Date of last report $ 526.45 Receipts since last report: FFA dues, 15 members $ 875.00 Total receipts of $ 875.00 Disbursements: FFA Member Shirts $ 145.00 Kid Check Supplies $ 136.25 Total Disbursements $ 281.25 Present Balance $ 1120.20 Respectfully submitted treasurer. Awarding ceremonies can be boring and it is only in ad-libs from hosts or emcees and speeches by awardees that a ceremony can be on the light side. But caution: do not focus solely on making your speech humorous or else your focus would stray away from what your acceptance speech is actually about and that is your expression of gratitude. Tone setting - starting as you mean to go on. A less obvious function is how a welcome speech sets the tone. for an event. The words chosen, how they are structured and delivered all come together to create tone.
Last week a client aggressively urged me to watch ‘the best leadership speech ever’. He’s a pretty good leader himself, with a world class creative team of over 100 people.
I watched it this weekend and it’s pretty good.
The video is long – 50 minutes – but here’s what you get: A unique piece of public speaking that is funny, heartbreaking, honest and motivational.
This leadership speech is by General Mark Welsh, Commander of U.S. Air Forces in Europe, speaking to 1,000 cadets at the US Air Force Academy.
It illuminates the life and death gravity of leadership in the armed forces, but it’s the opposite of what you might expect of a military speech. Rather than a tone of ‘You have to do this because it’s an order’, we are treated to an incredibly engaging and persuasive speech that awakens desire in the audience to be a great leader.
What makes this leadership speech great?
Watch for yourself. Or check out the Harvard Business Review assessment of the speech which highlights the key theme as “Leadership is a gift. It’s given by those who follow. You have to be worthy of it.”
My review is below the video. I took away an intimate, personal call to be ready for the challenge.
His audience
Men and women 20-25 years old who have a 75% chance of graduating the Academy’s four-year program, which is intended to give cadets the skills and knowledge that they will need for success as officers.
Informal tone to connect
His opening word: “Yo”.
The start is a bit slow but appropriate in that environment.
Pretty soon you see the speaker’s ability to combine life and death issues with personal humour and light-hearted approachability. The subject is serious, but the speaker regularly has a laugh. He seems friendly and welcoming, yet clear about what matters.
He isn’t ‘heavy’ ALL the time. The contrast of light and heavy make the important areas stand out.
Flexible structure
The speech is structured around the profiles of dozens of people under the General’s command. Their pictures are shown and their stories told. His messages are made concrete by the fact they follow a real story. Tell a story – make a point. For example:
‘Everybody has a story. If you don’t know the story you can’t lead. Learn the story.’
Clear, personalized messages
This leadership speech is worth watching just to see how the speaker makes all his messagespersonal. For example, instead of saying;
“Are you ready to lead”
He says;
“Are you ready to lead him” after explaining a person’s story.
Instead of;
“You are expected to be a great leader”
We hear;
‘He expects you be be ready to lead his people. In fact he demands it.’ After telling a story about the head of a division.
Here are some more messages peppered throughout the talk.
- You better be willing to make decisions. Sometimes without all the information you want. Get ready.
- You better be good. ‘Your job is to lead them… are you ready?”
- You will make a difference.
- We are a team. All the people are important.
- Attention to detail is it important. You better have it.
- Leadership is a gift given by those who follow.
- Are you ready to lead? If not, rededicate yourself to the effort.
Great Explanations
There’s is nothing dramatic about his delivery skills, but he’s comfortable enough to act out a character (‘my son walked over like John Wayne…’).
He doesn’t rush.
This is vital. When information is rushed, it doesn’t seem as important. His pace allows the ideas to come alive. He appears calm, thoughtful, genuine. Present in the moment.
Do you connect with your team this way? Can you stand calmly on stage in silence – allowing your ideas to absorb?
Clear and personal ending
A good ending is important to deliver the key message and make the ideas feel complete (and therefore easier to remember).
“Thank you for being good enough to be here. Make sure you’re good enough to graduate. Take care of yourselves. I’ll see you out there.”
Do your speeches inspire people to follow you?
A great speech like this can strengthen a team or ogranization more powerfully than 10,000 hours of work. It can engender belief and dedication that lives on for years.
How powerful are your leadership speeches?
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If you’d like to develop your leadership presentation, consider:
Want to be a great speaker? Get the kindle ebook from amazon.com: What’s Your Message?: Public Speaking with Twice the Impact, Using Half the Effort
These invocation prayers areappropriate for
public meetings,
yet they are Christian based.
-
This page is for those who are asked to pray a
meeting prayer
and want to construct a prayer
that will not easily offend others.
-
These prayers will be appropriate for most meetings that Christians would find themselves attending.
Take note that we also have
Prayers for Meetings and Ceremonies
Invocation Prayers for a Public or Corporate Meeting
I am excited for you
about the opportunity you have
to lead a group into the throne room of God.
First Meeting Prayer:
Will you bow your head as I pray?
God of all Creation,
We come before you today to give youhonor and praise. You are worthy of praise.
You are the source of all that is good.You are the source of all of our blessings. Thank you for every giftthat we have been given.
We thank you for the opportunity tocome and gather together this day.
We ask for your hand of blessing onthis meeting.
We ask that you would guide and directour meeting so that it is full of wisdom, productivity, and respectfor one another.
Thank you for helping us to accomplishour work and our goals this day.
Amen
Copyright © 2012 Beth McLendon ofInspirational - Prayers
Second Meeting Prayer:
God of all Creation,
We come before you to welcome you to this meeting.
We give you respect and acknowledge you as our Creator and Provider.
It is you who are omnipresent. You are everywhere, Lord.
It is you who are omnipotent. You have all power.
It is you who are omniscient. You know everything.
God, as we begin this meeting, we ask that you would guide our thoughts and our actions so that we may have a successful meeting today.
Help us to accomplish our goals while displaying your character.
We pray these things in your mighty name,
Amen
Copyright © 2012 Beth McLendon of Inspirational - Prayers
Invocation Prayers
continued
Third Meeting Prayer:
Almighty God of Heaven and earth.
Thank you for this opportunity to come together and work together.
We ask for your inspiration and insights.
We ask for your direction and guidance.
We ask for your peace and harmony.
May we accomplish great things this day, and may we display an attitude of cooperation and respect.
In your awesome name we pray,
Amen
Copyright © 2021 Beth McLendon of Inspirational - Prayers
People can often sense our closeness with the Lord
when they hear us pray.
For those who hear us pray and are beginning to seek the Lord,
it can create a hunger inside of them.
When I have been asked to pray for a public meeting, I have kept my main focus
on my opportunity
to manifest my closeness to the Father.
Public prayer opens the door for displaying for others how to feel comfortable and accepted in the Father's presence. It gives an example of what others can have with the Father.
I want my prayer to eternally touch others.
Before my public prayer, I privately pray and ask God to allow my closeness and love for him to show through me.
I pray that those who don't know him - or are not close to him - would feel such a warmth between the Father and me that they would hunger for that kind of relationship.
I want to draw people toward the Lord.
This prayer point idea came to me as I was listening to a story about a man who prayed a simple public prayer. Later he was approached by someone who had become hungry for the kind of relationship with God that he heard exhibited during that prayer.
If you want a closer relationship
with Father God,
this website has lots of pages
that you will guide you closer.
Ffa Officers List
For example:
Thank you for visiting this Christian prayer page.
We hope you will choose to visit other pages in our site.
For a list of all our prayers go to:
Prayers for all Occasions
Ffa Officer Installation Ceremony Script
Ffa Officer Installation Ceremony
Back to the top of Invocation Prayers