Writing Your Own Speech Introducing Yourself

1. State your name very clearly near or at the beginning. Names are important to most people.
You do not want them questioning your name in their mind throughout your entire introduction
example : Hi, my name is Marina Potrero...

2. Give details about your current situation. Let the people know where you are at in your life.
example : I live in an off-campus apartment with my boyfriend and a pet field mouse called Mr.
Souris, and I work at the campus greenhouse and garden.

3. Name all of your accomplishments. Tell about any awards or recognitions you have received
along with any contributions you have made to society.
example : and I am a senior at Arizona College studying to get my Ecology major and Business
minor.

4. Discuss where you come from in life. Briefly make note of where you were born and raised.
example : I was born and raised in Phoenix and have three sisters. I live in an off-campus
apartment with my boyfriend and a pet field mouse called Mr. Souris, and I work at the campus
greenhouse and garden. All of the produce at the school’s organic cafe comes from the greenhouse
and garden.

5. Discuss topics about which you care. These may be world or local issues. What is your passion
in life?
example : My biggest pet peeve is wastefulness, and I’d like my career to revolve around
eliminating food waste. I was offered a state grant to start a program called Students Reducing
Food Waste. The grant is given to students pursuing environmental causes, and SRFN is an
initiative to reduce—and hopefully eliminate—food waste altogether. It involves volunteers going
to businesses and schools, collecting consumable food that would otherwise be thrown away, and
giving it to homeless shelters. We also collect non-consumable food and use it to fertilize the
campus greenhouse and garden. If restaurants have used vegetable oil, we take it, filter it, and use
it to run machinery on campus.

6. Name your personal interests. What do you like to do for fun or for relaxation?
example : As for my life outside of the university, you’ll most likely find me singing karaoke
down the road at Ricky Rooster’s or at the fabric shop. I love to mod clothing, and I think that goes
hand-in-hand with disliking waste. I don’t throw away clothing if it’s stained or torn; I just turn it
into something new with zippers, buttons, studs, leather, fabric dye, patches, whatever I can find.
So if your interests don’t lie in gardening, you can always come sing or shop with me!

7. Describe your goals in life. What are you working toward? What do you want to accomplish?
example : My vision is for this process to become something that businesses and individuals do
automatically—much like recycling. I would love it if every business, restaurant, institution, farm,
and grocery store committed to sending all of the food they would otherwise throw away to
shelters and orphanages. Food that is deemed non-consumable by human standards would be
composted and used on community farms. Anyone inclined to learn to tend the land would be able
to sell what they produce and keep the profits.