2018 Toastmasters World Champion of Public Speaking, Ramona J. Smith

Summary

Ramona J. Smith shares her motivational journey through life's challenges in a powerful speech titled 'Still Standing.' Using boxing metaphors, she reflects on her personal battles in college, marriage, and public speaking. Despite multiple setbacks, including dropping out of college, a short-lived marriage, and losing a major speech contest, she emphasizes the importance of resilience. Smith encourages the audience to stay in the ring of life, learn from failures, and keep standing strong, ending on a humorous note about finding new possibilities in life and love.

Takeaways

• 💪 Life will feel like a fight, with challenges coming in the form of obstacles and failures, but perseverance is key to staying in the ring.
• 🎓 Round one: College. The speaker dropped out four times but eventually returned and graduated magna cum laude, showing persistence.
• 💔 Round two: Marriage. The speaker's marriage lasted only eight months before ending in divorce, another tough life challenge.
• 🎤 Round three: Speaking. Despite early success in speech competitions, the speaker faced a tough loss at the district level but learned to bounce back.
• 🤔 Most of our toughest battles are often with ourselves, as self-doubt and challenges test our resolve.
• 💥 Even after facing failures in multiple aspects of life, the speaker emphasized the importance of continuing to stand tall and fight back.
• 👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 When knocked down, it's important to lean on family, friends, or faith for support to get back up.
• 🏅 The speaker encourages everyone to stay in the ring, whether as a fighter or a coach, learning from setbacks and pushing through adversity.
• 💡 Life’s hardships can be turned into windows of possibility rather than mirrors of defeat if we keep pushing forward.
• 🎶 The speaker concludes by urging everyone to keep fighting, no matter the hits they take, so they can proudly declare, 'I’m still standing.'

Q & A

What metaphor does Ramona J. Smith use to describe life's challenges?

Ramona J. Smith uses the metaphor of a fight or boxing match to describe life's challenges, where the punches, jabs, and hooks represent obstacles and failures.

What are the 'rounds' Ramona J. Smith refers to in her speech?

The 'rounds' represent different life challenges: college, marriage, and public speaking, where she faced personal setbacks.

How many times did Ramona drop out of college, and how does this relate to her message?

Ramona dropped out of college four times. This illustrates her resilience and determination to keep standing despite repeated failures.

What does Ramona J. Smith mean by 'Round two' in her speech?

'Round two' refers to her marriage, which ended after only eight months, symbolizing another major personal challenge.

What happened during Ramona’s first experience with the International Speech Contest?

Ramona succeeded at multiple levels, winning at the club, area, and division levels, but she ultimately lost at the district level.

What helped Ramona J. Smith get back up after facing setbacks?

Ramona suggests that family, friends, faith, and inner strength can serve as lifelines to help individuals get back up after facing setbacks.

What accomplishment does Ramona highlight after dropping out of college four times?

Despite dropping out four times, Ramona eventually graduated magna cum laude, showcasing her perseverance and ability to overcome adversity.

How does Ramona J. Smith incorporate humor into her speech?

Ramona uses humor when discussing her failed marriage and her search for 'Mr. Right,' particularly by jokingly addressing single Toastmasters at the convention.

What is the central message of Ramona J. Smith's speech?

The central message is resilience—staying in the 'ring' of life, learning from challenges, and continuing to stand tall after adversity.

How does Ramona conclude her speech, and what is the final message she conveys?

Ramona concludes by encouraging her audience to stay in the ring, raise their hands in victory, and 'remain still standing,' no matter the challenges they face.

Outlines

00:00

🥊 Overcoming Life's Challenges: The Fighter's Spirit

Ramona J. Smith delivers a powerful message comparing life’s difficulties to a boxing match. She describes how challenges like college struggles, a failed marriage, and a setback in a speech contest felt like blows in the ring. Despite dropping out of college four times and going through a painful divorce, she learned from each failure. By persevering, she ultimately triumphed, encouraging others to stay strong and stand tall after life's toughest battles.

05:03

💪 Rising from Defeat: Still Standing Strong

In this closing section, Ramona reflects on her resilience. After failing four times in college, she graduated with honors. She lost a speech contest but is now addressing the audience from the World Championship stage. Her marriage ended, but she remains hopeful about the future. Ramona humorously invites single Toastmasters to reach out, showcasing her optimism. She concludes with a call to stay in the fight, whether as a coach or fighter, and emphasizes that learning from past hits ensures victory in the end.

Keywords

💡Fight

In the context of the speech, 'fight' symbolizes life's struggles and challenges. The speaker likens life to a boxing match, where obstacles come in the form of 'punches, jabs, and hooks.' These represent setbacks in education, marriage, and personal goals. The overall theme emphasizes perseverance through these 'fights' and learning from them to remain resilient.

💡Still Standing

'Still standing' is a recurring phrase in the speech and represents the idea of resilience and endurance. Despite life's difficulties and setbacks, the speaker remains standing, symbolizing personal victory and survival. This phrase is central to the message, encouraging listeners to stay strong and persevere, no matter the challenges.

💡Challenges

Challenges are described as the obstacles and difficulties one faces in life, often coming in unexpected or painful forms. The speaker references challenges in college, marriage, and professional growth. These challenges are depicted as essential to personal growth, and overcoming them is framed as a key to being 'still standing.'

💡Opponent

In the metaphor of life as a boxing match, 'opponent' refers to the obstacles or people that challenge us. The speaker highlights that the toughest opponent is often ourselves—our own fears, self-doubts, and past failures. This internal opponent is a key concept in the speech, as overcoming it is crucial to achieving success.

