Ever since watching Martin Luther King Jr. historical speech “I Have a Dream” as a young kid, I have been looking for other riveting speeches. I remember many years later when I came across Steve Jobs’ “2005 Stanford Commencement Address”. At this point, I knew that I had to switch gears and start collecting speeches in a more structured manner. I kept looking out for great and insightful ones that may not be as publicly known. I wanted to put them together in a nice overview, in order have them readily available to re-read or re-watch them, or to foster inspiration when I needed it.
This is a continuous work in progress, so the overview will grow over time. When going through the list, I’m sure some of them will be familiar, however, I believe most people will find gems in there that was previously unknown to them.
The below overview is organized by presenter last name and then speech topic. Click the links below to open a specific speech and read the full transcript of the speech, along with some additional background information, along with a video of the speech when I have been able to trace down the video.
- Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, “The Danger of a Single Story” | TED Talk | 2009
- Jeff Bezos | “Statement by Jeff Bezos to the U.S. House Committee on the Judiciary” | 2020
- Jeff Bezos | “What Matters More Than Your Talents” | Baccalaureate address Princeton University| 2010
- John C. Bogle | “Enough” | Commencement address Georgetown University | 2007
- Brené Brown | “The Anatomy of Trust“ | UCLA’s Royce Hall | 2015
- John Cleese | “Creativity in Management” | Video Arts | 1991
- William Deresiewicz | “Solitude and Leadership” | United States Military Academy at West Point | 2009
- Neil Gaiman | “Make Good Art” | Commencement address at The University of the Arts | 2012
- John W. Gardner | “Personal Renewal” | McKinsey & Company | 1990
- Elizabeth Gilbert | “Your Elusive Creative Genius” | TED Talk 2009
- Albert E. N. Gray | “The Common Denominator of Success” | National Association of Life Underwriters | 1940
- Bill Gurley | “Runnin’ Down a Dream: How to Succeed and Thrive in a Career You Love” | McCombs School at the University of Texas | 2018
- Martin Luther King Jr.’s | “I Have a Dream“
- Steve Jobs | “2005 Stanford Commencement Address” | Stanford University | 2005
Read on to learn more about how to become a great orator
How To Become a Great Orator