International Literacy Day. We want to help everyone get the magic key of reading and writing.

On this day, we remind ourselves and others about the importance of reading and writing. We organize fun activities, like reading marathons or writing competitions. We raise money to buy books and pencils for children who don’t have them. We talk to our leaders and ask them to help us make sure every child can go to school.

But we can do more than just celebrate on this day. Every day can be a day for literacy. You can help by sharing your books with a friend who doesn’t have any. You can help your little brother or sister learn to read. You can even start a book club in your neighborhood. Every little bit helps.

In conclusion, International Literacy Day is a very special day. It’s a day to celebrate the magic of reading and writing. It’s a day to help others get the magic key. And it’s a day to remember that we can make a difference, no matter how small we are. So let’s celebrate International Literacy Day, not just today, but every day. Because every child deserves the magic key of reading and writing. Thank you.

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We also have speeches on more interesting topics that you may want to explore.

Speech for Martin Luther King Day

This speech is intended for use as a keynote speech for a Martin Luther King Day event. If you are a key note speaker for an MLK day event, you can modify this sample speech to meet your needs or audience or use as is. These prepared remarks could also be used for events about racial inequality, race relations, Black History Month, or other race and social justice focused speeches. This speech is the property of Canuwrite.com but may be used free of charge.

I’m so pleased to be here today. It’s a great honor to speak about the legacy of the Reverend Martin Luther King Junior. I’d like to begin with a quote from Dr King.

”Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.”

His message of nonviolence, peaceful protest and equality is as pertinent now as it was in his lifetime. Also pertinent is the truth and power behind that message, and the need we still have for it in our society.

As we commemorate this Martin Luther King day, we can look around at the news and at our communities and see that we still have a significant racial divide in our country. The marches, protests and even divisions among friends and families show that racism and discrimination did not end with the Civil Rights Movement. Indeed, there is still much work to be done today.

Today, all across the country, we remember Dr. King. In parades and speeches and schools and churches, people honor his legacy. But it’s important to remember, he was not always so popular. He was not seen as a hero by many people during his life. Martin Luther King junior was an agitator. He was an activist. He made trouble. He did not accept the status quo. He stood up to authority and faced down firehoses and attack dogs and tear gas and police batons. In his lifetime, he was arrested 29 times according to the King Center in Atlanta. He worked with many other Civil Rights leaders of the time to lead marches and strikes. He and his followers blocked traffic, for instance during the 54 mile March from Selma to Montgomery. They participated in civil disobedience by peacefully protesting against unjust laws and practices. They disrupted public transportation and demonstrated outside of government offices, schools and commercial districts. Martin Luther King and many others like him fought segregation and discrimination when it was very unpopular and very, very dangerous to do so. He worked with religious leaders of many denominations. He worked with students, with workers, with people of color and with white people to try and force changes in a society that did not want changes. He and the other Civil Rights activists fought against inequality at the risk of their own safety. The fought to make sure that equal means equal, that justice means justice, and that every citizen is treated fairly.

We know that in the South there were laws enforcing segregation and discrimination. That legacy of racism was enshrined in law, plain to see. Yet the North wasn’t free of racism or discrimination either, even if it wasn’t blatantly backed up by laws. In the South laws enforced segregation. In the North, schools and neighborhoods were segregated not by law but by economics and social divisions. Riots, lynching, voter suppression, job discrimination – these happened in both North and South. While it was certainly more blatant in the South, racism is a problem that affected and affects us all still today. It did not end with the dismantling of Jim Crow laws. Racism is a problem that persists.

Today the idea of separate water fountains and waiting rooms seems preposterous. The idea that a person of color had to give up their bus seat for a white person seems crazy or that black people weren’t welcome to eat at any restaurant they wanted. It’s inconceivable that it was once illegal for black people and white people to get married. But the truth is, it’s simply not that long ago. Young people, ask your parents or your grandparents, your teachers or other adults about their memories of racial injustice in this country. They can tell you stories about things they’ve seen or things they remember happening in this country that would seem absolutely absurd today. Yet the fact is, it hasn’t been that long.

I’m reminded of a quote by the brilliant African American academic, author and Civil Rights leader W.E. B. DuBois. In 1903 he wrote, “The problem of the twentieth century is the problem of the color line.”

So what is the color line, you might wonder? The color line is the division between people of color and white people. The Color Line was first mentioned by Civil Rights leader, abolitionist and former slave Frederick Douglass who talked about the Color Line back in 1881. It has been discussed and debated by scholars, authors and activists since then.

It has been more than 100 years since DuBois identified it as the defining issue of the 20th century. It’s easy to look back to 1903, when there were still Civil War veterans and former slaves walking the streets of America, and see why DuBois would have called the Color Line the most important issue. Yet here we are today, and those generations have passed, but they’ve left their legacy with us and our society. When you look around and see the unrest, tension and protests in America, you can see that the Color Line persists. Sadly, it is still dividing us.

The problem of the color line stretches from our grandparents and great-grandparents through to us today. Will it continue from us to the generations that follow? To our children, our grandchildren and great-grandchildren?

For the younger people here, I want you to imagine your own children and grandchildren asking you about the history of racial oppression in this country. Think about what’s happening today: the racial strife, the marches, the protests and arguments. It has been only 50 years since the Civil Rights movement. The distance of time gives us perspective to look back on what happened then. Think of our modern days. How will the events of today look 50 years from now? In 50 years, will we still be fighting the same fights and having the same arguments about race? Instead, will we work to make progress and move forward to a place where the color line does not divide us for another 50 years?

Leaders like Martin Luther King fought to destroy the color line, and they paid for it with their lives. It’s a dehumanizing and tragic separation that hurts us all, and if we truly wish to honor the legacy of Dr. King, we must look to ourselves and our own communities and ask some hard questions. Where do I see racism in my daily life? Where do I see racism in my community? How is racism imbedded in American institutions and politics? Is it possible I only understand this topic from one perspective because of the color of my skin, or where I was raised? How can I learn more and seek to fight racism and inequality? How can I do my part?

Today, I want you to celebrate the legacy of Dr. King, yes, but I want you to do more than that. I want you to question yourself and be honest about your answers. I want you to educate yourself about history. I want you to read books and essays from perspectives that are new or different to you. I want you to make an effort to cross the color line and talk with people from a different racial or ethnic background, a different religion or those from another country. Try and listen to their perspectives and experiences with an open heart and an open mind. Try to imagine how you’d feel in their situation.

Can we listen to each other’s experiences and try to bridge the gap that still separates people in our country? Can we embrace our fellow Americans and work to ensure we are not the divided states but rather the United States of America? Yes, I believe we can. It’s up to us.

Dr. King and the other leaders of the Civil Rights Movement helped to bring about massive changes in America, but their work was not finished. Here we are years later and the color line still persists. As a country, as a people, we need to continue to work to ensure equality, opportunity and justice for all. This is our work, friends. The time is now, right now. We can’t shy away. We can’t depend on anyone else to do it. This is our mission and if we are brave and steadfast, we can all move forward together, as one people.

I’d like to close with another quote from Dr. King.

“Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.”

Remember this quote as you go forward. Remember to stand up against injustice and speak out for what is right. Remember to listen to the perspectives of people of other racial and ethnic groups and be open minded. Remember to keep learning and challenging yourself as you go. And remember to do your part to ensure that the color line ends here.

We hope this sample keynote speech for Martin Luther King Day was useful. Check out our other sample speeches and remarks for other holidays, heritage months and special events.

More information : We hope this page was helpful and provided you with some information about How to write a change of command or responsibilty speech for the incoming commander . Check out our main page for more articles here Can U Write .

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37 Best Inspirational & Motivational Short Stories [2024 Update]

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Have you ever watched a movie or read a book that had a lasting impact on you?

Stories are one of the most powerful ways to guide, teach, and inspire people. Storytelling is effective because it helps to establish connections among people, as well as between people and the ideas that unite humanity.

Inspirational stories move past creating a sense of connection, and allow the listener to identify with the story wherever they are in their own life , which makes them more receptive to learning.

Some of the best stories contain several different meanings or lessons so they’re effective in communicating complex ideas in ways that are easy to understand.

Finally, storytelling has characteristics that benefits the three main types of learning: visual, auditory, and kinesthetic.

Visual learners benefit from the mental pictures that stories evoke.

Auditory learners are able to focus on the words and voice of the storyteller.

And kinesthetic learners can retain the emotional connections that they feel were created in the story.

No matter what type of learner you are , you can benefit from an inspirational story that comes with a moral.

In this article, I will share 23 short inspirational stories that can teach you valuable lessons .

Table of Contents

23 Best Inspirational Short Stories with a Motivating Moral

1. three feet from gold.

Watch the Video of This Story:

During the gold rush, a man who had been mining in Colorado for several months quit his job, as he hadn’t struck gold yet and the work was becoming tiresome. He sold his equipment to another man who resumed mining where it had been left off.

The new miner was advised by his engineer that there was gold only three feet away from where the first miner stopped digging.

The engineer was right, which means the first miner was a mere three feet away from striking gold before he quit.

When things start to get hard, try to persevere through the adversity.

Many people give up on following their dreams because the work becomes too difficult, tedious, or tiresome–but often, you’re closer to the finish line than you may think , and if you push just a little harder, you will succeed.

2. Rocks, Pebbles, and Sand

A philosophy professor once stood up before his class with a large empty mayonnaise jar. He filled the jar to the top with large rocks and asked his students if the jar was full.

His students all agreed the jar was full .

He then added small pebbles to the jar, and gave the jar a bit of a shake so the pebbles could disperse themselves among the larger rocks. Then he asked again, “Is the jar full now?”

The students agreed that the jar was still full.

The professor then poured sand into the jar to fill up all the remaining empty space.

The students then agreed again that the jar was full .

The Metaphor:

In this story, the jar represents your life and the r ocks, pebbles, and sand are the things that fill up your life .

The rocks represent the most important projects and things you have going on, such as spending time with your family and maintaining proper health. This means that if the pebbles and the sand were lost, the jar would still be full and your life would still have meaning .

The pebbles represent the things in your life that matter, but that you could live without.

The pebbles are certainly things that give your life meaning (such as your job, house, hobbies, and friendships), but they are not critical for you to have a meaningful life.

These things often come and go, and are not permanent or essential to your overall well-being.

Finally, the sand represents the remaining filler things in your life, and material possessions. This could be small things such as watching television , browsing through your favorite social media site , or running errands.

These things don't mean much to your life as a whole, and are likely only done to waste time or get small tasks accomplished.

The metaphor here is that if you start with putting sand into the jar, you will not have room for rocks or pebbles.

This holds true with the things you let into your life. If you spend all of your time on the small and insignificant things, you will run out of room for the things that are actually important.

In order to have a more effective and efficient life, pay attention to the “rocks,” because they are critical to your long-term well-being .

3. The Elephant Rope

When walking through an elephant camp, a man noticed that the elephants were only secured with a small rope that was tied around one ankle. He wondered why the elephants didn’t break free from the rope, as the elephants were certainly strong enough to do so.

