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Chump to CHAMP! Secrets, Stories and Strategies Behind a Winning Speech
GUIDE What did Darren learn by studying previous World Champion speakers?
Darren studied ten years of contest videos, nine contestants each year. That is 90 world-class speeches. He did this to understand the difference between first and second place. What was that tiny difference that made ALL of the difference? • What habits brought Darren from Chump to CHAMP? • What did the World Champs have in common? • What is the all important first step to creating a world-class speech?
IMPORTANT NOTE: "Learning occurs in moments of reflection." ~Patricia Fripp, CSP, CPAE For your benefit, when you have thoughts or ideas, “PAUSE” the program to capture them. That is what this guide is for. It is not this program that makes a difference in your life; it is what YOU do with the thoughts and ideas it gives you. (Watching it faster does not help as much as capturing your ideas.)
“Stage time, stage time, stage time.” ~Darren LaCroix
Darren had 77 days to create his World Championship speech, “OUCH!” As a result of watching this program you’ll discover the Four Crucial Habits that took Darren from Chump to CHAMP and what he found that the World Champions before him had in common. Then in Part Two, you will see how that perspective was applied to create Darren’s winning speech. This process will help you to connect with and inspire your audiences.
“I was really impressed with Darren’s presentation. I’d always tried to influence my audience, but he showed me how to make them think differently.” ~Tom Zimmerman, Affton, MO
(Part 1) Get the perspective
(Part 2) Apply the perspective
Chump to CHAMP (PART 1): Mentors, Habits & Studying the Previous World Champs We know what we are saying, but the audience doesn’t hear what we ____________________________. Do you remember how you felt just before your first presentation?
• _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ Watching Darren’s speech, “Ouch!” What did his speech mean to you? My reflections on that:
• _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ Darren’s gesture when he walked off stage after his speech was not because he won; it was because he had given the speech he came to give under ______________________________________ What did Darren’s first time on stage, “Stitches,” mean to you? Darren recommends Judy Carter’s book, Stand-up Comedy: the Book, www.judycarter.com. My reflections on that:
• _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________
Chump to CHAMP Habits to Create:
Habit 1. Never turn down _______________________________ What is your “stage time rate”? My reflections on that:
• _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ Habit 2. Record _____________________________________________ Great speeches aren’t written; they are ___________________________
My reflections on that:
• _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________
Habit 3. Be confident enough _______________________________ Are you a farmer or an M.B.A.? My reflections on that:
• _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ Habit 4. Crave _______________________________ My reflections on that:
• _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ The most important part of a presentation is _____________________________________________________________________ Your true goal is to impact the point of decision three days after you speak. Reflections on that?
• _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________
Chump to CHAMP Commonalties of World Champion Speakers:
Darren studied 10 years of contest videos, 9 contestants each year which equals 90 speeches. He wanted to find the difference between the person who comes in first and the person who comes in second. He was searching for the tiny difference that made all of the difference. Commonality 1. Champions _______________________________ My reflections on that:
• _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ Commonality 2. The ________________________ What did you think of Kim’s example? Do you make that mistake? My reflections on that:
• _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________
Commonality 3. Champions ___________________________ My reflections on that:
• _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ The audience doesn’t want you perfect; they want you _______________________________________________ Commonality 4. Champions had a ________________________________________ The Jerry McGuire Concept: The Champions had you at _____________________ The biggest mistake most presenters make is that they prepare their speech, but they neglect to prepare for _____________________________________________ What goes through your mind 5 minutes before you take the stage? What can you do to distract yourself?
• _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ My reflections on that:
• _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ The cherry tree effect: Before you give any presentation, ask yourself:
• _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ Get Darren’s e-Newsletter, Stage Time. Go to www.top10speakingtips.com.
Chump to CHAMP (PART 2): Dissecting “Ouch!”
