公众英语演讲稿范文（通用32篇）
I encourage you to look up the scene on YouTube – but not right now – because it’s still a very funny piece. And it’s funny because it’s ridiculous, but also because it contains a kernel of truth. And the truth applies not only to college presidents, but to all of us.
How many times have we decided we’re against an idea before we’ve even heard it? How guilty are we of deciding “I’m against it” without even knowing what “it” is?
Many times, we know what we’re against based on who is saying it. If an idea comes from a certain public figure, politician, or media outlet, we already know how we feel. Partly this is because our public discourse has become so predictable. We’ve lost the capacity for surprise, for revelation.
Speaking of predictable, here is the moment where an ambassador of an older generation – that would be me – tells millennials – most of you – about the evils of social media! But hear me out…
Obviously, social media has transformed our lives and our relationships. It obviously has many advantages, allowing us to share news and information quickly with people around the world. But it also heightens our sense of outrage and speeds up arguments, depriving us of the time and space for careful reflection.
Bombarded with notifications, pressured to respond before the media cycle turns over, we tap out our position – our opposition – in seconds. It’s easy to be against something in fewer than 280 characters. It’s far more difficult to articulate what you are for – and to do it at warp speed.
So for any of us in this room today, let's start out by admitting we're lucky. We don't live in the world our mothers lived in, our grandmothers lived in, where career choices for women were so limited. And if you're in this room today, most of us grew up in a world where we have basic civil rights, and amazingly, we still live in a world where some women don't have them.But all that aside, we still have a problem,and it's a real problem. And the problem is this: Women are not making it to the top of any professionanywhere in the world. The numbers tell the story quite clearly. 190 heads of state — nine are women. Of all the people in parliament in the world, 13 percent are women. In the corporate sector, women at the top, C-level jobs, board seats — tops out at 15, 16 percent. The numbers have not moved since 20xxand are going in the wrong direction. And even in the non-profit world, a world we sometimes think of as being led by more women, women at the top: 20 percent.
I saw a chance to go to bat for the women who face the choice of staying home with a sick child or reporting to work at a job that might otherwise fire her.
Our workplaces and our public policies must mirror our values: work and family.
It is time for our societies to find new and innovative ways to make it easier for women to experience the joy of motherhood, without facing career setbacks. This isn’t a women’s issue – it’s a family issue. Yet it disproportionately impacts women who are most likely to leave the workforce or curtail our ambitions because we have no access to affordable care for our children and adult dependents.
Still, in the developed world, we are slowly seeing a movement toward a more equal distribution of responsibilities in our homes.Young fathers [ ]are increasingly contributing to housework and helping raise their children.
We have an incredible opportunity to adapt our workplaces to this modern reality.
Today, we can answer an email in the palm of our hand, take a call almost anywhere around the globe, work flexible hours in the gig economy and finish our work at home once we put our kids to bed.
The last decade has revolutionized the way we work – and now has the potential to deliver more flexibility to working women.
Already we are seeing increasing numbers of women leaving behind outdated work environments to start their own businesses from their kitchen tables. Today, women entrepreneurs are flourishing.
Fortunately, the private sector is recognizing the importance of modernizing the workplace. Businesses are instituting policies such as flex-time and paid leave, in part to attract and retain female talent.
Companies that have women on their boards generate a higher return on equity than those that do not, and outperform in times of crisis or volatility.
Years later, I was on my second teaching round in a Melbourne high school, and I was about 20 minutes into a year 11 legal studies class when this boy put up his hand and said, "Hey miss, when are you going to start doing your speech?" And I said, "What speech?" You know, I'd been talking them about defamation law for a good 20 minutes. And he said, "You know, like, your motivational speaking. You know, when people in wheelchairs come to school, they usually say, like, inspirational stuff?" "It's usually in the big hall." And that's when it dawned on me: This kid had only ever experienced disabled
people as objects of inspiration. We are not, to this kid -- and it's not his fault, I mean, that's true for many of us. For lots of us, disabled people are not our teachers or our doctors or our manicurists. We're not real people. We are there to inspire. And in fact, I am sitting on this stage looking like I do in this wheelchair, and you are probably kind of expecting me to inspire you. Right? (Laughter) Yeah.
