Have you ever considered what speech you would give if you only had a limited amount of time left to live?Carnegie Mellon University had a series that they called "Last Lectures" and recently Professor Randy Pausch gave a speech where he really did have a limited time to live. He was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and was given only a few months to live... and his lecture (all 76 minutes) is an incredible glimpse into his life, his dreams and his philosophy for living.
The YouTube.com video below is the full 76 minute speech and, while he talks about many things, the greatest part of the speech is his humor. It would be very easy to get "deep" and melodramatic with this type of speech, but Randy does a great job of "introducing the elephant in the room" and then giving an excellent speech anyways!
It is well worth the time to watch! (I have also included the 10 minute version that was on Oprah... but it has much less impact.)
Click here if you have a problem with the above linked image.
The YouTube.com video below is the full 76 minute speech and, while he talks about many things, the greatest part of the speech is his humor. It would be very easy to get "deep" and melodramatic with this type of speech, but Randy does a great job of "introducing the elephant in the room" and then giving an excellent speech anyways!
It is well worth the time to watch! (I have also included the 10 minute version that was on Oprah... but it has much less impact.)
Click here if you have a problem with the above linked image.
10 minute version of the speech on Oprah:
The video below is a great speech by Coach Jimmy Valvano at the ESPY's awards. It is in the same theme ... Jimmy V had cancer at the time.
The video below is a great speech by Coach Jimmy Valvano at the ESPY's awards. It is in the same theme ... Jimmy V had cancer at the time.
Editor's note: Dave Wheeler ran in the triathlon that benefitted the Jimmy V Foundation in North Carolina a number of times and that was where he first heard of the his motto... "Never give up. Never, ever give up." (which is a great motto for life... but even more so if you are running a triathlon in the July heat).
If you are wondering how Randy is doing now... click here for his medical update blog.
What if your club had a "Last Lecture" meeting where the speakers gave "the last speech of their life"? Or TableTopics questions focused on what lessons you have learned in your life?
Don't you think that it would be a great event and you would learn alot about life from your fellow Toastmasters?
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