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Whew! Anyone in either my government or English classes can tell you that I have
not been the greatest public speaker, but I am going to try my best tonight so
please bear with me.
When I was told that I could speak on anything I wanted to, I knew I wanted to
speak on goals, but was not sure where to start. I was searching the internet
looking for something that I could use as a basis for my speech when I ran
across a list of quotes that really illustrate what I wanted to say. With these
quotes in mind I came up with this speech, so here I go.
“The tragedy of life doesn't lie in not reaching your
goal. The tragedy lies in having no goal to reach. It isn't a calamity to die
with dreams unfilled, but it is a calamity not to dream. It is not disgrace to
reach the stars, but it is a disgrace to have no stars to reach for. Not
failure, but low aim, is a sin (Benjamin Mays).”
Everyone needs a dream, a goal, something to look forward to. Goals give our
lives direction and structure, and keep us from just kind of wandering around
without a purpose. As the quote I just read says, not reaching a goal is ok as
long as you have had a goal or purpose to strive for along the way. Another
quote I found stated “Even if I don't reach all my
goals, I've gone higher than I would have if I hadn't set any.--Danielle
Fotopoulos.” The act of striving for a goal can be as
rewarding as reaching the goal itself. My first piece of advice is to always
have some sort of goal to strive for.
"Set goals. Establish priorities. Get as specific and
measurable as you can. But within a larger, looming Focus and Context, treat
goals as vital learning points. Disciplined and effective goal setting means
that at the end of the time frame you've set with every goal, you pause long
enough to understand why you've hit or missed that goal." To
me this quote doesn’t say that everyone out there needs to strive to be a Nobel
Prize winning scientist, the President of the United States, or some rich and
famous doctor. Some people need to strive for these things, but these things are
not the only goals in life. Everyone needs to have some sort of goal for their
lives. A goal can range from being the best scientist or novelist in the world
to the best Naval or Coast Guard Academy Cadet, to the best husband, wife, son,
daughter, or even friend that you can be. Your dreams don’t have to be huge,
magnificent beings of their own accord, just big enough so that you are always
striving to be the best you can be at whatever you do.
The second half of this quote is what made it special to me.
“Disciplined and effective goal setting means that at
the end of the time frame you've set with every goal, you pause long enough to
understand why you've hit or missed that goal.” One of my
goals throughout high school was to always try my best in hopes that I could one
day be Valedictorian. This quote showed me that I needed to look back and
realize how I have gotten here. I am able to speak to you today because I have
been blessed with a lot of support from great people along the way. Mrs. Janice
Burton, my third grade teacher, first got me into the honors program and always
encouraged me to try my best and really built up my self-confidence. My parents
have always given me a ton of support and have helped me to stay focused
especially when I wanted to do something a little more fun than homework,
studying, or going to school at all. My friends like Billy, Katherine, and, this
year especially, Andrew have all kept me focused, encouraged me to keep working
hard, and been there for me when I needed them. All these people have done a lot
for me, but the most important person that helped me along the way has also
allowed me to reach an even greater goal than becoming Valedictorian. The goal I
am talking about is easy to attain and is the single greatest goal any person
can ever reach. This person that allowed me to reach this goal is my Lord and
Savior Jesus Christ and this goal is a guaranteed salvation and home in heaven
through faith in God and the acceptance of Christ’s sacrifice. Once I believed
that Christ had indeed died for my sins and wanted a personal relationship with
me, I was able to believe that “I can do all things
through Christ who strengthens me (Philippians 4:13).” Thank
those who have helped you on the way and always realize how valuable their
support has been to you in reaching your goals.
My last piece of advice is to not become complacent once you have met a goal.
Keep setting goals because “Arriving at one goal is the
starting point to another.” If after you meet goals, you
become complacent, and do not strive to keep improving yourself, you can easily
fall back into the wandering state you just got out of. Once you have met your
goal, whatever it is, set another slightly higher goal. Once you have become a
better student, become a better child. Once you have become a better child
become a better husband or wife. I stated earlier that assurance of eternity
with God was my greatest achieved goal, but I am still striving to be a better
Christian along the way. I may not always have the best witness and it may not
always be obvious that I am a Christian, but my goal is to make it obvious.
In closing I challenge everyone to always set goals for your lives and keep
reaching higher. Now I’ll quit talking so we can all reach the next major goal
in our lives and walk across this stage. Thank you.
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