I grew up in a very small country town in Victoria. I had a very normal, low-key kind of upbringing. I went to school, I hung out with my friends, I fought with my younger sisters. It was all very normal. And when I was 15, a member of my local community approached my parents and wanted to nominate me for a community achievement award. And my parents said, "Hm, that's really nice, but there's kind of one glaring problem with that. She hasn't actually achieved anything."And they were right, you know. I went to school, I got good marks, I had a very low-key after school job in my mum's hairdressing salon, and I spent a lot of time watching "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" and "Dawson's Creek." Yeah, I know. What a contradiction. But they were right, you know. I wasn't doing anything that was out of the ordinary at all. I wasn't doing anything that could be considered an achievement if you took disability out of the equation.
now stand firm and tall, make a fist, get excited, and yell it out: i must do it! i can do it! i will do it! i will succeed! i must do it! i can do it! i will do it! i will succeed! i must do it! i can do it! i will do it! i will succeed!english is a useful language all over the world. why are we began to learn english when we were little children beacause it is very important for us to learn it.in the world, if you cannot speak english you will lose half a chance to success. i began to learn english when i was 8 years old.at that moment,i do not like english.i connot remember all the words which i have learnt.i think it is very difficult for me to learn it well.so i cannot read english loudly and i never answer the questions in the english classes.
now, i like english very well and i still use the ways he tells me.i know i must learn english even hard.
Looking around me today, I think of the generations of Yale graduates who have come before you. Individuals who have been for something.
There are many names we know and others that would be less familiar – presidents and world leaders, artists and business executives, scholars and scientists.
Like them, I know you will heed the call to leadership and service and leave your mark on every realm of human endeavor.
That is Yale’s mission – that is what Yale is for.
As members of the Yale community, what do we believe?
We believe that facts and expertise, applied with creativity and wisdom, can transform the world.
We believe that education and research save lives and make life more meaningful.
We believe that diversity of thought and diversity indeed are essential to human progress.
We believe, most of all, in the boundless potential of human ingenuity; that together, we can solve great challenges and bring light and truth to a world in great need of it.
That is why this summer, at the G20 conference, the United States and Japan were founding members of a bold, new initiative with the World Bank – the Women Entrepreneurs Finance Initiative. This facility is the first of its kind to empower women entrepreneurs in developing countries. It will provide access to the capital, networks, and mentorship needed to thrive and will dramatically impact the ecosystem of women’s entrepreneurship globally.
And we are just getting started!
As we gather in Tokyo today, I can’t help but think of some of the great women pioneers in this country who have inspired our generation.
Women like Yoshiko Shinohara
She survived World War Two, started as a secretary and went on to open a small business in her one-bedroom apartment. Her company grew into a world renowned business in over a dozen countries. Today, as you all know, Yoshiko is Japan’s first female self-made billionaire. Now, she helps young people afford the education they need to pursue their dreams and contribute to society.
Because of pioneers like Yoshiko, women in this country – and around the world – aspire to greater feats, climb to higher positions, and pave new pathways forward.
Today, we are redefining success. We’re discarding the old formula of the ideal woman-the ideal worker -the ideal mother. We are helping to shape a more realistic and complete picture of what it is to be a woman who thrives – and who helps her business, community and family do the same.
The fact is, ALL women are “working women.” Whether they make the commute to work each morning, or spend each day with their children at home, or some combination of both. Truth be told, on Sunday nights, after a messy and wonderful weekend with my children, I am far more exhausted than on Friday evenings, after a long week of work at the office. I deeply admire women who choose to work inside the home raising their children and respect this decision.
