Dananjaya Hettiarachchi - World Champion of Public Speaking 2014 - Full Speech

Summary

In this heartfelt speech, Dananjaya Hettiarachchi draws a parallel between the uniqueness of a flower and the individuality of each person. He candidly shares his journey from a troubled youth to finding purpose, emphasizing the transformative power of people who see potential in us. Hettiarachchi's narrative illustrates the importance of unconditional love and support in overcoming life's challenges, ultimately inspiring the audience to recognize their own special qualities.

Takeaways

• 🌼 Uniqueness: Each person is as unique as a flower, with something special that makes them beautiful.
• 💔 Life's Struggles: Life can be harsh and may break one's spirit, making it hard to feel special or valuable.
• 👩‍👦 Family Impact: The emotional reactions of family members, especially a mother's tears of shame, can be a pivotal moment in one's life.
• 👨‍👦 Paternal Support: A father's acceptance and guidance can provide a different perspective and a path forward after failure.
• 🧐 Mentorship: A mentor's belief in one's potential, even when it's not yet clear, can be a powerful motivator for self-discovery and growth.
• 🌐 Learning Beyond School: Knowledge and inspiration can come from unexpected places, such as a mentor sharing stories about the world, history, and philosophy.
• 🎓 Education Revisited: Returning to education after a period of personal growth can lead to new opportunities and a fresh start.
• 🤔 Identity and Purpose: Even with education, one can still feel lost and unsure about their purpose in life.
• 🗣️ Public Speaking: Discovering a talent and passion for speaking can lead to new career paths and personal fulfillment.
• 💕 Love and Support: Unconditional love from a partner can provide strength and reassurance during times of self-doubt and financial insecurity.
• 🤝 Community: Being part of a supportive community can help one find their place and purpose, even when they feel broken or lost.
• 🛑 Resilience: The ability to recover and become whole again after being broken is often due to the support and belief of others in one's life.

Q & A

What is the main theme of Dananjaya Hettiarachchi's speech 'I See Something'?

The main theme is the uniqueness and potential within each individual, despite life's challenges and setbacks.

How does Dananjaya compare people to flowers in his speech?

Dananjaya compares people to flowers by highlighting that each person, like each flower, is unique and has something special that makes them beautiful.

What personal experience does Dananjaya share to illustrate his message?

Dananjaya shares his experience of flunking high school, getting arrested, and his mother’s reaction, which led to a turning point in his life.

What role did Dananjaya's father play in his transformation?

Dananjaya's father supported him by introducing him to his friend Sam, who helped Dananjaya discover his potential and encouraged his personal development.

Who was Sam and how did he influence Dananjaya's life?

Sam was an accountant who became Dananjaya's mentor. He saw potential in Dananjaya and helped him find it by sharing knowledge and inspiring him to dream.

How did Dananjaya's involvement in a club help him find his path?

Dananjaya joined a club where he discovered his passion for speaking, which eventually led him to become a teacher and a motivational speaker.

What significance does the phrase 'I see something in you' have in Dananjaya's speech?

The phrase represents the belief and encouragement others had in Dananjaya, which helped him realize his potential and transform his life.

How does Dananjaya describe the different types of tears his mother cried?

Dananjaya describes his mother's tears as tears of joy, tears of sorrow, and tears of shame, emphasizing the impact of seeing her cry tears of shame.

What lesson does Dananjaya convey about the importance of having supportive people in one's life?

Dananjaya emphasizes that supportive people can help rebuild and restore someone who feels broken, lost, or broke, highlighting the power of unconditional love and encouragement.

What impact did Dananjaya's wife have on his journey?

Dananjaya's wife provided unconditional love and support, helping him through difficult times and reinforcing the belief that she saw something special in him.

Outlines

00:00

🌼 Rediscovering Self-Worth Amidst Life's Struggles

In this heartfelt narrative, Dananjaya Hettiarachchi draws a parallel between the uniqueness of a flower and the individuality of each person. He candidly shares his personal journey of self-discovery after a troubled adolescence, which included failing high school and an arrest. The pivotal moment of his mother's tears of shame at the police station and his father's pragmatic approach to his situation led him to work under an accountant named Sam. Sam's belief in Dananjaya's potential, despite not knowing what it was, sparked a transformation. Through daily lessons on various subjects, Dananjaya found his passion for learning and dreaming, eventually returning to complete his education and later, college. Despite achieving academic success, he grappled with the uncertainty of his life's direction until he found love and the support of his father, who introduced him to a community that would further shape his path.