He asked a trainer why the elephants didn’t try to break free, and the trainer responded by saying that they use the same size rope for baby elephants all the way up to adulthood.

Because they’re too small when they’re babies to break free from the rope, they grow up being conditioned that the rope is stronger than they are . As adults, they think the rope can still hold them, so they don’t try to fight it.

The elephants in this case are experiencing learned helplessness . This phenomenon occurs when someone has been conditioned to anticipate discomfort in some way without having a way to avoid it or make it stop.

After enough conditioning, the person will stop any attempts to avoid the pain, even if they see an opportunity to escape.

If you go through life thinking that you can’t do something just because you have failed at doing it in the past, you’re living with a fixed mindset .

You have to let go of your limiting beliefs in order to make the breakthroughs that are required for your ultimate success.

Don’t let other people tell you that you can’t do something, and don’t hold onto an assumption that you can’t grow and learn from past failures.

4. A Wise Man’s Jokes

A wise man once faced a group of people who were complaining about the same issues over and over again. One day, instead of listening to the complaints, he told them a joke and everyone cracked up laughing.

Then, the man repeated the joke. A few people smiled.

Finally, the man repeated the joke a third time– but no one reacted .

The man smiled and said, “You won’t laugh at the same joke more than once. So what are you getting from continuing to complain about the same problem?”

You’re not going to get anywhere if you keep complaining about the same problem but do nothing to fix it.

Don’t waste your time complaining, expecting other people to continue to react to your complaints. Instead, take action to make a change.

5. It’s Never Too Late

In the 1940s, there was a man who, at the age of 65, was living off of $99 social security checks in a small house, driving a beat-up car.

He decided it was time to make a change , so he thought about what he had to offer that other people may benefit from. His mind went to his fried chicken recipe, which his friends and family loved.

He left his home state of Kentucky and traveled throughout the country, trying to sell his recipe to restaurants. He even offered the recipe for free, asking for only a small chunk of the money that was earned.

However, most of the restaurants declined his offer. In fact, 1,009 restaurants said no .

But even after all of the rejections, he persisted. He believed in himself and his chicken recipe.

When he visited restaurant #1,010, he got a YES .

Colonel Hartland Sanders.

There are a few lessons that you can take away from this story.

First, it’s never too late in life to find success . In a society that often celebrates young, successful people, it’s easy to start to think you’re never going to be successful after a certain age.

However, Colonel Sanders is an example that proves that argument wrong.

This story also demonstrates the power of persistence. You have to have confidence in yourself and believe in your work for other people to believe it also.

Disregard anyone who tells you “no” and simply move on.

6. The Boulder and the Gold

There once was a king who decided to do a little experiment. He had a giant boulder put right in the middle of the street. He then hid near the boulder to see who, if anyone, would try to move it out of the way.

First, some wealthy merchants walked by. They walked around the boulder, complaining that the king hasn’t been maintaining the roads very well.

Next, a peasant walked by, heading home with his arms full of food for his family. When he noticed the boulder, he put his groceries down and attempted to move it out of everyone’s way. It took him a while to move it, but he eventually succeeded.

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After the peasant gathered up his groceries to carry on home, he noticed a bag lying in the middle of the road, just where the boulder once was.

He opened the bag to find that it was stuffed full of gold coins , along with a letter from the king saying that the bag’s gold was a reward for the peasant to keep.

The king gave this gift because the peasant had taken the time and energy to move the boulder out of the road for the convenience of others who would be traveling the road in the future.

The peasant in this story was taught by the king that every obstacle you face offers an opportunity to improve.

If you’re able to push through moments that are challenging, you may end up being much better off than you were before you started trying.

This story also offers a lesson of personal responsibility.

If you see a job ahead of you, don’t leave it for the next person to do. Rather, step up and get the job done to help the people who come after you.

(To learn more about this concept, here are 8 key ingredients of personal responsibility .)

7. Dirty Money

A well-respected speaker began a seminar by showing an audience of 150 people a crisp $20 bill.

He asked, “Who wants this $20 bill?”

All 150 people nodded.

He said, “I am going to give this money to someone, but first….”

Then he proceeded to crumple the bill up.

He asked the crowd again if anyone wanted it.

All 150 hands went up in the air.

The speaker then dropped the money on the floor and stomped all over it.

He then raised it in the air to show the crowd. The money was filthy.

“Does anyone want it now?”

Every hand went up.

The speaker proceeded to tell the crowd that no matter what he did to ruin the money, people still wanted it because its value remained the same .

It was still worth $20.

Life often beats us up to the point where we feel inadequate. We deal with bad circumstances and make bad choices that we have to deal with later. However, no matter what you go through, your value will remain the same .

You have something special to offer that no one can take away from you.

8. The Ultimate Test

One night, four college students stayed up late partying, even though they knew they had a test the next day. The next morning, they came up with a plan to get out of having to take their test.

Each student rolled around in dirt and then went to the teacher’s office.

They told the teacher that they had gotten a flat tire the night before, and they spent the entire night pushing their car back to campus.

The teacher listened, and to the students’ delight, he offered a retest three days later.

On the day of the test, the students went to their teacher’s office. The teacher put all four of the students in separate rooms to take the test. The students were okay with that because they had been given a chance to study.

The test had 2 questions:

1) Your Name __________ (1 Points)

2) Which tire was flat? __________ (99 Points)

Front Right

Aside from making wise decisions, you always need to take responsibility for your actions .

This means not blaming other people for your mistakes, not complaining about the reality of the present moment, and not giving in to other people’s pressure.

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9. What a Waste

A mother camel and her baby were lying down, soaking up the sun.

The baby camel asked his mom, “Why do we have these big bumps on our back?”

The mom stopped to think and then said, “We live in the desert where there is not much water available. Our humps store water to help us survive on long journeys.”

The baby camel then stopped to think and said, “Well, why do we have long legs with rounded feet?”

His mother replied, “They are meant to help us walk through sand.”

The baby asked a third question, “Why are my eyelashes so long?”

The mother replied, “Your long eyelashes offer you protection from sand when it blows in the wind.”

Finally, the baby said, “If we have all of these natural abilities given to us to walk through the desert, what’s the use for camels in the Zoo?”

The skills and abilities that you possess won’t be useful if you’re not in the right environment.

You’ve probably heard of a professional who ditched his or her career to follow their dreams–or the person who remains unfulfilled in their job, but doesn’t try to make a change .

If you’re stuck in a career that isn’t the right fit, you have to do some self-reflection to realize where you strengths lie that are going to waste. ( Here is a five-step process to identify your personal strengths .)

Turn to people that you know the best as well as professionals in any given market so you can start thinking about what may be better for you.

Think big and remain open to new ideas.

10. Breathing With No Air

A boy once asked a wise old man what the secret to success is.

After listening to the boy’s question, the wise man told the boy to meet him at the river in the morning and he would be given the answer there.

In the morning, the wise man and the boy began walking toward the river. They continued on into the river, past the point of the water covering their nose and mouth. At this time, the wise man ducked the boy into the water.

As he struggled to get out, the wise man continued to push him further down. The boy felt a fish slip by his leg and squirmed to get up even harder. The man eventually pulled the boy’s head up so he could get air. The boy gasped as he inhaled a deep breath of air.

The wise man said, ‘What were you fighting for when you were under water?”

The boy replied, “Air!”

The man said, “There you have the secret to success. When you want to gain success as much as you wanted air when you were under water, you will obtain it. That’s the only secret.”

Success starts with the desire to achieve something.

If your motivation is weak , your results will follow suit.

Think about what you desire the most in life and work towards getting it. Don’t allow your environment or other people to influence the things that you truly want.

Just because the fish swimming by is comfortable with being under water doesn’t mean that you are.

11. Sweet Dreams

A young boy and girl were enjoying a pleasant afternoon playing outside in their neighborhood together.

The boy showed the girl his collection of beautiful, unique marbles. In turn, the girl showed the boy the handful of candy that she had just gotten for her birthday.

The boy proposed that the two of them switch–he would give her all of his marbles if she handed over all of her candy.

The girl agreed, as she found the marbles to be beautiful as well.

The boy handed over all of his marbles, but kept one–the most exquisite one of them all–in his pocket.

The girl kept her promise and gave the boy all of her candy.

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That night, the girl was happy with the exchange and peacefully went to sleep.

The boy, however, couldn’t sleep, as he was up wondering if the girl had secretly kept some of her candy, just like he did with the marble.

If you don’t give 100% in your relationships, you will always assume your partner isn’t giving 100% either.

If you want your relationships to be built on trust, you have to be a participating factor in that.

Honesty grows your character.

By being honest in relationships, you’re holding your partner accountable to do the same. It allows both you and your partner to continuously think about your choices and how you can help (or hurt) your partner and your relationship.

12. Teamwork

There was once a man who lived with his three sons. His sons were hard workers, but they constantly fought with each other .

Even though the man continuously tried to help his sons make peace with each other, he was never successful. In fact, their fighting got to a point where their neighbors would make fun of them.

Eventually, the father became ill. He begged his sons to learn how to work together because of his impending death, but they didn’t listen. The father then decided to teach his sons a practical lesson to help his sons forget their differences and become a united team.

The father called his sons and said, “I’ll give you each an equal collection of sticks to break in half. Whoever breaks the sticks the fastest will be rewarded.”

After agreeing to the task, the father gave each of his sons 10 sticks and instructed them to break each stick in half.

This task took the sons mere minutes to complete, but once they were finished, they started to fight about who finished first.

The father said, “Dear sons, the task isn’t finished. Now I’ll give each of you 10 more sticks, however, you must break the sticks in half as a bundle rather than snapping each one separately.”

His sons agreed and attempted to do what he had asked. They each tried their best, but none could break the bundle in half.

They told their father that they had failed.

In response, their father said, “See, it was easy to break the sticks in half individually, but you couldn’t break all 10 of them at the same time.

Similarly, if the three of you stay united as a team, nobody will be able to harm you. However, if you fight all the time, anyone will be able to defeat you. Please come together as a united team.”

This lesson helped the man’s sons understand the power of being a team and promised their father that, moving forward, they would work together as a team, no matter what the situation was.

Being an effective member of a team helps contribute to the overall moral and motivation of the team.

Strong teams are naturally aligned to work harder, support each other, and be cooperative with working toward a mutual goal.

Individuals each have diverse talents, strengths, and weaknesses to contribute to teamwork, so staying focused on the task at hand rather than allowing personal disputes to get in the way will help you achieve your desired results.

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13. Frogs for Dinner

A lady was once heating up a pot of water on a gas stove with the intent of cooking pasta for her family for dinner.

A frog fell into the pot while it was sitting on the stove. While it wasn’t his intention to be stuck in a pot of water, he didn’t try to escape. He was comfortable enough as he was.

The lady soon turned on the flame to begin boiling the water.

As the water’s temperature began to rise, the frog was able to adjust his body temperature accordingly, so he remained in the pot without trying to do anything to change the situation.