I know no women, whether they're at home or whether they're in the workforce,who don't feel that sometimes. So I'm not saying that staying in the workforce is the right thing for everyone.My talk today is about what the messages are if you do want to stay in the workforce, and I think there are three. One, sit at the table. Two, make your partner a real partner. And three, don't leave before you leave. Number one: sit at the table. Just a couple weeks ago at Facebook, we hosted a very senior government official, and he came in to meet with senior execs from around Silicon Valley. And everyone kind of sat at the table. He had these two women who were traveling with him pretty senior in his department, and I kind of said to them, "Sit at the table. Come on, sit at the table," and they sat on the side of the room. When I was in college, my senior year, I took a course called European Intellectual History. Don't you love that kind of thing from college?
english is a useful language all over the world. why are we began to learn english when we were little children beacause it is very important for us to learn it.in the world, if you cannot speak english you will lose half a chance to success. i began to learn english when i was 8 years old.at that moment,i do not like english.i connot remember all the words which i have learnt.i think it is very difficult for me to learn it well.so i cannot read english loudly and i never answer the questions in the english classes.
now, i like english very well and i still use the ways he tells me.i know i must learn english even hard.
we should learn to stick to our life no matter how difficult the life is and we should learn to love others .it is the flim tellsx me .
it is a story talks about a black girl named precious .precious isx fat and not beautiful. her bad temped mother never workx, always cheated others to relieve her ,and atex while watching tv all day.what is worse ,precious was only 16,but she had pregnant for twice .out of assumption ,her child is her farther
a poet said “to see a world in a grain of sand, and a heaven in a wild flower, hold infinity in the palm of your hand, and eternity in an hour. several days ago, i had a chance to listen to a lecture. i learnt a lot there. id like to share it with all of you. lets show our right palms. we can see three lines that show how our love.career and life is. i have a short line of life. what about yours i wondered whether we could see our future in this way. well, lets make a fist. where is our future where is our love, career, and life tell me.yeah, it is in our hands. it is held in ourselves.
Integrating and empowering women is not just good corporate policy, it’s good business.
Second, in addition to changing the corporate culture, we must advance public policies that address the composition of our modern workforce.
In the United States, while single women without children make 95 cents for each dollar earned by a man, married mothers earn only 81 cents. Too many women in the United States are forced to leave the workforce following the birth of a child.
We must ensure that federal policies support working mothers and enable them to reach their full potential. This is how we will create an environment where closely bonded families can flourish and our economy can grow at unprecedented levels.
That is why in the United States, we are working to pass sweeping and long over-due tax reform that will afford families much needed relief. We are seeking to simplify the tax code, lower rates, expand the child tax credit, eliminate the marriage penalty, and put more money back in the pockets of hard-working Americans.
Our administration is working to address the high cost of childcare in the United States which currently outstrips housing expenses and state college tuition in much of the Country. It cannot be too expensive for the modern working family to have children.
That night I returned to Singapore. I didn’t think it was a big deal as my father was 73 years old at the time and old people were supposed to forgetful, until the next day when I called my mum. Over the phone she told me that on the flight to Toronto, three of them sat side byside, with my father sitting in the middle. All of a sudden, my father looked at my sister but totally couldn't recognize her, he asked my mum, "what is the name of this young lady and why is she so nice to us"? The moment when he said this, my sister burst into tears. At that time, we haven’t heard of a disease called Alzheimers, but we realized we were starting to lose our dad day by day from that turning point.
Fast forward to September 20xx, my father has been with a nursing home in Xiamen for close to 4 years. He is very skinny butstill survives, thanks to the professional care provided there. Over the years I flew back to visit him from time to time. He couldn’t tell my name but Icould tell that he probably knew I am someone important for him, as he always grabbedmy hands tightly.
I love drama performance very much; it makes me active to try something different.
As a member of drama club, I played different roles in different dramas, such as a doctor, a team leader and some animals. I really enjoyed those different experiences by understanding their inner world and imitating their voices and behaviors.Gradually I became more and more active to try different things.
So…I chose a bad wolf as my next role which is quite different from previous ones. It looks like this: (Knock, knock)" Come in please.” ”Grandma, what big eyes you have?” ” All the better to see you with.” ”But, what a large mouth you have?” ” All the better to eat you with! Haw-haw…”
Hope you like it, thank you!
Toastmaster of the day, fellow toastmasters, awonderful afternoon to all of you. My name is Jeff. Today I want to share withyou part of my life experiences and I hope some of you will find it useful.