05:05

🎤 The Power of Belief and Unconditional Love in Overcoming Adversity

Continuing from his previous narrative, Dananjaya describes his introduction to a club that would significantly impact his life. His initial success in a 'table topic' exercise caught the attention of a kind stranger who saw potential in him, echoing the sentiment of Sam. This stranger's words led Dananjaya to discover his talent for speaking and his passion for teaching. Despite facing financial struggles and moments of self-doubt, the unwavering support and love from his wife and the people around him pieced him back together every time he felt broken. Dananjaya emphasizes the importance of having supportive individuals in one's life who can help rebuild one's sense of self-worth and purpose. He concludes by expressing his belief in the audience's potential, mirroring the faith others had in him, and encouraging them to recognize their own unique qualities.

Keywords

💡Uniqueness

Uniqueness refers to the distinctive qualities that make something or someone one-of-a-kind. In the context of the video, the speaker compares the audience to a flower, emphasizing that each person is unique and has something special that makes them beautiful. This concept is central to the video's theme of self-worth and individuality.

💡Resilience

Resilience is the ability to recover quickly from difficulties or adapt to change. The speaker's narrative showcases his resilience through various life challenges, such as flunking high school and getting arrested, and how he managed to overcome these setbacks to find his path in life.

💡Shame

Shame is a painful feeling of humiliation or distress caused by the awareness of one's own shortcomings. In the script, the speaker describes the moment he saw his mother's tears of shame, which was a pivotal moment that led to a change in his life direction.

💡Unconditional Love

Unconditional love is a type of love that is not dependent on conditions or rewards. The speaker mentions the unconditional love from his wife, which helped him to see his own worth despite his struggles and financial instability.

💡Potential

Potential refers to the capacity to develop into something in the future. The video emphasizes the idea that everyone has untapped potential, as illustrated by the speaker's encounter with Sam, who saw something in him and helped him discover his abilities.

💡Rebuilding

Rebuilding is the process of constructing or establishing something again after it has been damaged or destroyed. The speaker's life story is a testament to the power of rebuilding, as he was able to piece his life back together multiple times with the help of others.

💡Dreaming

Dreaming is the act of envisioning a future or having aspirations. The speaker discovered his ability to dream and set goals for himself, which was a significant step in his journey towards self-improvement and finding his purpose.

💡Discovery

Discovery is the act of finding something new or previously unknown. The video's narrative is filled with moments of discovery, such as when the speaker found his love for speaking and teaching, which were pivotal in shaping his identity.

💡Support

Support is the act of giving assistance or encouragement. The speaker's story highlights the importance of support from others, like his parents and Sam, in helping him navigate through life's challenges and find his path.

💡Transformation

Transformation is a profound change in form, appearance, or character. The speaker's life underwent several transformations, from being a troubled youth to becoming a teacher and a speaker, illustrating the power of personal growth and change.

💡Self-Worth

Self-worth is the value or esteem that a person places on themselves. The video's message is about recognizing and valuing one's own self-worth, even in the face of adversity and self-doubt, as the speaker did throughout his life.

Highlights

The speaker emphasizes the uniqueness of every individual, likening each person to a special flower.

The challenge of finding what makes one special, especially after life's hardships.

The speaker's personal story of breaking down at seventeen, failing high school, and getting arrested.

The emotional impact of seeing one's mother cry tears of shame and the life-changing moment it represents.

The contrasting reactions of the speaker's mother and father to his arrest and the lessons learned from them.

The introduction of Sam, the accountant, who sees potential in the speaker despite his troubled past.

Sam's offer to help the speaker discover his hidden talents and the transformative effect of this mentorship.

The speaker's rediscovery of education and the joy of learning from Sam's stories about the world.

The speaker's return to high school, completion of exams, and subsequent college education.

The struggle of finding one's purpose in life after achieving academic success.

The introduction to a 'strange club' and the impact of public speaking on the speaker's life direction.

The affirmation from a stranger in the club who also sees potential in the speaker, echoing Sam's earlier words.