You will see an early version of Darren’s winning speech, “Ouch.” You’ll get Darren’s step-by-step thoughts and strategies behind his World Championship speech. What are your thoughts, observations and reflections on Darren’s winning speech:
• _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ Darren gave his speech live _____________ times before the World Championship Contest. What differences do you notice? (Compare the two versions of the same speech.) What are your thoughts, observations and reflections on Darren’s “VERSION 3.0” speech: (See if what you notice matches what Darren will later point out.) Winning Version: VERSION 3.0 (Early version)
• ___________________________________________ • _______________________________________________________ • ___________________________________________ • _______________________________________________________ • ___________________________________________ • _______________________________________________________ • ___________________________________________ • _______________________________________________________ • ___________________________________________ • _______________________________________________________ • ___________________________________________ • _______________________________________________________ • ___________________________________________ • _______________________________________________________ • ___________________________________________ • _______________________________________________________ • ___________________________________________ • _______________________________________________________ • ___________________________________________ • _______________________________________________________ • ___________________________________________ • _______________________________________________________ • ___________________________________________ • _______________________________________________________ • ___________________________________________ • _______________________________________________________ • ___________________________________________ • _______________________________________________________
Did you notice the difference in……….?: - _______________________? - _______________________? - _______________________? - _______________________? __________________________________ don’t memorize your speech! The preparation:
The International Speech Contest starts out with over 25,000 contestants from fourteen countries. This had grown since Darren won in 2001. There are six levels of this speech contest, meaning you have to win five levels to get to the World Championship level. Darren collected ____________ hand-written evaluations. Great speeches aren’t written; they are _______________________________. Writing the speech:
Darren had two coaches: 1995 World Champions of Public Speaking Mark Brown and Dave McIlhenny. Mark asked Darren to choose __________________________________________. Next, Mark asked Darren to list ______________________________________________ that you would want to pass on to that child? Darren had 3-4 pages of lessons. Then Mark asked him to narrow it down to _____________________________. What thoughts or ideas does this give you?
• _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________
The lesson Darren chose was _______________________________________. What lesson would you come up with?
• _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ Delivery secret:
Put ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________. Who can you put in your audience?
• _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ Even finding the title of your speech is a __________________________________________. Ask yourself, “_____________________________________?” Editing your speech
Darren’s speech started with _______________ words. If you are not a writer, give your speech and _____________________________________. He had to get his word count down to _____________- ____________ words. Remember to celebrate along the way as you are editing! Whoo hoo! Darren’s magic question: _______________________________________________________________________?
Dissecting Darren’s Winning Speech “Ouch!” Stop! (PAUSE IN SPEECH #1) (Before you take the stage) They are judging you! Your reflections & insights?
• _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________
“Skill set, without mindset, will leave your audience _____________.” ~Darren & Craig
How do you handle that? #1) _________________________________________________________________________ #2) ________________________________ #3) ____________________________________________________________________________________________ #4) ______________________________________________________________________________________ Get your connect card: http://www.TheConnectCard.com Darren’s Four Questions:
1) _______________________________? 2) _______________________________? 3) ________________________? 4) ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________?
Advice from 1990 World Champion David Brooks “______________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________”
Stop! (PAUSE IN SPEECH #2) (Before you speak) Shhh….. Pause after the initial ___________________________ Your reflections & insights?
• _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ Stop! (PAUSE IN SPEECH #3) Be aware of your ____/_________ Ratio This was learned from Patricia Fripp, CSP, CPAE http://www.Fripp.com “________________________” questions Darren’s opening had two You/Your words in the first few seconds of the speech!
“Can you remember a moment when a brilliant idea flashed into your head?” Two ways to start a speech: #1) _________________________________________ #2) _________________________________________ #3) _________________________________________ (The CSI Opening) Your reflections & insights?
• _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________
Stop! (PAUSE IN SPEECH #4) (The use of stage) How can you use the stage to help tell your story? Your reflections & insights?