March 15, 20xx, Xiamen, China. My phone rang the moment when I stepped into themain entrance of our condominium. It was my 68-year-old mum. She said, “your dad and I are now at the boarding gate, but we couldn’t find your dad’s bag, which contains his IC and a few thousand dollars”. Just 35 minutes back, I saw my dadand mum off at the airport. They were about to board a domestic flight toPudong where they would join my sister to fly to Toronto and stay there for another one year. A couple of days before that, I purposely went back to Xiamen, my hometown to see my parents off. I asked my parents to board the airplane first and I would make a second trip to airport and fetch my dad’s bag home. We were so fortunate that my mum kept the passports of both in her handbag.I quickly called the airport and got to the team in charge of security check.They found the bag and verified my identity.
i think one of the things i have been talking about, the mentorship, we have so many services. there is score, offices manned by retired executives, or executives lending their time to advise on business programs, web design, to kind of walk youthrough how you can expand and scale your business. small business development centers are also available. you can go to any of those district offices, 68 around the country. those areeven more bountiful in the district offices in every state. you cango to and look at the different modules. you can self-study. lots of tools are available.one of the things i got excited about in early discussionswith ms. mcmahon about the capacity of sba, most people think of it along the lines of capital. availability of capital, and how they can support businesses in that regard. these mentorship opportunities are very impactful. as i meet with entrepreneurs,consistently they talk about what is the biggest barriers to scaling a business is lack of mentorship opportunities. that is what made the difference in terms of execution on their ideas.first of all, congratulations on now being a small business owner and job creator. thank you for your service prior to that as a firefighter. my advice to you would be to look at the whole ecosystem as you think about how to start this business for thefirst time . listen to a lot of people, including people who say your ideas are bad. internalize that feedback. ultimately, i think that thinking through and bringing on partners, and people that can complement your skill set and help you to think about theexecution of your business plan is critical as you think aboutscale any meaningful way. in addition to utilizing resources,getting feedback, from people about the idea and the concept, think about how you can supplement your team to complement the skill set that you have.
any other questions? ok.
Good morning, ladies and gentlemen. I'm Eden, I'm 9 years old.Today, I'm going to tell you about my first special memory. It wasunforgettable, because it was my first flying on a plane.
When I got on the huge, white thing with two big ‘fans’, I was so scared. I was thinking what if the big thing couldn’t balance itself? What if in the middle of the trip, the airplane ran out of oil? What if the airplane crashed onto the ground when it landed? I was scared that I would falldown and smash into pieces!
Just then, the plane started to take off, and my ear started tohurt as well.So, I closed my eyes for a long long time. What a surprise! WhenI woke up, I didn't smash into pieces, and neither did I have an ear pain.Then, I looked outside the window. How amazing it was!
The sun was orange, and all the cloud turning into golden color, just like the toasted marshmallows and chicken. I could still rememberthat they looked very tasty and inviting! Furthermore, there were the golden lions,dancing bears, and more, just like the cloud zoo! I couldn’t take my eyes offthose impressive views, but it was time to land.
Never would I forget my first amazing flight, my first specialmemory! From then on, I was not afraid of flight any more, instead, I enjoyedhaving the trip in the sky. Thank you!
in a related german study, researchers used fmri imaging to measure brain activity before and after injecting botox to suppress smiling muscles. the finding supported darwins theory by showing that facial feedback modifies the neural processing of emotional content in the brain in a way that helps us feel better when we smile. smiling stimulates our brain reward mechanism in a way that even chocolate -- a well-regarded pleasure inducer -- cannot match.british researchers found that one smile can generate the same level of brain stimulation as up to 2,000 bars of chocolate. (laughter) wait. the same study found that smiling is as stimulating as receiving up to 16,000 pounds sterling in cash. thats like 25 grand a smile. its not bad. and think about it this way: 25,000 times 400 -- quite a few kids out there feel like mark zuckerberg every day.and, unlike lots of chocolate, lots of smiling can actually make you healthier. smiling can help reduce the level of stress-enhancing hormones like cortisol, adrenaline and dopamine, increase the level of mood-enhancing hormones like endorphin and reduce overall blood pressure.