However, as the water approached its boiling point, the frog’s body temperature could no longer keep up. He finally tried to jump out of the pot, but with water temperature continuing to increase, he didn’t have it in him to make the leap.

It was too late for the frog to save himself.

Things don’t always go as planned in life, and they certainly don’t always go the way we want them to. But, no matter how bad a situation is, it’s critical to be proactive and face the problem head-on.

Unlike the frog, who waited until the last minute to try to do anything about the problem he was clearly facing, it’s important to project the future outcomes of the obstacles that hinder you and mediate them before they get past the point of no return .

You have to avoid wasting time and take appropriate action before problems get out of hand or become too much to handle.

14. Will You Marry Me?

Centuries ago, in a small Italian town, there was a business owner who was in a great amount of debt.

His banker, who was an old, unattractive man, strongly desired the business owner’s younger beautiful daughter.

The banker decided to offer the businessman a deal to forgive the debt that he owed the bank completely. However, there was a bit of a catch.

In order for the businessman to become debt-free, he was to have his daughter marry the banker.

The businessman didn’t want to concede to this agreement, but he had no other choice, as his debt was so extreme.

The banker said he would put two small stones into a bag–one of which was white, and the other black .

The daughter would then need to reach into the bag and blindly choose a stone.

If she chose the black stone, the businessman’s debt would be cleared and the daughter would have to marry the banker.

However , if she chose the white stone, the debt would be cleared and the daughter would not have to marry him.

While standing in the stone-filled path in the businessman’s yard, the banker reached down and chose two small stones, not realizing that the businessman’s daughter was watching him. She noticed that he picked up two black stones and put them in the bag.

When it came time for the daughter to pick a stone out of the bag, she felt she had three choices:

Refuse to do it.
Take out both stones and expose the banker’s cheating.
Pick a stone, knowing it would be black, and sacrifice herself to get her father out of debt.

She picked a stone from the bag, and immediately ‘accidentally’ dropped it into the abundance of stones where they were all standing.

She said to the banker, “I’m sorry, I’m so clumsy! Oh well. Just look in the bag to see what color stone is in there now so you will know what color stone I picked.”

Of course, the remaining stone was black . Because the banker didn’t want his deceit to be exposed, he played along, acting as if the stone that the businessman’s daughter dropped had to have been white.

He cleared the businessman’s debt and the daughter remained free from having to spend the rest of her life with the banker.

While you may have to think outside of the box sometimes, it’s always possible to conquer a difficult situation.

You don’t have to always give in to the options you’re presented with.

Challenge the status quo.

Think creatively.

Engage in productive nonconformity when possible.

Don’t be afraid to question the things that are expected to be true. In order to overcome challenges, you have to think in ways that you’ve never thought before.

15. Wait…What?

A carpenter who was nearing retirement told his boss that he was ready to end his career and spend his time with his wife and family. He would miss his work, but he felt it was time to spend his time with the people who were important to him.

His boss was saddened by this news, as this carpenter had been a good, reliable employee for many years. He asked the carpenter if he could do him a favor and build just one more house.

The carpenter reluctantly conceded, even though his passion for building had faded.

While he was building this last house, his normal work ethic faded and his efforts were mediocre, at best. He used inexpensive and inferior materials and cut corners wherever he could. It was a poor way to finish such a dedicated career that he once had.

When the carpenter was finished, his boss came to look at the house. He gave the key to the carpenter and said, “This house is my gift to you for all of the hard work you have done for me over the years.”

The carpenter was astonished.

What a generous gift this was to receive from his boss, but if he had known he was building a house for himself, he would have made his usual efforts to create a high-quality home.

The same idea applies to how you build your life.

Every day that you wake up offers an opportunity for you to put your best foot forward, yet we often do mediocre work, saving the more important things for “another” day .

Then one day, we find ourselves shocked that our lives aren’t what we had hoped they would be. The “house” we built to live in has a lot of flaws due to a lack of effort.

However, you can’t go back and rebuild it in a day or two.

As people say, “Life is a do-it-yourself project.”

Your attitude and choices help build the life you will live tomorrow. So…build carefully.

16. Toothpaste Recant

One night in July at an all-girls summer camp, the campers were gathered around in a circle for their nighttime devotions.

The counselor asked if any of the girls wanted to share something that had happened that day that impacted them.

One camper raised her hand and said a girl from another camp cabin had said something that hurt her feelings and she was really upset about it.

The camp counselor went to the bathroom to grab a tube of toothpaste.

She took the tube and squeezed it just a bit so some toothpaste came out. She then tried to put the toothpaste back in the tube, but it just created a mess. Then she squeezed the tube even more, pushing more toothpaste out and creating even more of a mess, but none of it would go back into the tube.

The counselor then told the campers, “this toothpaste represents the words you speak. Once you say something that you want to take back, it’s impossible and it only creates a mess. Think before you speak, and make sure your words are going to good use before you let them out.”

Speaking is a fundamental social skill required for living a successful life.

However, many are careless with their words, but they hold so much power. They can have a direct impact on the outcome of a situation, creating a helpful or hurtful reaction in our world. T

he problem is, once words come out of your mouth, no amount of “I’m sorrys” will make them go back in: blurting something out and then attempting to take it back is like shutting the gate after the horse has taken off.

Thinking before you speak allows you the time to consider the potential impact of your words.

Be careful when choosing where and when you let your words out. You can easily hurt other people, and once you do, you can’t take it back.

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Words define who we are by revealing our attitudes and character, giving people an indication of our intellect or ignorance.

Stop for a minute before you speak and question yourself about why you’re saying what you are. Are you trying to relay information? Relate to someone else?

Make sure you’re able to take responsibility for whatever you’re about to say.

17. Just Be

One evening, after spending several days with his new wife, a man leaned over and whispered into her ear, “I love you.”

She smiled – and the man smiled back – and she said, “When I’m eighty years old and I’m thinking back on my entire life, I know I will remember this moment.”

A few minutes later, she drifted off to sleep.

The man was left with the silence of the room and the soft sound of his wife’s breathing.

He stayed awake, thinking about everything they had done together, from their first date to their first vacation together and ultimately to their big wedding. These were just some of the life choices that the couple had made together that had led to this very moment of silence in the presence of each other.

At one point, the man then realized that it didn’t matter what they had done or where they had gone. Nor did it matter where they were going.

The only thing that mattered was the serenity of that very moment.

Just being together. Breathing together. And resting together.

We can’t let the clock, calendar, or pressure from external sources take over our lives and allow us to forget the fact that every moment of our lives is a gift and a miracle – no matter how small or seemingly insignificant it is.

Being mindful in the special moments that you spend in the presence of the ones that you love are the moments that truly give your life meaning. (For more on this, here are 71 mindfulness exercises you can use to live in the present moment .)

18. The Weight of the World

Once, a psychology professor walked around his classroom full of students holding a glass of water with his arm straightened out to the side.

He asked his students, “How heavy is this glass of water?”

The students started to shout out guesses–ranging anywhere from 4 ounces to one pound.

The professor replied, “The absolute weight of this glass isn’t what matters while I’m holding it. Rather, it’s the amount of time that I hold onto it that makes an impact.”

“If I hold it for, say, two minutes, it doesn’t feel like much of a burden. If I hold it for an hour, its weight may become more apparent as my muscles begin to tire.

If I hold it for an entire day– or week –my muscles will cramp and I’ll likely feel numb or paralyzed with pain, making me feel miserable and unable to think about anything aside from the pain that I’m in. “

“In all of these cases, the actual weight of the glass will remain the same, but the longer I clench onto it, the heavier it feels to me and the more burdensome it is to hold.”

The class understood and shook their heads in agreement.

The professor continued to say, “This glass of water represents the worries and stresses that you carry around with you every day. If you think about them for a few minutes and then put them aside, it’s not a heavy burden to bear.

If you think about them a little longer, you will start to feel the impacts of the stress. If you carry your worries with you all day, you will become incapacitated, prohibiting you from doing anything else until you let them go.”

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Put down your worries and stressors. Don’t give them your entire attention while your life is passing you by.

Let go of things that are out of your control.

Don’t carry your worries around with you everywhere you go, as they will do nothing but bring you down.

Put your “glass down” each night and move on from anything that is unnecessarily stressing you out.

Don’t carry this extra weight into the next day.

19. Cherish Your Struggles

One day, a girl came upon a cocoon, and she could tell that a butterfly was trying to hatch.

She waited and watched the butterfly struggle for hours to release itself from the tiny hole. All of a sudden, the butterfly stopped moving–it seemed to be stuck.

The girl then decided to help get the butterfly out. She went home to get a pair of scissors to cut open the cocoon. The butterfly was then easily able to escape, however, its body was swollen and its wings were underdeveloped.

The girl still thought she had done the butterfly a favor as she sat there waiting for its wings to grow in order to support its body. However, that wasn’t happening.

The butterfly was unable to fly, and for the rest of its life, it could only move by crawling around with little wings and a large body.

Despite the girl’s good intentions, she didn’t understand that the restriction of the butterfly’s cocoon and the struggle the butterfly had to go through in order to escape served an important purpose.

As butterflies emerge from tight cocoons, it forces fluid from their body into their wings to prepare them to be able to fly.

The struggles that you face in life help you grow and get stronger .

There is often a reason behind the requirement of doing hard work and being persistent. When enduring difficult times, you will develop the necessary strength that you’ll need in the future.

Without having any struggles, you won’t grow–which means it’s very important to take on personal challenges for yourself rather than relying on other people to always help you.

20. Seeking Happiness

There were 200 people attending a seminar on mental and physical health.

At one point, the speaker told the group they were going to do an activity. He gave each attendee one balloon and told them to write their name on it. Then, the balloons were collected and moved into a very small room.

The participants were then asked to go into the other room and were given 2 minutes to find their balloon.

It was chaos…

People were searching frantically for their balloon, pushing each other and running into one another while they grabbed a balloon, looked at it, and inevitably tossed it to the side.

At the end of the 2 minutes, no one had found the balloon that had their name on it.

Then, the speaker asked the participants to go back in the room and pick up one balloon at random, look at the name, and return it to its owner. Within minutes, everyone had been reunited with their original balloon.

The speaker then told the group, “This is what it’s like when people are frantically searching for their own happiness in life .

People push others aside to get the things that they want that they believe will bring them happiness. However, our happiness actually lies in helping other people and working together as a community.”

You will get your happiness if you help other people find theirs. The Dalai Lama says, “If you want to be happy, practice compassion.”

Helping others makes us happy because it gives us a sense of purpose.

In fact, a study from the London School of Economics found that the more you help other people, the happier you will be.

The researchers compared the variance in happiness levels of people who don’t help others on a regular basis to the happiness of weekly volunteers. They found that the participants had the same variance in happiness as those who make $75,000 – $100,000 annually vs $20,000.

Helping others brings us happiness for three reasons:

Diversion : When you worry less about your own needs–in this case, finding your own balloon–the stress of that hunt decreases.

