Have you ever tried building a new skill? Do you find that sometimes it’s harder than you expect? That is what I found recently when I tried to incorporate a quote from Aristotle into a live speech I was doing and realized just how hard that is. It did share the quote but modified a few words toward the end. It was ironic that the quote itself is about pursuing excellence. Here is his quote:

“Excellence is never an accident. It is always the result of high intention, sincere effort, and intelligent execution; it represents the wise choice of many alternatives – choice, not chance, determines your destiny.”

Some things I learned:

– It’s easier to share a quote at the beginning rather than the end of a speech. I was very wrapped up in my speech, and my mind went blank as I got to the quote. 

– Make sure you practice the quote as part of the speech. My speech was not memorized word for word, but rather the outline was memorized. As I rehearsed the speech, I should have rehearsed the quote within that practice. I didn’t do that. I tried to memorize the quote separately, and it became disjointed as a result.

-The long pause I had as I was searching for my quote generated more interest in the quote, but that pause was not intentional like it could have been.

-There is no substitute for consistent practice and making sure it’s

On the bright side, the speech went well, and I did accurately quote Jim Kwik a couple times (“There’s no such thing as a good or bad memory, only a trained or untrained one”). Ironically, the speech was about tips for improving your memory.

I hope these tips help you as you are trying something new. What are your thoughts, and what skills have you tried to build lately? What are your favorite quotes that you like to share?

Steve Karski

Karski Learning Solutions, LLC

www.stevekarski.comwwwstevekarski.com