The speaker's journey to becoming a teacher and finding his passion for speaking.

The importance of recognizing the value of people in one's life who can help rebuild after personal failures.

The speaker's acknowledgment of his own brokenness and the role of others in his healing process.

The wife's unconditional love and belief in the speaker's potential, despite not fully understanding it.

The speaker's final message of hope and the power of seeing potential in others, ending with an open invitation to the audience.

Transcripts

Dananjaya Hettiarachchi, “I See Something”.

“I See Something”, Dananjaya Hettiarachchi.

You and I are not very different from this flower.

Just like this flower is unique, you are unique.

All of us have something special that makes us as beautiful.

Do you know what makes you special?

Now the answer to that can be a little difficult to find

because sometimes life has a cruel way

of picking out your petals,

breaking you in two and throwing you into the trash.

And when you’re broken, it’s very difficult to feel special.

Mr Contest Chair, my fellow flowers.

I can remember the first time I broke

I was seventeen years old.

I had already flunked high school

and managed to get myself arrested.

Now, I wasn’t afraid of the cops,

but there was one person I was very afraid of

and that was my mama.

Raise your hand if you had an emotional mother.

Let me see.

Put them all together you get my mama.

I can hear her scream outside the police station.

Even the cops were afraid.

She came up to me

held the iron bars

looked into my eyes

and I saw a tear coming down her face.

Now I’ve seen my mama crying before,

but mothers cry three types of tears

tears of joy, tears of sorrow and tears of shame.

And when a son sees mother cry tears of shame

that’s a life changing moment

She looked at me and said

“Son, I want you to be a better man”.

That night when I drove home

my dad was waiting for me at home.

Now my dad is a cool dad.

Raise your hand if you have a cool dad.

Put them all together you get my dad.

My dad came up to me and said: “son it’s okay."

"You flunked your exams. You already got arrested"

"That’s fine"

"You get that from your mother's side"

"I want you to start working immediately”

And I said, okay.

So my dad took me to meet one his friends called Sam.

Now, Sam was an accountant

who had an accounting firm and had generously decided

to make me his personal assistant

and there he was

He looked like a teddy bear,

but this man was special

I looked at him and he looked at me

and then he said the most amazing thing

He said “Son, I see something in you, but I don’t know what it is.

If you decide to work with me, I can help you find that something”

And I was like, wow, that’s the first time in my whole life somebody has ever told they see something in me

and I started working for Sam.

And everyday after work

he used to tell me stories about the world, about history, about culture, about philosophy

and it was much more interesting than what I learned in school

And I discovered

I can dream and I started dreaming, ladies and gentleman.

After one year I went back into high school, completed my exams and went into college.

After successfully completing college

I found a great girl

but not a job

I didn’t know what I wanted to do with my life.

Have you ever had that problem?

And when you’re lost it’s difficult to feel special.

So I went back to my cool dad and I said “Dad, I feel lost”

He said, “you are like your mother”

So my dad introduced me to this strange club

that had a strange name

with strange people

talking.

On the first meeting, they told me to do something called 'table topic'

I aced it!

But while I was speaking I see a strange man seated in the back row

humble, simple, the unfailing quality of kindness in his eyes.

As soon I finished he walked up to me

looked me dead straight in the eye and said

“Son, I see something in you"

"but I don’t know what it is"

If you come here twice a month maybe we can find that something.”

And ladies and gentlemen, I discovered I could speak

and I love speaking and that led me to become a teacher

I know what it’s like to not have enough money in your bank account

I know what it’s like to worry when the bills start coming in

And sometimes

in the middle of the night

I wake up my beautiful wife and ask her

“honey, why did you marry me?”

She says

“I saw something in you"

"But I still I don’t know what it is"

Ladies and gentleman today I’m a dreamer, I’m a speaker

and I learned the unfailing quality of unconditional love from my wife.

I was broken and I’ve been broken, lost and broke many times in my life

but the people in my life

were able to reach into the trash can and make me whole again

If it was up to me

I would have never been able to do that

And this is why if you have great people in your life

no matter how broke

how lost or how broken you become

they can piece you back together.

Ladies and gentleman, when I look at you

I see something in you

but I don’t know what it is

Over to you