Taking your focus away from the fact that you can’t find your own balloon lets you divert your attention away from your own problem. The feeling of compassion replaces the feeling of need.

Perspective : Having concern for other people helps us remember that we are all facing similar problems in life–no matter what the individual severity of the issue is.

Sometimes when we are focused on our own issues, they get put into perspective when we encounter the true suffering of others (for example, bereavement or a severe disability ).

It’s easy to then realize the excess amount of attention we’ve been giving our own problems. Having compassion helps us put our problems into perspective.

Connection : Connecting with others by helping them can bring happiness into your life.

Humans are social beings that need to have positive connections with other people in order to be happy. Connecting with other people enriches our lives and gives us a sense of fulfillment.

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21. There Was Once a Boy…

There was once a boy who was growing up in a very wealthy family.

One day, his father decided to take him on a trip to show him how others lived who were less fortunate. His father’s goal was to help his son appreciate everything that he has been given in life.

The boy and his father pulled up to a farm where a very poor family lived. They spent several days on the farm, helping the family work for their food and take care of their land.

When they left the farm, his dad asked his son if he enjoyed their trip and if he had learned anything during the time they spent with this other family.

The boy quickly replied, “It was fantastic, that family is so lucky!”

Confused, his father asked what he meant by that.

The boy said, “Well, we only have one dog, but that family has four–and they have chickens!

We have four people in our home, but they have 12! They have so many people to play with!

We have a pool in our yard, but they have a river running through their property that is endless.

We have lanterns outside so we can see at night, but they have the wide open sky and the beautiful stars to give them wonder and light.

We have a patio, but they have the entire horizon to enjoy–they have endless fields to run around in and play.

We have to go to the grocery store, but they are able to grow their own food . Our high fence protects our property and our family, but they don‘t need such a limiting structure, because their friends protect them.”

The father was speechless.

Finally, the boy added, “Thank you for showing me how poor people live, they’re so lucky.”

True wealth and happiness aren’t measured by material belongings .

Being around the people you love, enjoying the beautiful, natural environment, and having freedom are much more valuable.

A rich life can mean different things to different people. What are your values and priorities?

If you have whatever is important to you , you can consider yourself to be wealthy.

22. A Pound is a Pound

There was once a farmer who, each week, sold a pound of butter to a baker.

After several weeks of buying a pound of butter from the farmer, the baker decided to weigh the butter that he was receiving to ensure it was indeed a full pound.

When the baker weighed it, he learned that the butter was under a pound , which enraged him. He felt he was being cheated and he decided to take the farmer to court.

When in court, the judge asked the farmer how he was weighing the butter.

The farmer said, “Your Honor, I am poor. I do not own an exact measuring tool. However, I do have a scale.”

The judge then asked if the farmer uses the scale to measure the butter.

The farmer said, “Your Honor, I have been buying a one-pound loaf of bread from the baker since long before he began purchasing butter from me.

Whenever the baker brings bread for me, I put it on the scale and then measure out the exact same weight in butter to give him in return. So, if the baker is not getting a pound of butter, he is also not giving a pound of bread like he promised.”

You get what you give. If you try to cheat others out of what you promise them, you will be cheated in return. The more honest you are, the easier it is to trust other people and not suspect they may be cheating you in some way.

When you’re honest, not only will other people trust you, but you will also feel more confident in your trust with others.

Honesty is always the best route–especially if you want others to be honest with you as well.

23. Jumping Frogs

A group of frogs was hopping through the forest when two of them accidentally hopped into a deep pit. The other frogs stood around the pit, and, seeing how deep it was, they told the two frogs that they couldn’t help them–there was no hope.

However, fighting for their lives, the two frogs ignored the others and started to try jumping out of the pit.

The frogs at the top continued to tell the frogs in the pit to give up, as there was no way they would be able to jump out.

After trying over and over, one of the frogs listened to the others and gave up, accepting his fate and falling to his death. But the other frog continued to jump with all of his might. The crowd of frogs yelled down the pit for the frog to just stop–he wouldn’t make it.

But the frog jumped even harder and persisted until he finally got out. Upon reaching the top, the other frogs said, “We thought there was no way any frog could jump that high–couldn’t you hear us?”

The frog then signaled to the others that he was deaf, and he thought that the frogs standing around the pit were encouraging him the whole time.

Others’ words can greatly impact your attitude and actions. Ignore the naysayers. Only engage with those who encourage you and believe in your ability to succeed.

Furthermore, think about what you say to people before speaking so you can make sure what you’re saying is supportive. Your support (or lack thereof) could make the difference between success and failure.

24. The Ultimate Gift

There was once a little girl who desperately needed an emergency blood transfusion to save her life.

Her only chance of surviving would be to get a transfusion from her younger brother, who had miraculously overcome the same disease she had, and therefore had antibodies in his blood that were needed to fight the illness.

The doctor explained to the little boy that it would save his sister’s life if he were to give her his blood. The boy hesitated for a moment before agreeing to give his blood if it would help his sister. At the age of 5, this was scary, but he would do anything to save his big sister’s life.

As the blood transfusion was happening, he lay next to his sister in the hospital and was overcome with happiness as he saw the color coming back to her cheeks. Then he looked up at the doctor and quietly asked, “When will I start to die?”

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The boy had assumed that he was giving his life in order to save hers. The little boy’s parents were astonished over the misunderstanding that led the boy to think they were choosing his sister over him–and even more astonished that he had agreed to do so.

The doctor replied, explaining that he was not going to die, he was just going to allow his sister to live a long, healthy life alongside him.

This is an example of extreme courage and self-sacrificing love from a young boy that we can all learn from. The love and care that he showed for his sister relays an inspiring message about selflessness.

While we may not be faced with such a life or death decision, being selfless in general can help us connect with others, which is rewarding and fulfilling.

25. Angry Nails

There was once a boy who became angry so frequently with his friends at school that he was constantly getting sent home.

His temper was disruptive to the class and hurtful to other students.

His father came up with a strategy to try to deter the boy from getting angry so easily. He gave his son a hammer and some nails and told him to hammer a nail into the family’s fence every time the boy got angry in the future.

The following day, the boy got angry 37 times, and had to hammer as many nails into the fence.

Over the next few weeks, the boy got tired of hammering nails into the fence and he gradually started to control his temper. Slowly, the number of nails he was hammering into the fence started to decrease.

The boy realized that it was easier to remain calm when he started to feel angry than to gather the tools, go outside, and start hammering.

Eventually, the boy stopped losing his temper altogether. His dad noticed, and told the boy to remove a nail from the fence every day that he was able to keep his temper under control.

Eventually, as the weeks went by, all of the nails had been taken out of the fence. The father and son then stood in front of the broken fence, which was completely scattered with holes.

The father turned to his son and said, “You have done well, but look at the holes in the fence. They cannot be repaired. When you get angry at other people, it leaves a scar just like the holes you see in front of you. It doesn’t matter if you say I’m sorry one hundred times, the injury is still there.”

Control your anger toward other people. While you may not see the damage that it does, it can leave irreparable wounds that can eventually break them.

Be kind to others and think before you let your emotions get the best of you.

26. Walking on Water

Once there was a boy who lived with his family on a farm.

They had a beautiful dog who would go down to the pond for hours every day in the spring and summer with the boy to practice retrieving various items.

The boy wanted to prepare his dog for any scenario that may come up during duck season because he wanted his dog to be the best hunting dog in the whole county.

The boy and his dog had vigorous training sessions every day until the dog was so obedient, he wouldn’t do anything unless he was told to do so by the boy.

As duck season rolled in with the fall and winter months, the boy and his dog were eager to be at their regular spot down at the pond near their house.

Only a few minutes passed before the two heard the first group of ducks flying overhead. The boy slowly raised his gun and shot three times before killing a duck, which landed in the center of the pond.

When the boy signaled his dog to retrieve the duck, the dog charged through the duck blind and bushes toward the pond. However, instead of swimming in the water like he had practiced so many times, the dog walked on the water’s surface, retrieved the duck, and returned it to the boy.

The boy was astonished. His dog had an amazing ability to walk on water–it was like magic. The boy knew no one would ever believe this amazing thing that he had just witnessed. He had to get someone else down there to see this incredible phenomenon.

The boy went to a nearby farmer’s house and asked if he would hunt with him the next morning. The neighbor agreed, and met up with the boy the following morning at his regular spot by the pond.

The pair patiently waited for a group of ducks to fly overhead, and soon enough, they heard them coming. The boy told the neighbor to go ahead and take a shot, which the neighbor did, killing one duck.

Just as the day before, the boy signaled to his dog to fetch the duck. Miraculously, the dog walked on the water again to retrieve the duck.

The boy was bursting with pride and could hardly contain himself when he asked his neighbor, “Did you see that? What do you think?!”

The neighbor responded, “I wasn’t going to say anything, but your dog doesn’t even know how to swim.”

The boy sat in disbelief as his neighbor pointed out a potential flaw of the dog rather than recognizing the fact that what he had just done was a miracle.

People will often downplay others’ abilities or achievements because they’re unable to accomplish the same thing. Don’t let this bring you down. Just move on and keep working on improving yourself. Maintaining a positive mindset is a key part of being successful.

Furthermore, be conscious of instances in which you may be tempted to not give credit where it is deserved. Pointing out other people’s shortcomings does not make you a superior person.

27. It’s Not That Complicated

There was once a very wise man living in ancient times. He was elderly and educated and held knowledge and books to the highest regard.

One day while on a walk, he realized that his shoes were really starting to wear out. Because he spent a lot of time walking on a daily basis, he knew he had to find the best shoes to support and protect his feet.

But, back then, this wasn’t such an easy task, as he couldn’t jump online to do some research and have shoes delivered to his door.

The man didn’t want to make things worse by purchasing the wrong shoes and having inadequate protection, which would lead to injuries and the inability to leave his home and walk to find new books to read.

The man gathered all of the books he could that were written by only those that he admired the most to search for the answer to his question, “What do I do if my shoes have fallen apart?”

He read through several books for many hours before finding out that he had no choice but to go buy a new pair of shoes. He then spent a lot of time reading about how to know if a pair of shoes fits properly.

Once he was satisfied with the answers he found, he was proud of himself for doing the research and he felt confident in his ability to buy a high-quality replacement for his old shoes.

He figured if he hadn’t done his research, he probably would have gone barefoot for the rest of his life, as he had no one to tell him how to fix his shoes.

Following the books’ instructions, the man took a stick and measured his foot with it. He then went to the market and finally came upon a pair of shoes that he liked. However, he realized he had left the stick back at home, which was far away from the shop.

By the time the man returned to the market, the shop was closed. And, by that point, his shoes were completely split, so he had to return home barefoot.

The next morning, he walked back to the market with bare feet, but the shoes that he had chosen the day before had been sold. The wise man explained what had happened to the shopkeeper, who reacted with a sense of surprise, asking, “Why didn’t you buy the shoes yesterday?”