President Faust, members of the Harvard Corporation and the Board of Overseers, members of the faculty, proud parents, and, above all, graduates.
The first thing I would like to say is ‘thank you.’ Not only has Harvard given me an extraordinary honour, but the weeks of fear and nausea I have endured at the thought of giving this commencement address have made me lose weight. A win-win situation! Now all I have to do is take deep breaths, squint at the red banners and convince myself that I am at the world’s largest Gryffindor reunion.
Delivering a commencement address is a great responsibility; or so I thought until I cast my mind back to my own graduation. The commencement speaker that day was the distinguished British philosopher Baroness Mary Warnock. Reflecting on her speech has helped me enormously in writing this one, because it turns out that I can’t remember a single word she said. This liberating discovery enables me to proceed without any fear that I might inadvertently influence you to abandon promising careers in business, the law or politics for the giddy delights of becoming a gay wizard.
You see? If all you remember in years to come is the ‘gay wizard’ joke, I’ve come out ahead of Baroness Mary Warnock. Achievable goals: the first step to self improvement.
The problem with these stories is that they show what the data shows: women systematically underestimate their own abilities. If you test men and women, and you ask them questions on totally objective criteria like GPAs, men get it wrong slightly high, and women get it wrong slightly low. Women do not negotiate for themselves in the workforce. A study in the last two years of people entering the workforce out of college showed that 57 percent of boys entering, or men, I guess, are negotiating their first salary, and only seven percent of women. And most importantly, men attribute their success to themselves, and women attribute it to other external factors. If you ask men why they did a good job,they'll say, "I'm awesome. Obviously. Why are you even asking?" If you ask women why they did a good job, what they'll say is someone helped them, they got lucky, they worked really hard.
Good evening. Thank you. One year ago, I introduced my father when he declared his candidacy. In his own way, and through his own sheer force of will, he sacrificed greatly to enter the political arena as an outsider.
And he prevailed against afield of 16 very talented competitors. For more than a year, Donald Trump has been the people’s champion, and tonight he’s the people’s nominee. Like many of my fellow millenials, I do not consider myself categorically Republican or Democrat. More than party affiliation, I vote on based on what I believe is right, for my family and for my country. Sometimes it’s a tough choice. That is not the case this time. As the proud daughter of your nominee, I am here to tell you that this is the moment and Donald Trump is the person to make America great again.
During my brief time in office, our world has reminded us daily of the necessity and the urgency of our work.
We’ve witnessed the coarsening of public discourse and the volatility of national and international affairs.
We’ve mourned when gun violence has cut future short, and gatherings of the faithful – Jewish, Muslim, and Christian – have ended in bloodshed.
We’ve continued to confront the existential threat posed by climate change, and we’ve reeled as extreme weather has destroyed homes and claimed lives.
And we’ve grown increasingly aware of the scourge of sexual harassment and sexual assault, and have struggled to consider how institutions, Harvard among them, can prevent and address behavior that threatens individuals and weakens communities.
To be sure, there is much in this world that rightly troubles us. But there’s even more that gives us cause for hope.
And it’s that spirit of hope – the willingness both to see the world as it is, and to consider how we can help make it better – that is in many ways the spirit that defines this university and I believe joins us all together.
Since I took office on July 1, I’ve seen the value of both knowledge and education at work in the world. I’ve seen the good being done by our faculty and our students, by our alumni, and our staff, and our friends. And I’ve seen expressions of compassion, and patience, and kindness, and wisdom that have moved me deeply.
He quitted from school at grade 10 (16 years old). This super star seems a little bit low self-esteem in front of MBA crowd.
Not owning a "piece of paper" (certificate) + too young affect business. That's true in real world!
I'd found my own business too. At that time, those experienced people just didn't trust a kid like me, although they think my product is great and prudence.
I think he doesn't need to regret his education. It's only different kind of life. And I doubt if a person is fully educated and have a comfortable life, will s/he brave enough to try something new? Or create something that is not exists in the world?
