Difference between revisions of "Write a Thank You Speech"

{{fa}}Writing a thank you speech can be intimidating. It is challenging to remember all of the people who have helped you along the way. If you recently reached a personal, spiritual or career milestone, you may be wondering how to compose a ‘thank you’ speech. A ‘thank you’ speech needs to identify all of the people you are thankful for, as well as the specific things you are thankful for and their personal or professional meaning to you. While ‘thank you’ speeches are relatively straightforward, they can be tricky to write, especially if the list of people to thank is very large or very small.

[[Category:Speechwriting]]

#Make sure you have a complete list. Give yourself twenty minutes to review your existing list and consider whether you are missing anyone. On a blank piece of paper, brainstorm a list of people you may need to thank who are not currently on your list. After adding any additional names, review the list and write down what you are grateful for under each name, such as contributions, advice or expertise. You may want to consider the following prompts:<ref>http://www.write-out-loud.com/thank-you-speech.html</ref>

#Start ordering your list. If your list is handwritten, start by copying your list into a spreadsheet or text editing program so that it can be easily rearranged. Then, arrange the names by what you are specifically grateful for, such as friendship, time or expertise. Once you have the list ordered by type of gratitude, you may want to rank the list from most to least important contributions under each category. When you start writing your speech, it will be helpful to have individual lists of people you want to thank for specific types of contributions.<ref>http://www.write-out-loud.com/thank-you-speech.html</ref>

#Organize your list to accommodate time constraints. ‘Thank you’ speeches should be short and succinct. Review your list and consider how you might organize your list for concision. You could try re-organizing the list according to function, such as all of the people who made me laugh or all of the people who pushed me to reach higher in life. When you write the speech, you can give thanks to people according to their function or role and then just list their names. This will give you more time to spend on particularly important individuals, as identified in your ranked list.<ref>http://www.write-out-loud.com/thank-you-speech.html</ref>

#*For instance, a ‘thank you’ speech at a wedding should be no longer than three minutes long.<ref>http://www.thank-you-notes.com/wedding-thank-you-speech.html</ref>

#Outline the structure of your speech. Your speech may include an introduction, body and conclusion. The introduction and conclusion are optional, depending on your time limits. The body of the speech should begin by expressing gratitude to the most important people on your list. It may proceed with shorter expressions of gratitude to larger groups of people. On a blank piece of paper, compose a quick outline with section headings and the main points you want to make in each section.<ref>http://www.write-out-loud.com/thank-you-speech.html</ref>

#Picture one person you want to address. As you write your speech, bring to mind a particular individual that you want your speech to touch. Imagine you are in a conversation with this individual or that your speech is a letter to them personally. When people hear your speech, they will get the impression that you are talking to them on a personal level.<ref>http://www.inc.com/eric-markowitz/crafting-the-perfect-short-thank-you-speech.html</ref>

#Speak from the heart. A great thank you speech is written from a personal, genuine place of gratitude. You should think about what you are really grateful for, and try to express this gratitude in a genuine way in your speech. Some examples of genuine ‘thank you’ speeches include:<ref>http://articles.latimes.com/2007/feb/23/entertainment/et-speeches23</ref>

#Avoid verbosity. Write short and succinct sentences. If something sounds a little too verbose on paper, it will definitely be too long-winded in a speech. In particular, you want to avoid writing sentences with multiple and complex clauses.<ref>http://www.inc.com/eric-markowitz/crafting-the-perfect-short-thank-you-speech.html</ref>

#Write an introduction. Your introduction should address the reason for the occasion, such as an award, career achievement, convention, wedding or other special event. If you have enough time, you may want to start with a little story about the lead-up to the event, a brief history of your career, an amusing anecdote, or a quote.<ref>http://www.write-out-loud.com/thank-you-speech.html</ref>

#*If it is a short ‘thank you’ speech, it is often best to skip the intro entirely. The audience will know why you are giving the speech, so follow the example of Abraham Lincoln who always skipped the introduction.<ref>http://www.inc.com/eric-markowitz/crafting-the-perfect-short-thank-you-speech.html</ref>

#Finish composing the body of your speech. Once you have written about the people at the top of your ‘thank you’ list, write a few paragraphs devoted to people who have served particular roles or functions in your life. If this doesn’t work, you could also try organizing the list by keywords such as job categories.<ref>http://www.write-out-loud.com/thank-you-speech.html</ref>

#Compose a conclusion. Although the conclusion is optional, it can be nice to wrap things up with a short summary or a provocative quote. If your time is very limited, you can skip the conclusion entirely. If you have enough time, consider using a memorable quote that relates to your occasion. For instance, you could use one of the following ‘thank you’ quotes:<ref>http://www.write-out-loud.com/thank-you-quotes.html</ref>

#*You could try using online script timers to get a rough sense of your speech time. However, you should still practice with a real timer because everyone speaks at a slightly different pace.<ref>http://www.edgestudio.com/production/words-to-time-calculator</ref>

#Practice your speech alone and with friends. You will need to practice multiple times before the actual event. Start by practicing in front of a mirror. As you become comfortable with the speech, you could try using the note cards. After a few times, you could try reading it to friends or family members. If you're well prepared, you'll feel far more comfortable when you actually have to give the speech.<ref>https://www.hawaii.edu/mauispeech/html/practicing_speeches.html</ref>