• _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ Stop! (PAUSE IN SPEECH #5) (Coming forward on the stage) Darren uses his face to share the ______________________ of the thought. Your reflections & insights?
• _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________
Stop! (PAUSE IN SPEECH #6) (Darren’s “11”) A fall? What is your “11”? Your reflections & insights?
• _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________
Stop! (PAUSE IN SPEECH #7) (Energy release) Did you see the twitch? Your reflections & insights?
• _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________
Stop! (PAUSE IN SPEECH #8) (Releasing the audience’s tension) Boom! Mark Brown said, “Sometimes we must make the audience ___________________________ to invoke change.” Your reflections & insights?
• _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________
Stop! (PAUSE IN SPEECH #9) (Getting into their heads) Many things happened. Always ___________________________________ Your reflections & insights?
• _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________
Stop! (PAUSE IN SPEECH 10) (Delivery) Notice the emotion of the character. Mr. Know-it-all showing his emotion in the subway joke. Your reflections & insights?
• _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________
Stop! (PAUSE IN SPEECH #11) (Subway joke origin) It’s funny how that joke ended up in speech. Judy Carter’s book, Stand-up Comedy: the Book http://www.judycarter.com I HIGHLY recommend her other book, The Message of You, for speakers as well. What failure could help you connect and inspire? What stories of yours can go in your story file? Your reflections & insights?
• _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________
Stop! (PAUSE IN SPEECH #12) (Character’s hands in pockets) Notice two things. Your reflections & insights?
• _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________
Stop! (PAUSE IN SPEECH #13) (Find proof of your point.) Let me take you back again. Winners are coachable and don’t take short cuts! Your reflections & insights?
• _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________
Stop! (PAUSE IN SPEECH #14) (Transitional phrase) I want you to notice the parallel. Transitional phrase while ______________________________________ Your reflections & insights?
• _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________
Stop! (PAUSE IN SPEECH #15) (Life transformational moments) I learned from Glenna. Want are some of your transformational moments? Speech is about ____________________ Thinking:
Before quote -> Heard quote -> After quote Your reflections & insights?
• _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________
Stop! (PAUSE IN SPEECH #16) (Surprised!) Did you notice my facial expression? Your reflections & insights?
• _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________
Stop! (PAUSE IN SPEECH #17) (Comedy) The truth hurts. Good comedy ______________________________ Your reflections & insights?
• _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________
Stop! (PAUSE IN SPEECH #18) (Clarity) It was two days before the World Championship. Always ask yourself __________________________________________? Your reflections & insights?
• _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________
Stop! (PAUSE IN SPEECH #19) (Depth of stage) What you probably couldn’t realize. Energy front to back made that one first step dramatic. Your reflections & insights?
• _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________
Stop! (PAUSE IN SPEECH #20) (The step after the ouch!) This story is important. Your reflections & insights?
• _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________
Stop! (PAUSE IN SPEECH #21) (Wonder what do with it?) Do you have anxiety? “Research!” Darren went to the Clark University Library to learn more about Dr. Goddard. Research _____________________________ And Research ____________________________ Your reflections & insights?
• _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________
Stop! (PAUSE IN SPEECH #22) (Practicing) Did you notice what I just did? Darren put ______________________________ on the floor to help him internalize his speech. Your reflections & insights?
• _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________
Stop! (PAUSE IN SPEECH #23) (Holding in the laugh) I wanted to talk. Tell stories in _____________________________ rather than ______________________________ The story of telling his parents he wanted to be a comedian is _________________________ Part of great storytelling is showing a character’s _________________________ The essence of a story is told in “_____________________” Your reflections & insights?
• _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________
Stop! (PAUSE IN SPEECH #24) (In silence) Ouch! How can you vary your foundational phrase? Your reflections & insights?
• _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________
Stop! (PAUSE IN SPEECH #25) (Covering Darren’s mouth) I wish you knew that full story. Your reflections & insights?
