Speeches / 'Envy, angry emotions' - What can I add or take out to make this speech better? [2]

Please don't judge this gramatically, this is simply a rough draft. I am not submitting this for any sort of grade, this is only for a competition that I have of friday.

I often find myself in envy. Angry emotions towards those who have more than me. Watching my mother constantly get rejected from job to job pains me, she constantly took it out on me. At first this made me resent her, then I slowly started to understand her frustration towards her constant shortcomings. I can deal with it. The thing that gets me mad is being told I can't do something because of my financial situation. Being told "I didn't think you would make it this far" or "Coming from your situation, this is an accomplishment" what I accomplish has nothing to do with financial opportunities. These are simply backhanded compliments that are not intended to motivate me, but to show one's surprise. Being offered free stuff, whether it be from a friend or the government I feel dissatisfied. I feel as if I can't support myself, but of course I have to take the opportunities provided.

Financial discrimination is not only the incapability of having money, it's those around you having pity for you, it's battling with the constant feeling that you will never be independent. Financial discrimination is the greatest opponent I have contended with. Coming to a fork in the road trying to decide, either to work hard to obtain the stuff I need, or to take it. But at the same time it's a fun journey. Not being able to go to sleep because I fantasize about how successful my future will be. It's funny how I tell people what I want to accomplish and they just brush it off. Being financially disabled is what sparks my ambition. I don't look down at what little I have, I look up towards my future. Everytime I procrastinate I just look around my neighborhood and I start to tear. Not because I'm sad, but because with the very little I have makes me understand that diamonds are made under pressure.

I don't want to be successful, I need to be. I need it to move my mom out the neighborhood that I am currently in, I need it to help my community and others and provide opportunities that I can't clutch. This is not an over exaggeration, I want to be successful as bad as I want to breath. If I achieve my aspirations, I could eradicate financial discrimination. I don't care whether I inspire one community or one nation. As long as I help somebody, I'll be happy. But if I don't, I fear we will be stuck in the same circle we already are currently in.

You see, financial discrimination is the necessary evil in the world. It's what motivates people to better the world, it's the bridge between lower class and the middle class, the middle class and the upper class. But at the same time it's what brings the demise of the weak, it's the difference between, "I will" and "I quit". Financial discrimination is not only a motivator to do better, but to do worse. When you discriminate against people financially it pushes them to the edge. You strip opportunities from them so they have to fight to survive, whether it be legal or illegal. Discriminating causes you to look down upon people who have less than you so they want to look superior.

On the other end, a risk is similar. When a person succeeds, they might forget where they came from and only use their money for selfish gain which is bad for our society. In conclusion, I see the positives and negatives in this type of discrimination. This makes me work upon myself in every aspect. This makes me realise that the perfect time for something does not have to exist. There is no perfect time I can play the lottery and win it, I have to create this opportunity. If there was that opportunity we all would be rich. Every community would have gold roads and skyscrapers. The wealthiest place on the earth is not any private community, but it is the graveyard, because in the graveyard lie so many ambitions that died with it's creators, I am now officially awake, financial discrimination is not a positive nor negative thing, it's a entity that we have complete control over, it is us...

Speeches / SkillsUSA Speech: Connecting You to Career Success [2]

Themes Below Speech
A man who loses ambition is a sad sight to see. To look in the face of a challenge and say, "I give up, you won". The purpose of all desires are to be fulfilled, when they are reached you stop desiring them; when the desiring stops, the fulfillment stops. Why is it that ambition is such a rare quality in humanity? According to Oxfam's American report, "Hard Work, Hard Lives.", 62% of americans have faith in the american dream, 33% says hard work does not guarantee success and 5% are unsure. If the population in the united states of america is 322 million, that means 102.26 million people give into their own fears. The fact of the matter is, more and more americans are losing faith in the american dream and why is that? Clearly, americans can't get ahead financially. This is completely idiotic, many companies are reporting that they need more workers

When I was younger, I wanted to be a firefighter. What kid hasn't. But why is it that almost every child wants to be a firefighter or police officer? At a young age, the goal is never to make money, it is simply to be happy and selfless, not to make money. Unfortunately, somehow, over the last few decades our perception of success changed. In the 21st century we no longer want to be happy, we want to make money. Success is not a competition to see who can make the most money the fastest and it is not obtainable by the means of selfish ambition. We could make the american dream a reality, but that cannot happen if we go back to the way things were. It can only happen if we summon a new spirit.