The wise man replied, “Because I forgot the stick that I had used to measure my feet back home. And anyone who knows anything about shoes knows that you have to have the correct measurements of your feet before you can buy shoes. I didn’t want to buy the wrong size, and I was following the normal instructions.”

Even more confused, the shopkeeper asked, “But your foot was with you, why didn’t you just try the shoes on?”

The wise man was equally confused in return and responded, “All the books say shoes must be bought with the exact same measurements of the shoes you already own.”

Laughing, the shop owner replied “Oh, no! You don’t need the advice from books to buy shoes. You just need to have your feet, some money, and some common sense to not complicate things.”

Sometimes you need to take action without overthinking things. Knowledge often comes in handy, but in some circumstances, if you lack experience or common sense , your knowledge will only get you so far. In fact, it could make things seem a lot more complicated than they actually are.

If you’re facing an issue, don’t forget to use your reasoning skills in addition to anything you’ve learned in a formal learning environment.

28. Don’t Hold Back

There was once a company whose CEO was very strict and often disciplined the workers for their mistakes or perceived lack of progress.

One day, as the employees came into work, they saw a sign on the door that read, “Yesterday, the person who has been holding you back from succeeding in this company passed away. Please gather for a funeral service in the assembly room.”

While the employees were saddened for the family of their CEO, they were also intrigued at the prospect of being able to now move up within the company and become more successful.”

Upon entering the assembly room, many employees were surprised to see the CEO was, in fact, present. They wondered among themselves, “If it wasn’t him who was holding us back from being successful, who was it? Who has died?”

One by one, the employees approached the coffin, and upon looking inside, each was quite surprised. They didn’t understand what they saw.

In the coffin, there was simply a mirror. So when each employee looked in to find out who had been “holding them back from being successful” everyone saw themselves. Next to the mirror, there was a sign that read:

The only person who is able to limit your growth is you .

You are the only person who can influence your success. Your life changes when you break through your limiting beliefs and realize that you’re in control of your life.

The most influential relationship you can have is the relationship you have with yourself.

Now you know who has been holding you back from living up to your true potential. Are you going to keep allowing that person to hold you back?

You can’t blame anyone else if you’re not living up to your potential. You can’t let other people get you down about mistakes you make or their negative perception of your efforts.

You have to take personal responsibility for your work –both the good and the bad–and be proactive about making any necessary adjustments.

29. The Chef’s Daughter

Once there was a girl who was complaining to her dad that her life was so hard and that she didn’t know how she would get through all of her struggles. She was tired, and she felt like as soon as one problem was solved, another would arise.

Being a chef, the girl’s father took her into his kitchen. He boiled three pots of water that were equal in size. He placed potatoes in one pot, eggs in another, and ground coffee beans in the final pot.

He let the pots sit and boil for a while, not saying anything to his daughter.

He turned the burners off after twenty minutes and removed the potatoes from the pot and put them in a bowl. He did the same with the boiled eggs. He then used a ladle to scoop out the boiled coffee and poured it in a mug. He asked his daughter, “What do you see?”

She responded, “Potatoes, eggs, and coffee.”

Her father told her to take a closer look and touch the potatoes. After doing so, she noticed they were soft. Her father then told her to break open an egg. She acknowledged the hard-boiled egg. Finally, he told her to take a sip of the coffee. It was rich and delicious.

After asking her father what all of this meant, he explained that each of the three food items had just undergone the exact same hardship–twenty minutes inside of boiling water.

However, each item had a different reaction.

The potato went into the water as a strong, hard item, but after being boiled, it turned soft and weak.

The egg was fragile when it entered the water, with a thin outer shell protecting a liquid interior. However, after it was left to boil, the inside of the egg became firm and strong.

Finally, the ground coffee beans were different. Upon being exposed to boiling water, they changed the water to create something new altogether.

He then asked his daughter, “Which are you? When you face adversity, do you respond by becoming soft and weak? Do you build strength? Or do you change the situation?”

Life is full of ups and downs, wins and losses, and big shifts in momentum, and adversity is a big part of this experience.

And while many of us would rather not face adversity, it doesn’t have to always be a negative thing. In fact, handling adversity can be a positive experience that can lead to personal development .

You choose how you respond to adversity, whether you let it break you down or you stand up in the face of it and learn from it. In many instances, facing adversity gives you a chance to learn important lessons that can help you grow as a person.

When facing adversity, it’s important to recognize your freedom to choose how you respond. You can respond in a way that ultimately limits you, or you can choose to have a more productive response that could potentially open windows of opportunity that we didn’t know existed.

30. Cleaning Turtles

There was once a man who walked his dog every Sunday morning around a lake near his house. Week after week, he saw the same elderly woman sitting at the edge of the water with a small metal cage next to her.

The man’s curiosity finally got the best of him and he approached the woman one day. He noticed that the cage was actually a small trap and she had three small turtles in it. In her lap, there was a fourth turtle that she was carefully wiping down with a sponge.

The man greeted her and said, “If you don’t mind my asking, what do you do with these turtles every week?”

She smiled and explained to him that she was cleaning their shells because any algae or scum that builds up on a turtle’s shell reduces its ability to absorb heat and slows down their swimming. It can also corrode their shell and weaken it over time.

The man was impressed as the woman continued, “I do this every Sunday morning to help the turtles.”

“But don’t most turtles live their entire lives with algae on their shells?” the man asked.

The woman agreed that was true.

He replied, “Well then, you’re kind to do this, but are you really making a difference if most turtles don’t have people around to clean their shells?”

The woman laughed as she looked down at the small turtle on her lap. “Young man, if this little turtle could talk, he would say I’m making all the difference in the world.'”

“To the world you may be one person; but to one person you may be the world.” — Dr. Seuss

Just because you may not be able to change the world or help everyone, you can still make a huge difference in one person’s life by offering them any help that you can. Don’t choose to not do anything because you can’t do everything .

The actions of one person can make a world of difference to someone else. When you see someone in need, you may never know how much of a difference your help can make in their life.

31. Puppy Love

A pet shop owner got a new litter of puppies and was ready to sell them to their “forever” families. A young girl walked by the shop and noticed a sign saying, “Puppies for Sale” and of course was very eager to go inside.

She asked the owner, “How much do the puppies cost?” The owner replied, “They are all around $50.”

The girl emptied her pocket change and told the store owner that she only had about $2, but she still wanted to look at them.

The shop owner whistled for the dogs, who came running down the hall of his shop. Five tiny furballs, followed by one, limping behind the rest. The girl immediately singled out the lagging puppy and asked the store owner what was wrong with him.

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The owner explained that the puppy was born with a deformity– he was missing a hip socket. He would walk with a limp for the rest of his life.

The girl got excited, saying, “I want that puppy!”

The owner replied, “You don’t want to buy that puppy. If you really want him, you can have him for free.”

The girl became upset. She looked at the owner and said, “I don’t want to have him for free. That puppy is worth just as much as the others. I’ll give you the change I have now and a dollar a month until I have paid for the puppy entirely.”

The owner continued, “This dog is never going to be able to run and play like all of the other dogs, I think you’re going to regret this decision.”

To his surprise, the girl reached down and rolled up her pant leg to reveal a crippled leg that was supported by a large metal brace. She looked up at the owner and softly replied, ‘Well, I’m not much of a runner, and this puppy needs someone who understands.”

Don’t make assumptions about other people’s wants, needs, or abilities. Every one of us has our own weaknesses, whether it’s physical or mental.

The trick is to not allow your weaknesses to slow you down, and instead, find others in the world who can support you. Find and surround yourself with people who challenge you to reach your potential.

32. The Gift of the Magi

The Story :

There was once a young couple who was struggling to make ends meet during the holiday season. But despite their financial troubles, they both wanted to buy a special gift for the other.

After crying about their situation, the wife stood by the window and looked out with no interest. The next day was Christmas, and she had only $10 to buy her husband a gift. She had been saving as much as she could, but bills always cost more than expected.

But there was one thing that the wife had that would be valuable enough to sell: her long, flowy hair. She contacted a wig maker and asked them how much money she could earn if she gave them her hair. They said $100.

With that money, she quickly went from shop to shop looking for the perfect gift. And then she found it: a gold watch chain for his beloved gold watch that had been passed down for generations.

With 82 cents in change, she ran home, excited about the gift she had gotten for her husband.

While waiting for him to get home from work, the wife became nervous that he would no longer find her attractive with her new, short hair.

When he walked in, he stopped inside the door. He was as quiet and his eyes looked strangely at his wife with an expression in them that she did not understand.

She said to him, “Honey, don’t look at me like that. I sold my hair. I couldn’t live through Christmas without giving you a gift. My hair will grow back. Let’s be happy. You don’t know what a beautiful gift I got for you.”

He put his arms around her. And then from inside his coat, he took something out that was tied in paper and threw it on the table. “Listen,” he said. “Nothing like a haircut could make me love you any less. But open this.”

There lay two beautiful combs that she had seen in a shop window and loved for a long time. Combs with jewels–perfect for her beautiful hair. She knew they cost too much for them to afford. And now they were hers, but her hair was gone. She held them to her heart and said, “My hair grows so fast!”

And then she jumped up and held her gift out to him in her open hands. The gold chain sparkled. “Isn’t it perfect? I hunted all over town to find it. You’ll have to look at your watch a hundred times a day now. Give me your watch. I want to see how they look together.”

He sat down and smiled. “Honey,” he said, “I sold the watch to get the money to buy the combs. And now I think we should have our dinner.”

The Moral :

Appreciate what others do for you. The magi were wise men who were the first to give Christmas gifts. In this story, each person sold the most valuable thing they owned in order to buy a gift for the other.

This story shows the true meaning of gift-giving, which is about the thought and love behind the gift rather than its material value. The couple’s gifts to each other are ultimately meaningless in terms of their practical use, but their representation of love and sacrifice proves to be invaluable for both of them.

33. Everyone Has a Story

There was once a 24 year old boy on a train with his father. Looking out from the train’s window, he shouted…

“Dad, look, the trees are going behind us!”

His dad smiled. The young man caught a couple’s attention sitting nearby, who looked at his childish behavior with pity. Suddenly, the boy exclaimed again…

“Dad, look, the clouds are running with us!”

Annoyed by the commotion, the couple looked at the old man and said, “You should take your son to see a good doctor.”

The old man smiled at the couple and said, “I just did. We are going home from the hospital, my son was blind from birth, and he just got his eyes today.”

Everyone on the planet has a story. Don’t judge people before you truly know them. The truth might surprise you.

34. A Dish of Ice Cream

In the days when ice cream sundaes cost much less, a 10 year old boy entered an ice cream shop and sat at a table. A waitress put a glass of water in front of him.

“How much is an ice cream sundae?”

“50 cents,” replied the waitress.

The little boy pulled his hand out of his pocket that had several coins in it.

“How much is a dish of plain ice cream?” he asked.

“35 cents,” she replied impatiently.

remarkable journeys | encouraging experiences | inspiring biographies

The little boy again counted the coins. “I’ll have a plain ice cream,” he said.