He found Post Production Office Limited (PO) when he's 22. PO is a company to do video post-production business. It captured more than 50% market share. Although it's based on geographical shortage, it is still a crazy figure. In the post-production industry, PO is the first company to enter the mainland market (China).
How can he do that? I truly believe that it's because of his passion, management style and split of never-give-up.。
Life is short, before you realize it, you have missed the opportunity to accompany those important people in your life, and more importantly, to let them sense your love and gratitude towards them.
When I was young, like any other young people who aspire to explore the outside world, I joined a multinational company, upon graduation. I subsequently moved to Hong Kong to work and eventually settled down in Singapore and started my own family. Over the years I indeed saw many parts of the world, especially in my current job. The preparation for icebreaker speech last night allowed me to take a reflection on whether I havedone enough for these important people while I am constantly shuttling here andthere to satiate my own desire.
these good jobs? mrs. mcmahon: you have raised an incredibly great point. an enormous problem. this is something that reallyhas the administration been informed by the private sector. when they tell us one of their single bill gives challenges is the skills gap. they have available jobs they are unable to fill because people don't have adequate training. time and time again we hear this. it is all the more problematic for the smaller employers who don't have the benefits and can't be as competitive, competing for those same jobs that limited people had to fill. we have been in ormislead focused on technical education, skills-based education.the president signed an executive order where he is going todramatically expand apprenticeship in this country. it has beensuccessful around the world. try giving people skills-basededucation, creating industrywide certification and credentialing so people like in the industry like yours can have a recognizedcredential that is portable and they can take with them, that recognizes they are trained in the areas employers need them.one of the things we found that is successful, the teeming ofindustry and the community colleges and technical schools.many employers are working with community colleges, helping them develop curriculums that train their students. they employ them on the other side. that is something that has been workingon the private sector and we are looking to fuel and scale at a national level.
when we xfaced with the difficulty x,avoidingx is not a good way for us. it can not solve the problems.what we need to do is that analying the cause and trying to changed our place .so we should be brave and face the trap directly. the film also teachs us to love others.precious is someone who may exit near us .if precious own a good family and some friends,she may not fell so despaired. in spite of the development of our world ,there still many people suject misfortune.love and help can make them fell better ,so we should not scant our love .
as what i said at the beginning, “we are reading the first verse of the first chapter of a book, whose pages are infinite”. the past has gone. nothing we do will change it. but the future is in front of us. believe that what we give to the world, the world will give to us. and from today on, lets be the owners of ourselves, and speak out “we are the world, we are the future.”
Now I seriously want to thank you for that. I had to take that picture. My mother always took photos of me at every progress point growing up. She’d show off those photos to everyone who came to our house, and she would be so proud that I am here at my old stomping ground with all of you.
So, now graduates, it’s certainly your day, but President Price already reminded us it’s Mother’s Day – but you know women never get enough love, never. So the one day we have here to offer a deserved salute to those who bore us biologically and those who stood in as surrogates for many of our needs and wants – deserve some more love. I want all the graduates to stand up and give their mothers and their surrogate mothers some love. Thank you.
Now this is my first Mother’s Day without my own mother, who I lost last August.
And while she’s not here physically, I can still hear her voice when I reach a significant milestone or face what appears to be an insurmountable obstacle.
And if she were here today, I know exactly what she would say to you.
In response to your achievement, it would, no doubt, be crisp and compelling a show of support: “You did it!” And she would offer you a huge smile and an even bigger hug.
But she would also keep it real with you like she always did with me. She would tell you that your future, like any of ours, is going to be hard work. I can hear her say: “Lisa, listen to me and hear me clearly. Adversity is like the agitator in the washing machine. It beats the heck out of the clothes, but they’re clean when they come out”.
Eliminating or easing legal and cultural barriers so that more parents can make the choices that are right for their families is a core mission for our generation. We don’t label men “working men.” And it is my hope that by the time my daughter Arabella grows into a woman she will not be defined by whether she works inside or outside the home. She will simply be a woman, afforded the same opportunities as her male peers and equipped with the education and support she needs to fulfill her unique potential.
