Writing a Graduation Speech Successfully

Graduation Speech: What’s the Difficulty

Delivering a graduation speech is a great responsibility. It is a massive task that requires thorough preparation. A graduation speech is more than a regular performance in front of the public. There is a hidden message behind it, and for every class, this message is personal. When giving this kind of speech, you voice out the ideas of your class. You carry the important message and is to answer for the outcome. So, to deliver a good speech, you need to work hard and treat the process as a whole. 

A graduation speech isn’t about writing only. It’s a complex process that requires effort. Preparing the content, structuring the text, writing it on paper, and then properly deliver the ideas. It’s not an easy task, and you can’t rely on improvisation. Graduation is a solemn event, and the preparation should be relevant. 

Brainstorm the Ideas

A graduation speech is about your vision of a school where you studied and the experience that you learned there. So, before actually writing the paper, you need to brainstorm the ideas and think which situations can, in the best way, demonstrate it. 

There are many techniques that you can use to let the ideas flow. In the case of a regular essay writing, you can develop the topic based on a subject. You can also narrow it down to find the best topic for the paper. But in this case, these techniques can confuse you and be ineffective. 

When developing the ideas for your graduation speech, you need to question yourself. Asking questions is the best way to exploit emotional memory and remember gripping moments from the past. 

So, ask yourself whether you changed thanks to the school and its surrounding. Think of your classmates changed their vision of life or their principles in general. Try to remember what was the most important lesson that the school taught you. Have you gained success? Was it professional or personal? Try to suggest what challenges you will face when you leave school. These questions will help you focus on the right things and direct your thoughts. 

Choose your Theme

It may sound strange for you, but developing a topic for your graduation speech is important. If you don’t have an exact topic and simply share your feelings with the audience, you will fail. You can accidentally forget something or lose the train of thought. It may happen if you don’t know where to move your speech and what direction to choose. There are common themes that students usually use when delivering their graduation speech:

• Focus on the lessons you have learned. This is a very broad topic, and you can develop it in so many different directions. It can be your own experience that taught your classmates something. On the contrary, it can be a personal experience of your friend whose story made your class think differently. It can be a very valuable experience that made you think or act. 
• Tell about your personal growth. When you enter high school, you don`t have a lot of knowledge. You act intuitively and don’t know how to respond to various challenges. The studying process, however, teaches us how to face our fears and become stronger. So, you can tell what helped you to become stronger and strengthen your character. 
• Hard work is always paid off. That’s rather a controversial statement, but if you think so and can prove it with your example, do it. Try to persuade the listeners that the harder you work, the better results you get. 

Structure the Paper

We have told that graduation speech isn’t an easy task. You need to convey your message to the audience and make them listen attentively to it. If you don’t structure the writing properly, you can mess up with the performance. Having great and interesting content is awesome, but being able to present it is equally important. 

Your speech has to be meaningful. Placing the parts of it in the right order is the best way to ensure coherent storytelling. You can decide on the structure of the paper based on the facts and methods to deliver the speech. But, if you don’t know what’s the best way to format the speech, use the burger method. It is a funny way to understand the pattern. 

First and foremost, you need to start with an introduction. Then you move to the major part where you introduce interesting facts and anecdotes—the final section in taking stocks. In conclusion, you sum up everything and give your insights. But a burger can’t go without mayonnaise or any other topping. Here you need to use different jokes and icebreakers to “garnish” your speech. 

Introduction

When delivering a speech, you should feel comfortable with the topic. If you are nervous, the audience will see it. So, to reduce stress, try to break the ice and get the audience involved. You can tell the joke or start with a funny story. You need to engage the listeners and encourage them to listen to your speech. Don’t be too serious and try to relax. The way you start the speech will define its success. Think about what will take an interest in the audience. Make sure it is relevant and corresponds to the overall theme of the speech. 

Main part

When you have built the foundation, it’s time to move further and start telling the story. Choose several anecdotes and focus your attention on them. It’s better to tell fewer stories but be more precise. Be consistent with the theme, and don’t deviate from it. You can also ask for some feedback from the listeners. This way, you will see if they enjoy your speech, or you need to change the approach. 

Conclusion

Now it is time to make up the appropriate conclusion. In the final part, your task is to draw the attention of the audience. During the speech, you have been pondering over different valuable moments from the past. But now it’s time to take stocks and come to a conclusion. So, what have you learned? This is the basic question that needs answering. 

You can focus on your lessons or explain what your class understood with years. Try to make the ending of the story memorable. You want the audience to get the main idea of your speech. So, take your time and make up a catchy ending. 

Time to Deliver the Speech

When you deliver the speech, you can feel a spectrum of different emotions. You can be nervous or extremely excited. It all can affect your speech. If you want other people to listen to you, it’s necessary to slow down. Don’t be in a hurry. The audience will hardly understand what you tell them. Your words should sound reasonable and have force. For this reason, slow the pace and take a deep breath. 

To control your emotions and sound more convincing, study the issue, and learn the best techniques for the speakers. You can watch videos of the most prominent performers and learn their methods. 

Practice more. The more you speak, the better your presentation will be. You can do it in front of the mirror or let your family enjoy the performance. It is good to have feedback. Record yourself and listen to the speech. This way, you can figure out your weaknesses and make them better. 

Tips on Delivering a Mind-Blowing Speech

Some secrets that will help you achieve a better reaction from the audience and make them listen attentively:

• Pause while speaking. Making a good and appropriate pause can make the performance more complete. Don’t be afraid to stop for a moment and breathe deeply. You won’t lose the connection with the audience. Instead, you will let the listeners comprehend the information and get ready for the next part. 
• Try to memorize the speech. If you practice enough, memorizing the speech won’t be challenging at all. It is better to memorize the whole text or at least know the major points of the writing. If you look down at your paper instead of looking into the eyes of the listeners, you will lose their attention. Furthermore, you will show your disrespect to the audience. 
• Find your audience. It sometimes happens that not everyone in the hall is interested in your speech. It does not always depend on you. Don’t lose your motivation. Make good eye contact with those people who listen to you and tell them the story. 
• Be yourself. You need to have a plan and follow it, but mess-ups still may happen. And it’s okay. You aren’t perfect, and you can forget the idea or mix up the words. Don’t focus on it too much. Tell a joke or change the topic. The audience will feel the embarrassment if you focus the attention on it. 

Let’s Conclude

Nevertheless, a graduation speech may be a real challenge, and you still have chances to manage the task. Use the tips from our guide and craft winning writing.

Need Help?

Though, if you don’t have time or opportunity to write a graduation speech, you can entrust our essay writers with the task. They will do the best work for you.