The waitress brought the ice cream, put the bill on the table and walked away. The boy finished the ice cream, paid the cashier and left.

When the waitress came back, she began wiping down the table and then was surprised at what she saw.

There, placed neatly beside the empty dish, were 15 cents – her tip. The boy had enough money for a sundae, but he had ordered plain ice cream so he could leave her a tip.

In a world that constantly tells us we need to have more, it’s important to be reminded of the power of a person’s generosity.

35. A Very Special Bank Account

Let’s say you had a bank account that deposited $86,400 every morning. However, the account carries over no balance from day to day, doesn’t allow you to keep a cash balance, and every evening cancels whatever part of the amount you didn’t use during the day. What would you do?

Probably draw out every dollar every day!

We all have this bank–it is called Time. Every morning, it credits you with 86,400 seconds. Every night it writes off whatever time you have failed to use wisely. It carries over no balance from day to day.

It allows no overdraft so you can’t borrow against yourself or use more time than you have. Each day, the account starts fresh. If you fail to use the day’s deposits, it’s your loss and you can’t appeal to get it back.

There is no such thing as borrowing time. You can’t take a loan out on your time or against someone else’s. The time you have is the time you have. Just as it is with money, time management is yours to decide how you spend it.

It is rarely the case of us not having the time to do things, but the case of whether we want to do them and where they fall in our priorities.

36. Hunting Monkeys

A man once asked a child, “Do you know how hunters used to trap monkeys?”

“Instead of chasing them up a tree or shooting arrows at them, they’d lay a heavy glass jar with a narrow neck on the ground with the monkeys’ favorite food inside.

Then they would hide a short distance away, waiting for the unsuspecting monkey to approach.

When it did, the monkey would reach inside and try to grab the snack. But the narrow neck of the jar would prevent the monkey from being able to get its hand out!

It would pull and pull, but it was stuck! There was no way to get its hand out of the jar without letting go of the food.

But instead of letting go, the monkey would keep trying, refusing to drop its dinner.

It was at this moment that the hunters would approach the monkey to catch it.”

“Don’t be like that monkey,” the man warned the child. “In life, to keep fighting another day and grow, you have to know when to quit, when to move on, and when to let go of whatever’s holding you back.”

Sometimes you have to let go and give up what you have now in order to receive something better in the future. Don’t let stubbornness get in your way to success.

37. The Fisherman and the Businessman

Once there was a businessman sitting on the beach in an Italian village.

As he sat and relaxed from his day, he saw a fisherman rowing a small boat full of fish back into the harbor.

Impressed, the businessman yelled out to the fisherman, “How long does it take you to catch so many fish?” To which the fisherman replied “Oh, not so long.”

Confused, the businessman asked, “Then why don’t you fish for longer to catch even more?”

“Because this is enough to feed my family and even offer some to my neighbors,” the fisherman replied.

“So what do you do for the rest of your day?” Asked the businessman.

The fisherman said, “Well, I’ve usually caught my fish by late morning, so I go home, kiss my wife, and play with my kids. In the afternoon, I take a nap and read. In the evening, I go to the village to have a drink with my friends, play guitar, sing, and dance into the night!”

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Being an entrepreneur, the businessman offered a suggestion.

“I have a PhD in business! I can help you become much more successful. From now on, you should spend longer at sea and catch as many fish as possible. When you’ve saved enough money, buy a bigger boat to catch even more fish.

From there, you’ll soon be able to buy more boats, set up your own company, build a production plant that will package the fish and control distribution, and move to the city to control your other branches.”

To this, the fisherman asks, “And after that?”

The businessman laughs, “After that, you’ll be able to live like a king, you will be rich!”

“And after that?” Asks the fisherman again.

“Well, then you can retire, move to a house by the ocean, wake up early in the morning to go fishing, then return home to play with your kids, kiss your wife, take a nap in the afternoon and join your friends in the village to drink, play guitar and dance into the night!”

Puzzled, the fisherman replies, “But isn’t that what I’m doing already?”

Be happy with the things that you have. Will having more in life bring you more happiness? Stress is often a choice. There’s joy and peace in simplicity.

Final Thoughts on Inspirational Stories

Some of these inspirational stories of success and hope left me astounded for a minute because of their strong impact, and I hope they had the same impact on you. They truly do make you think, and the images in your mind that they create are memorable.

Share these stories with friends who you think could benefit from the morals that they offer.

I’m hoping that from now on, when you’re tempted to cut corners, restrict your thinking to social conformity, remain comfortable with mediocrity, or anything else that may be holding you back in life, you will come back to these stories for a bit of a motivational boost.

And if you're looking for more inspiration, be sure to check out these other roundups:

15 Inspirational Poems About Life You Must Read Today
13 Famous Stories About Success & Overcoming Challenges
35 Best Songs About Success and Achievement

Finally, if you want to take your goal-setting efforts to the next level, check out this FREE printable worksheet and a step-by-step process that will help you set effective SMART goals .

Connie Mathers is a professional editor and freelance writer. She holds a Bachelor's Degree in Marketing and a Master’s Degree in Social Work. When she is not writing, Connie is either spending time with her daughter and two dogs, running, or working at her full-time job as a social worker in Richmond, VA.

funny inspirational stories with morals | inspirational stories about life with moral lesson tagalog | inspirational moral stories for adults

Writing A Women’s Day Speech: 7 Tips and Examples

Every year on March 8th, the world recognizes International Women’s Day. It’s a day for celebrating the economic, social, cultural, and political accomplishments of women and for celebrating Women’s Rights . In 1911, over a million people from Austria, Germany, Denmark, and Switzerland celebrated the first International Women’s Day . Today, in addition to celebrating women’s achievements, IWD is an opportunity to call for gender equality and justice. Speeches are held at events around the world. How do you write a good speech for International Women’s Day? Here are seven tips and examples:

Tip #1: Know your audience

Before writing a speech, you want to know who your audience is and what they care about. Without this information, you may write something that doesn’t resonate. It may not be bad, but it may miss the mark. As an example, if you don’t know recent college graduates make up most of your audience, you may write a speech that fails to take into account their youth, their goals (like starting a career), their knowledge and experience of history, and so on. Your audience’s age is just one piece of information about them. In a 2019 article on Ideas.Ted.com , Briar Goldberg describes how audiences can be broken into three types: expert, novice, and mixed. If you’re speaking to an expert audience, you’ll rely on more complex arguments and terminology than if you were speaking to a novice audience. With mixed audiences, appealing to emotions is often the best choice.

At the 2020 International Finance Corporation’s celebration event for International Women’s Day, the CEO Philippe Le Houérou spoke to his audience’s interests by focusing on economics, numbers, and ways IFC is addressing gender inequality, saying :

“At IFC, we have developed a comprehensive approach to reducing gender inequality. We create partnerships to encourage the hiring of women and improve their working conditions. We help expand access to financial services for women. We invest in innovative technologies that expand choices for female consumers and employment. And we work with partners to provide business skills and leadership training to women entrepreneurs.”

Tip #2: Write a strong opening

A strong opening engages the listener and gives them a general roadmap of your speech. Depending on your speech’s context and audience, you can experiment with opening styles. If you’re speaking to a general audience, an anecdote is a great way to capture your listener’s attention and get them emotionally invested. If your audience consists of experts or academics, it might be best to keep your introduction as brief as possible (many speeches begin with thank yous), so you can spend more time on the speech’s main points.

Consider then-UN Women Deputy Executive Director Lakshmi Puri’s 2013 speech to the mostly-expert audience of the Open Society Foundation. Her topic was on the importance of girls’ education. After thanking the audience, she opened with strong, clear language to emphasize the speech’s main message:

“Your Excellencies, fellow panelists, ladies and gentlemen. I am honoured to be participating in this very important side event on the right to education in the post-2015 agenda. I sincerely thank the International Council for Adult Education, the Global Campaign for Education and all of the convening organizations for inviting me to speak today. UN Women considers that education is one of the greatest game-changers for women and girls around the world. It is both an enabler and force multiplier for women’s economic, political and social empowerment and gender equality.”

Tip #3: Include statistics to support your claims

When you’re writing a speech about issues like gender equality in education, healthcare, or the workplace, you want to give the audience specific information about the issue. Without key statistics , the audience won’t know how serious an issue is or what progress is being made. It isn’t enough to say that “many” girls don’t receive equal education compared to boys or that things are “improving.” What are the actual numbers? Sharing statistics also shows you did your research, which gives your words credibility.

You can also include data to show what specific organizations are doing and how they’re impacting gender equality. That’s what Michelle Obama did in her 2016 speech at the Let Girls Learn event that celebrated Women’s Day. She sprinkled facts through her speech on how Let Girls Learn was making a difference. Here’s an example:

“Folks of all ages and all walks of life are stepping up, as well. More than 1,600 people in nearly all 50 states have donated money to Let Girls Learn Peace Corps projects. Our #62MillionGirls hashtag was the number-one hashtag in the U.S., with people across the country talking about the power of education. And we’ll be launching the next phase of this social media campaign next week at South by Southwest.”

Tip #4: Strike the right tone

How do you want to present yourself? What kinds of emotions do you want to stir in your audience? These types of questions help you identify the appropriate tone for your speech. This is another reason why knowing your audience matters. When you’re speaking to a group of seasoned experts in a formal setting, your tone will likely sound more analytical and logical. If you were speaking in a more casual environment to a group unfamiliar with your subject, you’ll probably want to adopt a more personal, conversational style. If you want to provoke emotions in your listeners and get them to care, stories are very effective. If your goal is to inform and educate, it’s wise to rely on facts and stats.

Tracee Ellis Ross’ 2018 TED Talk on women’s anger is a great example of a speech with a tone that fits the speech’s context. She’s speaking to a mixed-gender audience in a non-academic setting. Because the topic she’s covering is personal, she uses a conversational, almost intimate style that switches between the first and second person. She addresses both the women and men in the audience, but keeps the women centered. Here’s an example toward the end of the speech:

“Our culture is shifting, and it’s time. So my fellow women and our gentle men, as we are here together within this particular window of this large-scale movement towards women’s equality, and as we envision a future that does not yet exist, we both have different invitations.”

Tip #5: Pay attention to structure

At their most basic, speeches consist of an introduction, a body, and a conclusion. Each section serves an important purpose. The introduction establishes your credibility, the speech’s tone, and its goals. The body, which is the main part of the speech, fills in the points you want to cover using statistics, stories, or other forms of evidence. The conclusion wraps everything up and emphasizes what you want your audience to remember. Unlike something that’s written, your audience can’t look back to find their way if they get lost, so as you move through the three sections, you want things to be as clear and simple as possible.

