My Speeches

These are the speeches I’ve given over the year. The bold ones are my favorite:

1. How to Live Like an Emperor in the Age of Coronavirus (May 2020)
2. Ouch! I Think I Just Learned Something (June 2020)
3. What a Wonderful Word (July 2020 & August 2020. Includes video. 1st Recording, 2nd Recording.)
4. Join Us on the Ride (July 2020. Includes video)
5. The Platinum Rule of Speechmaking (August 2020. Includes video)
6. Amelia Earharts’ 77-Year-Long Journey Around the World (August 2020. Includes video)
7. Giving Advice to My Younger Self (August 2020)
8. The Best Vacation Ever. Thank God We Survived (September 2020 & November 2020. (Includes video). I also have a first draft that has a lot of feedback I’ve incorporated in the final version.
9. Why I Blog (November 2020. Includes Video)
10. My Coming Out (as a Nerd). (December 2020. Includes Video)
11. Secrets of Amazon. Here’s the video of an impromptu speech I gave in January 2021 without any prep.
12. Buy My Book. (May 2021. Includes Video.)

I’ve always wanted to get better at public speaking and this year I’ve had my chance! I joined Toastmasters and have been the VP of education for DE Squared. As it’s Toastmasters, you should probably watch my recruiting speech rather than read this section. I’ve learned the difference between reading off a speech and connecting with an audience.It’s also a great way of getting over your glossophobia.⁽¹⁾Glossophobia is the fear of public speaking. There’s also practice on giving and receiving feedback and answering extemporaneous questions. And it’s also a lot of fun. We’re on Zoom these days, so shoot me an email or join our meetup group if you’re interested in joining our monthly meetings. We meet on the third Monday of each month.

Toastmasters is organized as an apprentice-based, franchise model so it’s important to find the right club. Clubs are very open to guests so people shop around. It’s also pretty cheap so people often join more than one club. You can find more information about my club DE Squared or find another club here.