Good evening, dear toastmasters and welcomed guests, my name is Harry. This is my CC2 speech, the title of my speech is two lessons I learnt about happiness. The first lesson is… the first lesson is… Sorry, I am so nervous. Can I try it again from the beginning?
Those were the words I said in July 2016, when I was giving my CC2 speech. Sadly, I forgot my speech lines, and I could not remember a single word. I was just standing there, my face got flushed, my breathing became rapid and I began to sweat. I was so embarrassed. I rushed to end my speech and went back to my seat. When I sat down, I felt awful. I didn’t dare to watch other people. Though they didn’t say anything about me, I just couldn’t help imaging, they were whispering, look at him, he was so terrible, and behaved like a fool.
Of course, I failed my CC2, and I lost my face in front of everybody. It was a small incident, but my attitude changed somehow. I used to be a confident person, and I liked to give my opinion in public and enjoyed the feeling of speaking on the stage. But from that day on, I became an Ur-person.
Being an Ur-person, I became hesitated in many things. When my boss recommended me to be the host of the company’s party, I was thinking, Ur… no, no, I can’t be the host. What if I forgot my lines again? When other members asked me to give another speech? I was thinking, Ur…maybe later, what if I failed again. When the TTM gave so many wonderful questions, other members put up their hands, I was thinking, Ur…not this time, I am not ready, what if I didn’t know what to say. Yes, I was an Ur person. I chose to be a silent person to keep my face and pride, and hide my weakness and fear.
I thought I was hiding well, and my mother soon noticed that something was wrong with me. I told her the truth. Hearing this story, my mother laughed. I thought she would judge me. Instead, she told me a story.
Hey son, when you were a little kid, you were afraid of ghosts. When you went to sleep, you always kept the light on. Sometimes, I forced you to turn it off, then you would cover yourself with the quilt. I asked you the reason, you were saying, hey mom, when I hide myself under the sheet, the ghosts will not see me. Son, now you don’t do that anymore. Have you met any ghost?
No, I didn’t see any ghost. I realized the ghost never existed in the real world. It has always been hidden in my heart. It was me who scared me. I thought everybody would judge me when I didn’t pass me CC2. But maybe I was thinking too much. Though it was a big deal for me, other people didn’t care about my failure. Instead, what they cared about was how would I overcome my fear and came back to stage again. They didn’t expect me to be an Ur-person, they expected me to be an Um-person.
To be an Um-person, I grabbed every chance to speak in public. When my boss asked me to take part in the super sales competition of my company, I said Um, yep, I wanna give a shot, and I will do my best and fight for the champion. When my friend asked me to the host his wedding ceremony, I said Um, I am so honored to host your wedding. If this time doesn’t go well, I promise next time will be better.
To be an Um-person, I put the so-called pride and face away, and keep trying after each failure. When other members of TMC asked me to take part in this year’s international speech contest, I said Um, I want to have a try even though I failed last year. I will have a try even I failed in this time. I will have a try even I failed in the future. Last year, I entered the area competition. This year I entered the division competition, and next year I dream to enter the district competition.
Dear toastmasters and welcomed guests, maybe you were still hesitated when asked to give a prepared speech, maybe you didn’t dare to put up your hands in the TTM even though you had many wonderful things to share. You worried about failure, and you worried about losing face in public. But guess what, we will not judge you, we will not laugh at you, and we will not see you as a fool. Just feel free and begin to enjoy the feeling of standing on the stage. Be brave to open your eyes, there was no ghosts in front of you.
Hey, ladies and gentlemen, I am tonight’s TTM. Who wanna come onto the stage, and answer the first question?
Um, Me.