In 2021, Srishti Baksh gave a TedTalk relating her 2,300-mile walk journey across India where she held driving workshops to empower women’s ability to move across the country. She uses a simple structure that opens with the story of the first time she went to a movie alone with her friends at age 14. She was assaulted in the theater. She then zooms out, describing how there are 600 million women in India, but women rarely go outside because they’re not safe. In the body of her speech, she zooms back in to talk about her walking journey, the women she met, the empowering and terrifying things she witnessed, and how she joined forces with another woman to create a movement that trains female drivers. She concludes with a clear message:

“By rethinking mobility for women, giving them a safe transport and safety outside of home, it is our hope to transform our culture. Apart from having a profound impact on the Indian economy, this is about something much bigger. As you all know, when we move, we can be seen. The more women see other women in public spaces, the more safe, independent and empowered each one of us will be. So. If we can learn how to walk, certainly we can learn how to fly.”

Tip #6: Use repetition to your advantage

How do you make sure your audience gets the point of your speech? How do you make your speech – which might be one of many speeches the audience sits through – memorable? Repetition. You want to repeat your main point throughout your speech. It’s a good idea to include it at least three times: in the introduction, the body, and the conclusion. There are other types of repetition that make your speech memorable, too. Repetition can include keywords, phrases, and even the sounds of words. Repetition looks different depending on what kind of speech you’re giving. If you’re giving an emotion-driven speech, frequent repetition of the same words/phrases adds to the emotional punch. For informational or educational speeches where powerful emotions aren’t necessarily appropriate, use different words/phrases to repeat the main point.

For an example of good repetition in a speech, let’s look at Kimberlé Williams Crenshaw’s 2016 Keynote at Women of the World . From a word search, it’s clear what the speech is about. Together, the words “intersectionality” and “intersectional” appear 42 times. Repetition is found within sentences and paragraphs, too:

“There are multiple forms of intersectionality . I could talk about a lot of them, but the kind of intersectionality that I most want to talk about is the intersectionality around politics – political intersectionality .”

“So the question we have to ask is, what can we each do about it? We’ve been saying the first thing you can do about it is say her name. Do not allow her death to happen in silence. Do not allow their children, their loved ones to grieve for them in silence. Do not allow , do not affirm the belief that their lives are insignificant.”

Tip #7: Ask rhetorical questions

Do you want to increase audience engagement? Ask rhetorical questions. When you ask a question, your audience is forced to think more deeply about your words. They’re more likely to listen more closely, as well, since the information that follows a question will provide more context. You can use rhetorical questions in a few ways. You can anticipate a question your audience might have, set up an important point, or even encourage an emotional response. Even though audience members won’t shout out an answer (unless you encourage them to do so), asking questions makes your speech feel more interactive and engaging.

Let’s look at a 2003 speech by Maxine Waters at the National Youth Summit. While it isn’t directly about women’s rights, it serves as a great example of how to use questions in a speech. Right from the beginning, it’s clear this speech is going to be interactive. She says good morning to the audience and then prompts them to answer her. Through the speech, Waters asks many questions (some rhetorical, some direct), all of which make the speech engaging even through a transcript:

“Who makes up this jury? [Waters is discussing a trial involving a White cop and a Black teenager that ended in a hung jury and mistrial] A lot of people were very, very concerned because there was only one black person on the jury. The city of Inglewood is majority minority, and majority African-American. How could this have happened? How could you get a jury with only one black, in a case where the defendants are African-American, in a city where it is majority minority and mostly black? How could this happen?”

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About the author, emmaline soken-huberty.

Emmaline Soken-Huberty is a freelance writer based in Portland, Oregon. She started to become interested in human rights while attending college, eventually getting a concentration in human rights and humanitarianism. LGBTQ+ rights, women’s rights, and climate change are of special concern to her. In her spare time, she can be found reading or enjoying Oregon’s natural beauty with her husband and dog.

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Republic Day 2021 Speech Ideas: Inspiring quotes by leaders

Republic day speech 2021 speech, essay: if you are looking for some inspiring speeches and quotes, here are some of our picks you can choose from.

Republic Day Speech 2021 Speech: Republic Day is celebrated every year in India on January 26. On this date in 1950, the Constitution of India came into force after the country gained independence from British rule for over 200 years. On November 26, 1949, the Constituent Assembly of India adopted the Constitution of India, which came into effect on January 26, 1950.

Honoring the date, educational institutes organize cultural programs, essay-writing, skits, or speeches. Students can commemorate the event by sharing quotes in their speeches. If you are looking for some inspiring speeches and quotes, here are some of our picks you can choose from:

“Even if I died in the service of the nation, I would be proud of it. Every drop of my blood… will contribute to the growth of this nation and to make it strong and dynamic.” – Indira Gandhi

We end today a period of ill fortune and India discovers herself again. The achievement we celebrate today is but a step, an opening of opportunity, to the greater triumphs and achievements that await us. Are we brave enough and wise enough to grasp this opportunity and accept the challenge of the future? – Jawaharlal Nehru

“Let us together commence a journey of peace, harmony, and progress in South Asia.” – Atal Behari Vajpayee

Courage to give, Courage to think different, courage to invent, the courage to discover the impossible, Courage to travel into an unexplored path, courage to share knowledge, the courage to remove pain, courage to reach the unreached, courage to combat problems, and succeed are the qualities of youth.” – Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam

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Speech Writing

Graduation Speech

Crafting the Perfect Graduation Speech: A Guide with Examples

10 min read

What is a Graduation Speech?

A graduation speech is the heart of your big day, bringing together all your experiences and achievements.

It's more than just talking – it's a way to inspire and celebrate. It's not just a tradition. This type of speech is a chance to share what you've learned and dream about the future.

Your graduation speech should include everyone – your friends, the tough times you all faced, and the good times you shared.

Elements of Graduation Speech

Creating a memorable graduation speech involves several key elements that can help you connect with your audience and make a lasting impression.

Here are the crucial elements you should consider:

All these elements make a strong and memorable speech and help make your graduation successful.

How to Write a Graduation Speech?

Writing an inspirational graduation speech that stands out isn't as daunting as it may seem.

With a structured approach and a dash of creativity, you can deliver the best special occasion speech that leaves a lasting impact on your audience.

Here's a step-by-step guide on how to start a graduation speech and create an inspiring address:

Begin with a Memorable Opening

Start with an attention-grabbing quote, a personal anecdote, or a thought-provoking question.

This sets the tone for your speech and captures your audience's interest right from the beginning.

Express Gratitude

Show appreciation to your teachers, parents, and fellow students.

Express how their support and contributions have been instrumental in your academic journey. This sets a positive and grateful tone for your speech.

Reflect on Meaningful Moments

Share personal stories and school experiences that have had a significant impact on your life and the lives of your classmates.

Use these anecdotes to connect with your audience emotionally.

Offer Words of Inspiration

Provide words of inspiration and motivation. Encourage your fellow graduates to embrace the future with confidence and courage.

Use stories or quotes to illustrate your points.

Share Practical Advice

Share life lessons and any advice you've learned during your academic journey.

Offer insights related to pursuing goals, overcoming challenges, and maintaining a positive outlook on life.

Emphasize Unity and Shared Experiences

Highlight the importance of unity and the bonds formed with your classmates.

Emphasize the strength of collective experiences and friendships that have been a significant part of your school life.

Discuss Hopes and Dreams

Talk about your hopes and dreams for the future, both for yourself and your fellow graduates. Paint a vivid picture of the exciting possibilities that lie ahead.

End with an Inspiring Conclusion

Conclude your speech with a memorable message that resonates with your audience.

Leave them with a lasting impression or a call to action that inspires them to take on the future with enthusiasm.

Graduation Speeches From Notable Figures

Notable figures, from celebrities to accomplished professionals, often deliver inspiring graduation speeches, sharing their wisdom, experiences, and advice with the graduates.

In this section, we explore some remarkable graduation speeches that have left a lasting impact on audiences worldwide.

Taylor Swift Graduation Speech

Taylor Swift, the renowned singer-songwriter, delivered an inspiring graduation speech that emphasized embracing change and authenticity.

Her words have motivated graduates worldwide, making her speech a source of valuable life lessons.

“The times I was told no or wasn’t included, wasn’t chosen, didn’t win, didn’t make the cut…looking back, it really feels like those moments were as important, if not more crucial, than the moments I was told ‘yes.’ …”

Watch complete graduation speech here:

Rory Gilmore Graduation Speech

Rory Gilmore, a beloved fictional character from the TV series "Gilmore Girls," delivered a heartwarming graduation speech that celebrated the value of hard work, ambition, and the pursuit of dreams.

Her speech remains an iconic moment in the series and a testament to the power of perseverance and ambition.

Watch her graduation speech here:

Ree Drummond - Oklahoma State University

Ree Drummond, known as "The Pioneer Woman," shared her insights and wisdom in a graduation speech delivered in 2022.

Her address offers a unique perspective on life, success, and the pursuit of dreams, making it a valuable resource for graduates seeking inspiration and guidance as they set out on their own paths.

Listen to the complete speech in this video:

Steve Jobs - 2005

Steve Jobs' iconic 2005 commencement speech at Stanford University delivered invaluable life lessons and inspiration.

His words continue to resonate with graduates and individuals worldwide, offering timeless guidance on pursuing one's passions and creating a meaningful life.

Check out his complete speech in this video:

Graduation Speech Examples for Students

Looking for inspiration for your own graduation speech? Here is a short graduation speech:

Read some more diverse graduation speech samples to spark your creativity:

Graduation Speech for Kindergarten - Example

Short Graduation Speech

Graduation Speech for Kids

Graduation Speech For Primary 6

8th Grade Graduation Speech

High School Graduation Speech

Explore a collection of inspiring graduation speeches, each offering a unique perspective on this momentous occasion.

Graduation Speech by Students - Example

Graduation Speech for Parents - Example

Graduation Speech by Teacher - Example

Graduation Speech by Principal- Example

Graduation Speech Thanking Teachers

Graduation Speech Ideas - 2023

Here are some interesting and fun graduation speech ideas.

Talk about a current school event.
Try something new like poetry or metaphors to make your speech interesting.
Tell a story about your class, for example, ‘what was the driving force of the class of 2021?’
Use quotes from famous and classic books.
Use lyrics from the class anthem.
Be inspirational and share an inspirational story.
Share a humorous experience.
Convey a memorable message.
If appropriate, add a song with meaning.
Appreciate a fellow classmate or a teacher.
Connect your speech with your 1st day at school.
Significant events that took place in the school.
A professor that made you fall in love with a major subject.
The long time you spent in the school library and how it impacted your interactions with other students.
Tell me about who inspired you the most in your life.

Graduation Speech Writing Tips

Crafting a memorable graduation speech can be a rewarding yet challenging task. Here are some essential tips to help you write an impactful and engaging speech for your big day:

Know Your Audience: Understanding your audience is crucial to tailor your speech effectively.
Start Strong: An attention-grabbing beginning sets the tone for your speech.
Tell Personal Stories: Personal anecdotes and experiences create a meaningful connection.
Inspire and Motivate: Your speech should encourage confidence about the future.
Share Practical Advice: Offering practical life advice adds value to your speech.
Embrace Humor: Appropriately used humor can engage your audience.
Be Concise: Keeping your speech at an appropriate length is essential to maintain interest.
Practice and Rehearse: Preparation ensures confidence in your delivery.
End on a High Note: A memorable conclusion leaves a lasting impression.