This is how I believe we will empower women – and in so doing, enable them to raise confident, empathetic, and ambitious sons and daughters, to propel unprecedented growth and job creation, and to cultivate a society that embraces the fullness of life, the dignity of work, and the gift of strong and flourishing families.
So today, I hope you will join me in imagining this future and working together to make it a reality- for our children, for our nations, and for the hope of a more vibrant and inclusive economy.
I’ve never been able to shake the haunting feeling of this specific house call because of the significance it would take on later in my own life – and it reminds me, of course, that even doctors can meet the same inevitable fate of becoming patients.
When I tried to tend to the diabetes my father developed later in life, I thought of that woman’s shaking, pale face.
And when I looked at his limbs – a double amputee, and recognized he was in renal failure, I thought of how he fought for a life, when she could not fight for her own.
And I thought of how in his twilight years, he was experiencing the same discomfort and dis-ease he had so seamlessly kept at bay for everyone else.
But even so, I knew we were lucky, my family. We could afford my father’s insulin. We could afford to do what it took to take care of him.
is this working? ok. great. thank you for sharingthe stage with me today. i must apologize in advance for my voice.my voice keeps going in and out. a little bit of laryngitis on theroad. i'm so delighted to be here this afternoon. as the ministrydo for the small business administration. we will celebrate our65th anniversary next year. we are kicking off this year ofreimagining the sba. we might even cheat a little bit. nationals not -- small business week year. because, i found out about the second week i was in office sba is one of the best-kept secrets in the country. you think sba, what do you think? so much more than loans. it's counseling. access to capital, which businesses need to start. cash is king. then i found out that the counselingand mentoring aspect that comes along is as important oralmost as important as the cash. we have components of access,government contracting, which grows many small as mrs.. then we have disaster relief. what happens when a disaster hits an area? homes are lost. it's one of the few times sba is involved in the home mortgage market as well as business loans. it's our goal to give businesses up and running. they are not only the engine of our economy, but they are the glue for theircommunities. those communities need to come back online. sba isthere working with fema, the first people on the line. we want to get everybody back up, paying taxes. it is an all-encompassingorganization. it's my goal to make sure a year from now, if notsooner, sba is no longer a secret. [applause]
thank you. have great champions of the smallbusiness community along with president trump. we want to hear from the community. if you have a question, please raise yourhand. you can ask a question to the administrator or ivanka.
i'm a firefighter from wisconsin. i have been a firefighter for 20 years. i recently invented a new style of compass to save firefighters lives. what i'm struggling with is the ins and outs to run that business. what advice do you have to get over that hurdle?
The answer is no. I could have brought myparents to a new place for buffet breakfast on an awesome autumn Sunday morning, I could have bought a SUV in Xiamen and move them around. I didn’t, due to various restrictions.
Would I choose a different path had we got achance to turn the clock back to the time when I was in my early 20s? I don't thinkso. Let me tell you why.
I quite agree with the following the quote fromB. J. Neblett.
“We are the sum total of our experiences. Thoseexperiences – be they positive or negative – make us the person we are, at anygiven point in our lives.”
Part of the reasons why we are who we are todayis those experiences and those people we have encountered over the years. In hindsight, I can’t even tell whether certain decisions I have made, certain paths I have taken, are right or wrong. We may regret for those things we didn’t do enough. What we can is to make up for it within our capacity while it is in time, while your parents are still alive, while your kids haven’t entered puberty stage.
Over to you, Toastmaster.
Thank you very much, Margaret, for that very generous introduction.
First, let me say congratulations to our graduates. Welcome back to our alumni. Good afternoon to everyone – colleagues and friends, and family members, loved ones, and our most special guest – our eminent speaker. It’s a pleasure to address you this afternoon and to offer a few reflections as I approach the end of my first year as president.
I realize, however, that I’m literally the last thing standing between you and the speech that you’ve all actually come here to hear. So, while I can’t promise to be mesmerizingly eloquent, I can at least promise to be mercifully brief.
We gather this afternoon buoyed by the aspirations of our graduates – some 7,100 people who have distinguished themselves in nearly every field and every discipline imaginable. We welcome them into the venerable ranks of our alumni, and we send them forth into a world that is very much in need of both their minds and their hearts.