Dr. Benjamin S. Carson made a speech for Howard University’s 143rd Convocation. He spoke on these topics: the purpose of a university, the potential that is within each Howard University student, and how to measure success. He made different points about thinking outside of the box and how, individually, we control our own destiny. Along with that, he spoke about success.  He made me think when he asked the students that if we do everything that’s already been done, how do we progress? He advised us to take the talent that God has given us and to use it to help inspire and encourage others. When he stated this, I started thinking about how I could do that. My talent would be dancing and stepping, and my career goal is to run an after-school program in secondary schools teaching step and dance, so I understood what he was saying. He cleverly turned his speech into a story that all the students were able to relate to. He told us how his nickname used to be “dummy” and how he had a talent for getting other students kicked out of class, which was amusing. He spoke about how he was never really the smart one or the brainiac in class and how he didn’t like to listen to his teachers. When he said this, everyone in the audience was smiling and laughing. His speech was personal, but it was incredibly inspiring and encouraging. There was definitely a certain structure to his speech. It was as if he had written an outline for himself and tried to follow it. Nothing seemed very prepared or rehearsed but he still managed to deliver a fantastic speech. The delivery was great and he seemed happy wiht it. He had good eye contact and a clear voice. He even dropped a few papers in the middle of his speech and paused quickly to pick them up. He started talking about like nothing had happened. At the beginning of the speech he stated, “It’s so hard to talk to a large group of people now-a-days without offending someone.” To me, this quote meant that he was somewhat comfortable performing his speech. He told us that his speech wasn’t meant to offend anyone and that if any one happened to be offended in the while he was delivering his speech, it was just too bad. He then talked about the people who worked to have our generation be in the position it’s in. How we have so many more opportunities that our ancestors didn’t get, and how we need to take advantage of this fact. In conclusion, I loved his speech and his delivery. He made people in the audience think, laugh, smile, and maybe even cry. He was very inspiring and definitely made me feel like I’m in a great generation with multiple opportunities. 

-Rebecca Zoll