As you take that first step forward, congratulations on your graduation, and we wish you the best of luck in whatever comes next. We hope this graduation speech guide has given you some pointers for what to say in your speech.

If you need further help, you can avail of our assistance and get your speech before the big day.

At MyPerfectWords.com , one of the best " write my essay services ", we help new graduates make their day memorable by delivering quality speeches.

Buy speech from us and get ready to shine.

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Dr. Barbara is a highly experienced writer and author who holds a Ph.D. degree in public health from an Ivy League school. She has worked in the medical field for many years, conducting extensive research on various health topics. Her writing has been featured in several top-tier publications.

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Amazing Valedictorian Speech Examples & Tips

Memorable valedictorian speech examples (+ tips & ideas).

Becoming a valedictorian and giving a speech in front of other fellow graduates is a great honor. On the flip side, drafting a memorable speech that the audience will remember for a long time is a huge stress. You need to reflect about four years in high school, choose a theme that will resonate with others, and keep the audience engaged during the entire speech.

To make things easier for you, in this post, our pro speechwriters share the secrets for writing a perfect speech for your graduation ceremony.

Keep reading to find out:

tips & tricks for writing a great valedictorian speech,
two speech examples for your inspiration, and
recommendations for polishing your delivery.

Are you too stressed to write your high school graduation speech? No worries - our experienced speech writers can craft your text from scratch or revise it. We prepare witty, inventive, and attention-grabbing speeches even if you need them by tomorrow. Contact us ASAP to get a free quote and your special student discount!

Good valedictorian speech examples

If you're not sure where to get started, take a look at the example valedictorian speeches to get inspired:

Source: https://www.sampletemplates.com/business-templates/valedictorian-speech-examples.html

This speech reflects on the unique experience of everyone present and the importance of seeing each day as a learning experience. It also has an inspirational note, encouraging the classmates not to let our self-doubt stand in front of the new opportunities. As any other valedictorian address, it expresses gratitude to teachers, peers, parents, and faculty, and mentions that graduation is only the start of an exciting life.

Source: https://www.docformats.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/Graduation-Speech.png

This concise valedictorian speech congratulates proud graduates and is less formal than the previous one. It emphasizes the importance of education and academic excellence, as well as the friends you made in high school, and ends on a high note, congratulating peers on graduation day and encouraging them to take any path that students want in life.

You can use these examples to get an idea of how to organize your text and what to add. Below, we'll share tips and guidance for writing memorable, inventive valedictorian speeches.

What to say in your graduation speech: Tips & strategies

Good valedictorian speeches share some common elements. They express gratitude for being invited to speak, reflect on shared memories of school days, and look forward to the next phase of life. Here's how to craft a strong high school graduation speech:

Begin with a welcome and gratitude

The opening of your valedictorian speech sets the tone for the rest of your presentation, so it's essential to grab your audience's attention from the start.

Begin your speech by thanking everyone who helped you achieve something in life and guided you along the journey - teachers, students, and parents. This will set a humble, appreciative tone. Congratulate fellow students on their big day and start with an anecdote or an interesting fact.

Choose a theme for your valedictorian speech

Good speeches have a central element that sets the tone. You may use one element for the entire graduation speech, or use two or three, just be sure to keep your speech concise. Reach out to other presenters to make sure that they don't use the same theme as you, otherwise the audience will be bored. Here are some popular valedictorian speech perspectives you can use:

friends and friendship
shared memories
overcoming obstacles and failures
advice to achieve success
importance of gratitude
stories about classmates, etc.

Mention collective experiences

After four years in high school, you and your classmates surely have some interesting stories and experiences. Consider telling about challenges you faced, anecdotes, or stories about important milestones. You can mention both achievements and learning experiences.

Sharing such stories will make your speech personal and human, and also will remind your friends and teachers about the most memorable moments.

Use inspiring quotes

Every great valedictorian speech quotes some accomplished person: Oprah Winfrey, J.K. Rawling, Steve Jobs, etc. A relevant quote helps inspire the audience, better get your message across and surely draws the attention. Use quotes related to education, achievements, professional development, staying true to yourself, and overcoming setbacks.

Reflect on challenges you faced

Your graduating class surely had its fair share of challenges. Recollect the obstacles that the entire class or several students faced and how they overcame these challenges in your valedictorian speech. Such stories highlight resilience and determination, and show the life lessons you learned.

Similarly, you can tell about the shared triumph - winning in the contest or achieving a big goal together. Just be sure to pick stories that matter to your classmates and resonate with everybody. Such stories will inspire your peers to do better and overcome adversity in the future.

Storytelling techniques make any speech better. They keep the audience engaged and make people relate to your message. Weaving in inspirational stories will also remind your peers about the friendship and the importance of events they had together.

Look into the future

Graduating from school is not the end of your academic journey. In addition to reflecting on the past, a good valedictorian speech also looks positively in the future. Encourage your classmates to embrace change, pursue their dreams fearlessly, and make a positive impact on the world. No matter what path they choose, wish well to everyone in your graduating class and express hope for a great future.

Mention the importance of developing their talents and gaining knowledge for achieving success in life. Encourage everyone to grow professionally and personally. Everybody has the power to make a difference, so, you might want to make this a central element of your speech.

End on a positive note

At the end of the speech, recap the key points and remarkable moments you've shared in your address. Remind the audience about the amazing journey you had together. You don't know if you'll cross paths with your classmates and whether you'll go to the same university. So, wish them luck in all future endeavors and thank them for the time spent together.

Consider adding an inspiring call to action as well. Encourage your friends to pursue their dreams, realize their potential, and stay true to themselves. This will leave your audience with a closing statement that exudes optimism for the future and the great opportunities it holds.

Practice delivering your speech

Your valedictorian speech won't captivate the hearts of the audience if you don't show genuine emotions and read it from paper. After you've written your speech, take some time to polish your delivery. Practice speaking it at home in front of the mirror, or deliver the speech to your friends and family.

Watch your body language and use gestures.

Speak in front of the mirror to control your gestures, facial impressions, and other elements of body language. Use specific hand movements, facial expressions, and posture to enhance your message and connect better with the audience. Make sure that your posture and face are consistent with what you are saying.

Pay attention to your vocal delivery.

Use appropriate pauses and variations of tone to make your speech not only informative, but also emotional. Practice speaking in the microphone to choose the appropriate volume of your speech. Record yourself to see shortcomings in your delivery and fix them. Use a positive, hopeful tone to inspire your classmates and leave a lasting impression.

Maintain eye contact.

When delivering your valedictorian speech, you'll need to maintain eye contact to keep your audience engaged. Learn to scan the room and make eye contact with different sections of the audience. If this sounds challenging at first, try looking at the most distant person in the hall and speaking to them.

Mistakes to avoid when delivering your valedictorian speech

When it comes to delivering a stellar valedictorian speech, content and delivery are equally important. Be sure to avoid these common mistakes to leave a lasting impression:

Don't read your speech - while using speaker's notes is okay, reading from paper makes a poor impression. It shows your fellow graduates that you didn't take enough time to rehearse and practice.
Don't rush - some people start speaking faster when they get nervous. Yet, there's a risk that the audience miss the content of your speech. Practice to maintain a steady pace so that everyone understands your message.
Don't use little-known facts - in your speech, use stories that most graduates know and will find relatable. Sharing a story about your friend that anyone knows isn't likely to sound impressive.
Don't keep it too formal - leaving high school is an important emotional moment, so being too reserved can spoil the moment. Use genuine emotions when crafting your valedictorian speech - they will surely resonate with the audience.
Don't overuse cliches - each bad valedictorian speech is full of cliches. To make your speech memorable, use authentic stories and vivid language. If you struggle to pick the right words, consider working with a speechwriter.

By following these tips, you'll craft a valedictorian speech that reflects your shared journey, motivates your classmates for great things in life, and leaves everyone uplifted and inspired. So, encourage your classmates to strive for excellence in everything and highlight the potential of each individual.

Use storytelling techniques, show genuine emotions, and use an enthusiastic tone to get your speech remembered by everyone.

Let our valedictorian speech experts help and impress your graduating class

Writing and delivering a valedictorian speech is a responsible task. If you feel the pressure or your perfectionism gets in the way, consider getting help from a talented speechwriter. At SpeechPaths, we prepare affordable speeches for any special occasion, including high school graduation.

You'll work one-on-one with a pro writer who will find the right words and use storytellin

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Speech on Mother’s Day for Students

In this article, we have presented a Speech on Mother’s Day for Students. It is an inspirational speech in about 500 words for school and college students.

So. let’s start Speech on Mother’s Day for Students .

Speech on Mother’s Day (500 Words)

I warmly welcome everyone to my college program – respected principals, respected professors, and my dear friends.

When writing a speech on my mother, I felt that we were expressing our feelings to our loved ones on infrequent occasions, and this day is about their mothers. I haven’t struggled to write a speech, but I still have to tell you how important our mother is to us.

Also read: Essay on Mother’s Day: Its Date, Celebration, and History

I’m also excited about Mother’s Day coming in the spring of the month. I believe that everyone knows the importance of this season, namely birth, life, development, and regeneration. These qualities are appropriately associated with our mothers because they gave us life and allowed us to come to this earth – nurture that provides us with the courage and guides us at every stage of our lives.

She truly is the best gift God has given us, and her highest good is that He loves and loves us unconditionally. Her love for us is incomparable, and he is always protective of us. When we make a mistake, she still holds our hand and shows us the right way. She teaches us how to keep our principles in times of religious and moral turmoil. Without it, we cannot imagine a moment in our life.

The bond between a mother and a child is so unique that she knows our needs before we say it. By knowing our likes/dislikes to understand our mood, she knows all our nerves. So let’s not miss this prospect and surprise your mothers with unusual gifts and romantic gestures. First, you should hug your mother, kiss her on the cheek, and tell her how much you love her.

Mother is the most significant person in anyone’s life, and it is with me. When I get home, if there is no mother, there will be no one in the house. When I was a child, and when I was hurt, the first word out of my mouth was that the mother came out because I knew my mother was with me in every situation. Nothing has changed since that time. Today, I am the manager of this substantial vibrant company, and the biggest reason for my success is my mother.

In fact, before concluding my speech, I would like to say a few words to my mother. She is not only my mother but also my excellent companion. I won’t hide anything from him – whether it’s right or wrong. There is no limit to her happiness when I achieve my goals, and if I do anything wrong, she is distraught. She can read my silence and find out what’s right for me. My mother never fulfilled the demands of buying things I liked or getting permission from my dad for a college trip. I miss the words to describe the exceptional support I have for my mother in my life.

Now I want God’s blessing not only on my mother but also on all the mothers here who love and care for us all. God bless our mothers always! They should not have a problem or any damage day.

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Motivational Speech on The Importance of Reading in English

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