💡Round

Each 'round' in the speech represents a phase of life or a significant challenge the speaker has faced, such as dropping out of college, experiencing a divorce, or losing a speech contest. These rounds parallel the rounds in a boxing match, symbolizing different battles the speaker had to fight and learn from. The message encourages the audience to keep fighting through each round.

💡Lifeline

A 'lifeline' in the speech refers to the support systems we rely on when life becomes overwhelming. The speaker asks the audience to reflect on who their lifeline has been—whether it’s family, friends, or faith. The concept emphasizes the importance of reaching out for help during difficult times, and it also encourages the audience to be that lifeline for others.

💡Faith

'Faith' is mentioned as a source of strength that helps people endure tough times. It could be faith in oneself, faith in others, or religious faith. The speech suggests that faith can be a vital resource in helping someone rise after being knocked down, providing hope and resilience in the face of adversity.

💡Defeat

'Defeat' in the speech symbolizes moments of failure or loss. The speaker references feeling defeated after losing a speech competition and experiencing personal losses. However, the concept of defeat is not final but part of the process of growth and learning. The speaker reframes defeat as an opportunity to 'stand back up' and continue fighting.

💡Victory

'Victory' in the speech does not only refer to winning competitions or life battles but to personal triumphs like getting back up after being knocked down. The speaker highlights how both fighters and coaches will eventually raise their hands in victory if they persevere. It represents the internal success of overcoming adversity rather than external success alone.

💡Coach

A 'coach' in the speech represents those who support and encourage others through their struggles, like mentors, friends, or family. Coaches help fighters stay motivated and keep fighting. The speaker encourages listeners to be both fighters and coaches, recognizing the value of guiding others while also persevering in their personal battles.

Highlights

Life will sometimes feel like a fight, with punches, jabs, and hooks in the form of challenges, obstacles, and failures.

At the end of each round, if you stay in the ring and learn from past fights, you'll still be standing.

Our most challenging opponent is often ourselves.

Round one—college: I dropped out not one, not two, but four times, telling myself college wasn't for me.

Round two—marriage: Married my soul mate for eight long, beautiful months, but was knocked out with divorce soon after.

Round three—speaking: Competed in 2015, won multiple levels, but lost at the district level and was crushed.

After being knocked down multiple times, I was ready to give up—down for the count at six, seven, eight.

Who was your toughest opponent, and who helped you stand back up? Was it family, friends, or faith?

After picking myself up, I returned to college, graduated magna cum laude despite failing four times.

After my loss at the district level, I'm now speaking to you from the World Championship stage.

Even after suffering multiple losses, I’m still standing.

As for marriage, I haven’t found Mr. Right yet, but I’m still standing, and there are plenty of men around at this convention!

My challenge to you is to stay in the ring—whether as a fighter or a coach—use what you learned from past rounds.

When the final bell rings, fighters and coaches will raise their hands in victory, singing, 'I’m still standing.'

At the end of each round, after taking a few hits, you’ll remain standing by using what you’ve learned.

Transcripts

Ramona J. Smith.

“Still Standing.”

“Still Standing.”

Ramona J. Smith.

Life will sometimes feel like a fight.

The punches, jabs, and hooks will come in the form of challenges, obstacles, and failures.

Yet if you stay in the ring and learn from those past fights, at the end of each round,

you'll be still standing.

Mr. contest chair, fellow fighters, can you think of a time when life tried to knock you

down?

Who was your toughest opponent?

Most often, our most challenging opponent is ourselves.

Round one—college.

I dropped out of college not one, not two, not three, but four times.

I told myself college isn't for me and I would never go back.

Round two—marriage.

I married my soul mate—the love of my life, my best friend.

He was fine, too.

We were married for eight long, beautiful, amazing months.

You heard right—months, not years.

It was like immediately after we said I do, the heavyweight champion came in and delivered

an electrifying knockout blow to our vows.

Boom!

Divorced.

Round three—speaking.

In 2015, I competed for the first time in the International Speech Contest.

I won at the club level, I won at the area level, I won at the division level.

Then the district level was on the way!

I was on the road, I was on fire, I was unstoppable!

I lost.

I was crushed.

After going three rounds and taking hit after hit, I was ready to throw in the towel.

I was down for the count.

Six, seven, eight.

When was the last time life knocked you down?

Who was that lifeline that you reached out to, to help you stand back up?

Was it your family?

Your friends?

Or did you hold on to your faith?

Maybe you've never been knocked down, but you've seen one of your family members take

a devastating blow.

Were you the lifeline that they were reaching out to, to help them stand back up?

Were you the coach in the corner saying, “Get up, get up.

Stand up?”

As I gathered all the strength within myself, to pick myself back up and stand.

Instead of looking into a mirror of defeat, it became a window of possibilities.

I got back in the ring.

I went back to college.

I got my degree and I graduated magna cum laude.

Yeah, after failing four times, I was still standing.

After my loss at the district level, I'm speaking to you from the World Championship stage.

It's a moment!

Thank you.

Thank you.

Even after suffering loss, I'm still standing.

As for my marriage, I'm still in training.

I have not yet found Mr. right, but this is an international convention.

And there are thousands of men from hundreds of different countries, so single Toastmasters—call

me!

Even after my divorce, I'm still standing.

My challenge to you is to stay in the ring.

Whether you're a fighter or a coach, if you're on the side of the ring coaching, or if you're

in that ring throwing those jabs and those hooks, when that final bell rings— ding,

ding, ding—the fighters and the coaches will raise their hands in victory, singing,

“I'm still standing, yeah, yeah, yeah.

We're still standing.”

Very nice.

Stay in that ring.

And even after you take a few hits, use what you learned from those previous fights, and

at the end of each round, you'll remain still standing.

Mr. contest chair.