• _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________
Stop! (PAUSE IN SPEECH #26) (Pointing) Did you see what I did? Your reflections & insights?
• _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________
Stop! (PAUSE IN SPEECH #27) (The payoff) Ah…you are going to like that feeling. __________________ -> Pleasure Your reflections & insights?
• _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________
Stop! (PAUSE IN SPEECH #28) (Darrenism) Ouchmaster Create __________________isms. Your reflections & insights?
• _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________
Stop! (PAUSE IN SPEECH #29) (Darren’s concern) One reason I put that in there. Your reflections & insights?
• _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________
Stop! (PAUSE IN SPEECH #30) (Next time) Pause longer, Darren! We must pause to allow audience members to “______________________.” Your reflections & insights?
• _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________
Stop! (PAUSE IN SPEECH #31) (Audience) Did you notice the response? Your reflections & insights?
• _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________
Stop! (PAUSE IN SPEECH #32) (Same line) National Speakers Association version Two things were different _______________________ & ________________________________ Your reflections & insights?
• _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________
Stop! (PAUSE IN SPEECH #33) (What?) We are all going to move forward and reach a point. Focus on being __________________________, not _______________________. Your reflections & insights?
• _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________
Stop! (PAUSE IN SPEECH #34) (Next time) Two important ideas Darren suggests ___________________________________ while internalizing your speech. Darren also prayed for help! (Legal in a speech contest) Your reflections & insights?
• _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________
Stop! (PAUSE IN SPEECH #35) (Last words) Fall forward! Next time Darren would end with a “____________________________________.” Your reflections & insights?
• _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________
Stop! (PAUSE IN SPEECH #36) (Darren did it!) Ugh! Darren’s did not gesture because he had won. It was because under the pressure of the contest, he gave the speech he came to give. Darren said the words “you” or “your” 35 times in less than 8 minutes. That is more than 4 per minute! How do you know if you are on the right track? (M.I.T. student story)
• _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________
The two quotes from World Champion David Brook:
• _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ Otis Williams, Jr., said:
• _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________
Thoughts and reflections from watching entire speech again. What did you see differently?
• _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________
“If you take away my struggle, you take away my growth.” ~Darren Here is a BONUS ONLY in the Chump to CHAMP Guide, not even mentioned in the video. Darren’s speech broken down into sections:
“OUCH!” By Darren LaCroix
OPENING:
Can you remember a moment when a brilliant idea flashed into your head? It was perfect for you. Then, all of a
sudden, from the depths of your brain, another thought forced its way through the enthusiasm until finally it shouted,
“YEAH, great idea, but what if you fall on your face?” What do you do when you fall on your face? Do you try to jump
right up and hope no one noticed? Are you more concerned with what other people will think than with what you can
learn from this? Mr. Contest Chair, friends, and people way in the back, OUCH!
What are your thoughts on the opening of Darren’s winning speech? My reflections:
• _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • ______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________
TRANSITION:
Do you feel I stayed down too long? Have YOU ever stayed down too long?
After 4 years of business school I went for the American dream. I bought a Subway sandwich shop. (You’re all
impressed, I can tell.) I don’t want to brag, but I took a $60,000 debt, and in six short months I doubled that debt. I turned
my Subway sandwich shop into a non-profit organization.
I financially fell on my face, but I realized I was not the only person from my home town of Auburn to fall on his
face. 100 years ago my first hero, Dr. Robert Goddard, had a ridiculous idea of building a device that could take off from
the earth and reach the stars! His failures were the reason we landed on the moon.
What are your thoughts on this piece of Darren’s winning speech? My reflections, what it means to me:
• _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________
TRANSITION:
I remember my ridiculous idea.
I was listening to a tape of Brian Tracy, a great speaker. He asked the question, “What would you dare to dream if
you knew you wouldn’t fail?” I struggled for an answer. Then, BING! I would be a comedian! But you have to
understand my background. I was not funny; I was not a class clown. In fact, the first time my brother ever laughed at me
was when I told him I was going to be a comedian. Ouch!