It is my firm belief that every... single... human has has a desire to succeed in his or her goals. But every now and again, we need a little push. That's the purpose of SkillsUSA, In my younger years I tried out for everything, just for the fun of it. Victory was always the itch I could scratch but could never vanquish, I never cared until my later years. My junior year of high school I joined SkillsUSA As the time for the competition came, I failed. I was so devastated symbolically, holding myself at gunpoint. I failed as a SkillsUSA member by being one of the few people who did not take home a medal. I look back at this experience in content, this failure empowered me by making me work harder because one day I know I will prevail and I would not have the aspiration I do in order to achieve my goals.

Coming from the a low income area where education is not popular amongst the majority, I never grabbed the idea of the real world before high school. I was always thought that better grades would create a better job. The fact of the matter is college is expensive. Even with financial aid student debt is crushing an entire generation of non wealthy americans. With SkillsUSA and its various partners bridges the gap between education and the workforce. Unfortunately this is is a challenge. Business and industry employers rely on the younger generation but teenagers lack traits desired by businesses in the work force. Such as leadership, Resilience, competitiveness, consistency and drive. There are few companies and organizations that are actually centered on these values. But what if all companies started with this list, wouldn't america have a leg up in the economy. Even SkillsUSA could focus on these elements to be even more successful for the next 50 years.

If I had the opportunity to go back 51 years ago. A time where the wheel started moving, the ranger 8 being shot into orbit, Dr.King leading the march on alabama and the true birth of SkillsUSA. I would be mesmerized. Yes, this was a time of tragedy yet, a time of beauty. Where america united. We united to watch the ranger 8, we united to march, and we united to ensure the stability of the american economy. We only achieved this by fighting. Why is SkillsUSA so successful? Team members fought to be successful just like Dr.King fought for civil rights. This fight is not over. We fight to promise a better america for and now it is time to fulfill that promise. The only reason SkillsUSA is successful is because they united. and that's what inspired me to join SkillsUSA.

What elements and/or influences developed over the past 50 years have inspired your involvement in SkillsUSA today?
Describe the skills and attitudes that business and industry are demanding of students for career success
Describe how the mission of SkillsUSA - to empower its members to become world-class workers, leaders and responsible American citizens - guarantees career success.
How has the vision of career success changed over the decades?
Why is ensuring career success for every member of SkillsUSA important to the economic health and stability of our nation?

Speeches / Speech Competition Introduction Only - fitting into the theme [3]

How can I make this fit into the theme?

When I was younger, I wanted to be a firefighter. What kid hasn't. But why is it that almost every child wants to be a firefighter or police officer? How in our younger years we have ambitions of being bigger than life but as we get older our dreams get deferred and our ambition dies. It is a sad state of affairs in a world full of lex luthors not everyone can be a superman. The famous saying states "you either die a hero, or live long enough to see yourself become the villain" . Legendary poet Langston Hughes criticizes deferred dreams but is a dream deferred really a bad thing? According to a reporter's study there are 300,000 empty job spots and by 2025 that margin is said to increase to 700,000. Why is this? According to Dirty Jobs star Mike Rowe, "america has lost respect for middle class skill jobs". This saying is factual. Nobody wants to be an engineer, or a construction worker. Everybody wants to go to college or join the Nba. I respect a person with ambition , I have a lot of it myself. But what happens is people drop out of college freshman year, they don't get that athletic scholarship and there back where they started and that only increases the skills gap. There is something about american history. In my view there is nothing better than to hear about events that reflect American culture. How as a people we went from be the shores of a continent to the modern metropolis we call home. It's enchanting, but out of the 239 years this country has gone through only one describes America at its purest form. 1965. When most people hear that number they think of the Ranger 8 launch or Martin Luther King's march. When I hear it however I think of something that exemplifies America much more. Coming from the a low income area where education was not popular amongst the majority I never grabbed the idea of the real world before high school. I was always thought that better grades would create a better job. Typically in high school people make friends in the first few days, weeks or months. That was not me, I always had trouble making friends. By the end of freshman year I had very few friends. Come sophomore year I was roaming my high school hallways in boredom and I look into this one room and I see a bunch of leaders in red suits. This sparked my interest, I knew something monumental was going on, I just didn't know what. I asked a few members what was SkillsUSA, they gave me their definitions but it wasn't relevant to me.