B. Open Impromptu Speaking Event Prompts

Round 1

  1. Speaker 1


    If animals have moody days, they handle them better than humans do. (Betty White)

    My confidence wavers between being genuine and being insecure. (Bob Saget)

    Everyone knows keeping someone's dish for longer than 48 hours is basically a slap in the face. (Louie Anderson)

  2. Speaker 2


    You can always tell about somebody by the way they put their hands on an animal. (Betty White)

    I don’t censor myself, but I don’t want to force my sick-skewed version of the world, either. (Bob Saget)

    The older you get the more humility you have. (Louie Anderson)

  3. Speaker 3


    If you live without passion, you can go through life without leaving any footprints. (Betty White)

    When you’re famous, you’re always famous. It doesn’t go away. (Bob Saget)

    It’s so much easier to be cynical. (Louie Anderson)

  4. Speaker 4


    You don’t luck into integrity. You work at it. (Betty White)

    – Nobody gets a free ride, except maybe bus drivers. (Bob Saget)

    All great comedians make me laugh, but people make me laugh more. (Louie Anderson)

  5. Speaker 5


    My mother always used to say, 'The older you get, the better you get. Unless you’re a banana.’ (Betty White)

    – They say “keep your enemies closer,” but what if you live with them? (Bob Saget)

    – If I were the last person on Earth, some moron would turn left in front of me. (Louie Anderson)

  6. Speaker 6


    Everyone always comes to one point in their life as an artist where you can either let your heart guide you or your ego. (Louie Anderson)

    – Nobody can tell me what I can or can’t do; except that they can. (Bob Saget)

    I’m a teenager trapped in an old body. (Betty White)

Round 2

  1. Speaker 1


    The roots of the word “compete” are the Latin con petire, which meant “to seek together.” (Mihaly Csikszentmihaly)

    A leader is one who knows the way, goes the way, and shows the way. (John Maxwell)

    What you do teaches faster, and has a lasting impression, far beyond what you say. (T. F. Hodge)

  2. Speaker 2


    Resistance is a sign that shows you're going the right way. (Constance Friday)

    Lead me, follow me, or get out of my way. (General George Patton)

    If everyone likes what you say something is wrong with your message. (Ashley Orman)

  3. Speaker 3


    Play to win, not "not to lose.” (Dondi Scumac)

    To command is to serve, nothing more and nothing less. (Andre Malraux)

    Sometimes not speaking says more than all the words in the world. (Colleen Hoover)

  4. Speaker 4


    Never compete with someone who has nothing to lose. (Baltasar Gracian)

    Anyone can hold the helm when the sea is calm. (Publilius Syrus)

    Trust your mind when it says that it has nothing much to say. (Michael Johnson)

  5. Speaker 5


    The early bird gets the worm, but the second mouse gets the cheese. (Willie Nelson)

    People buy into the leader before they buy into the vision. (John Maxwell)

    Those who don't value their words, will never value your wishes. (Amit Kalantri)

  6. Speaker 6


    Real learning comes about when the competitive spirit has ceased. (Jiddu Krishnamurti)

    A great leader's courage to fulfill his vision comes from passion, not position. (John Maxwell)

    If you can't impress them with your argument, impress them with your actions. (Amit Kalantri)

Finals

  1. Speaker 1


    – One of the hardest things in life is having words in your heart that you can’t utter. (James Earl Jones)

    – The best way to make dreams come true is to wake up. (Mae Jemison)

    – Even if it makes others uncomfortable, I will love who I am. (Janelle Monae) 

  2. Speaker 2


    – You’ve got to learn to leave the table when love’s no longer being served. (Nina Simone)

    – The most common way people give up their power is by thinking they don’t have any. (Alice Walker)

    – If you don’t have confidence, you’ll always find a way not to win. (Carl Lewis)

  3. Speaker 3


    – If there is a book that you want to read, but it hasn’t been written yet, you must be the one to write it. (Toni Morrison)

    – Life is not a spectator sport. (Jackie Robinson)

    – I am lucky that whatever fear I have inside me, my desire to win is always stronger. (Serena Williams)

  4. Speaker 4


    – If the only time you think of me as a scientist is during Black History Month, then I must not be doing my job as a scientist. (Neil deGrasse Tyson)

    – I’m not quite sure what freedom is, but I know damn well what it ain’t. (Assata Shakur)

    – If there is no struggle, there is no progress. (Frederick Douglass)

  5. Speaker 5


    – Racism is man’s gravest threat to man – the maximum of hatred for a minimum of reason. (Abraham Heschel)

    – To be free is not merely to cast off one’s chains, but to live in a way that respects and enhances the freedom of others. (Nelson Mandela)

    – The cost of liberty is less than the price of repression. (W.E.B. Du Bois)

  6. Speaker 6


    – You’re not to be so blind with patriotism that you can’t face reality. Wrong is wrong, no matter who does it or says it. (Malcolm X)

    – Defining myself, as opposed to being defined by others, is one of the most difficult challenges I face. (Carole Moseley-Braun) 

    – In recognizing the humanity of our fellow beings, we pay ourselves the highest tribute. (Thurgood Marshall)

  7. Speaker 7


    – A lot of times we censor ourselves before the censors even get there. (Spike Lee)

    – When you focus on your enemies, you are ignoring your allies. (Stacey Abrams)

    – My vocation is my vacation. (Nick Cannon)