What are your thoughts on this piece of Darren’s winning speech? My reflections, what it means to me:
• _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________
TRANSITION:
Who do you want to be? What changes would you like to make in your life?
So many of us can see clearly where we want to go, and yet we go back and forth. If I just had more time, if I just
had a little more money, if the kids were a little older… But we never take that first step. Dr. Goddard’s first flight took
off in Auburn and landed in Auburn. It only went up 41 feet. The first step can be small.
What are your thoughts on this piece of Darren’s winning speech? My reflections, what it means to me:
• _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________
TRANSITION:
Strangers will mock your first step.
When the press found out about Goddard’s short flight in an effort to reach the moon, the headline read, “Moon
Rocket Misses Target by 238,799 1/2 Miles.” OUCH! It’s part of the process.
What are your thoughts on this piece of Darren’s winning speech? My reflections, what it means to me:
• _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________
TRANSTION:
We also have friends and family who love us and don’t want to see us fall.
Imagine my parents’ reactions after stretching their budget to help get me through college, seeing me fall on my
face, and then my coming home (hands in pocket): “Mom, Dad, I want to be a comedian.” I was met by silence. (Mouth
OUCH!)
What are your thoughts on this piece of Darren’s winning speech? My reflections, what it means to me:
• _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________
TRANSITION:
It’s part of the process.
;
After a year of trying comedy I remember a night - I’d been bombing for 20 minutes. So I went for my surefire bit. I
brought a woman up from the audience. She stood directly behind me and put her arms forward in place of mine. I would
tell the story verbally as she told it in gestures. It always works best the more animated the hands are. Well, this woman
stood there like an ancient statue. I turned to her in desperation, “Please do something with your hands.” She did: she...
(cover mouth) OuuuuuuuCH! I called my mentor, Rick. “I bombed! They hated me! Rick said, “SO?” “What do you
mean so?” Rick said, “Darren, every comedian, every speaker, anyone who has accomplished anything, has fallen on their
face.”
What are your thoughts on this piece of Darren’s winning speech? My reflections, what it means to me:
• _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________
TRANSITION:
Then I remembered SUBWAY...
I fell on my face, but I never took the next step. The step AFTER the Ouch is the most difficult. Take it. It will be
hard, you’ll be unsure, but when that foot lands, oh, you’re going like that feeling.
TRANSITION:
We learn from the Ouch!
Dr. Goddard always referred to failure as valuable negative information, information essential for each step towards
landing on the moon.
He was an Ouchmaster. We need to be Ouchmasters.
What are your thoughts on this piece of Darren’s winning speech? My reflections, what it means to me:
• _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________
TRANSITION:
If you are willing to fail, you can learn anything.
CLOSING:
I still have my day job, but it’s because I took the step after the Ouch. Now my picture hangs in a comedy club in
my home town. I was not given the gift of making people laugh. I was given the opportunity to take a next step. So were
you. What is your next step? Take it!
I didn’t want to look back on my life and say, “I never did try stand-up, but, instead, I PAID ALL MY BILLS!”
We will find that our feet get stuck, and we are so afraid of the Ouch we forget that when we take a risk and fall on our face, we still make progress. Fall forward.
What are your thoughts on the closing of Darren’s winning speech? My reflections, what it means to me:
• _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ • _____________________________________________________________________________________________________
Winning Speech, August 25th, 2001, Anaheim, CA
Study the speech in my online video course.
http://www.DarrenLaCroix.com/
©2014 The Humor Institute, Inc. If you got a lot out of this program…
What’s next? Check out: • Get your connect card: http://www.TheConnectCard.com • Create Your Keynote by Next Week • Own the Stage: How to Take Your Speech from Good to Great • Join us for a LIVE Get Coached to Speak Champ Camp http://www.worldchampsLIVE.com
