How to Give a Graduation Speech People Will Remember

This is the fourth in Authentalk’s series about how to write subject matter-specific speeches. Call it “Graduatiain.”

Graduation season is here! Over the next few weeks, a lot of students, administrators, teachers, parents, and guest speakers are going to stand behind podiums and share something valuable. Their audiences will be split; some folks will cheer enthusiastically while others will be on their phones.

I’ve given several graduation speeches and I’ve sat through many more.

Most are perfectly fine. They thank the parents, administrators, and faculty, say the class has been through so much, and tell everyone get ready for the next chapter.

If your graduation speech could be delivered at almost any school, to almost any class, in almost any year, you probably have a problem.

Every speech needs to clearly answer WHY YOU, WHY ME, and WHY NOW, but there’s a more specific checklist to have a standout graduation speech.

Start with the audience’s problem

Before you write the speech, ask a basic question: why does this audience need this speech?

In other words, what has this class actually gone through? What are they proud of? What are they scared of?

It’s like the Jordan Belfort “sell me this pen” trick. You don’t get someone to buy a pen by preemptively listing all the benefits of pens. You ask them questions so you can get to their core need.

Do the basics, then go beyond

A graduation speech usually has to check a few boxes.

You thank the people who helped. You celebrate the class. You look toward the future.

The speech needs one real message the audience can carry. If your audience can’t articulate your core theme at the end, you have to be clearer.

It can be profound, like David Foster Wallace’s ‘This Is Water’, or hilarious, like Rebecca Shaw/Ben Kornengold’s metaphor about breaking up with Yale.

Give the speech an arc

One simple structure is concept, story, reflection, charge.

Give us the idea. Tell us a story that proves the idea. Explain what the story means for this audience. Then send them forward with something clear.

There should be a climax. Usually, that comes near the end of the main story, right before you turn back to the audience and say, basically, “Here is what this means for us.”

Here’s Princeton valedictorian Kyle Berlin. He was also a high school speech state champion from my league!

The climax of the speech is when Kyle turns the farewell address into a live conversation with the audience: “And so I turn the question around to you. What is it that you would say to everyone?” Instead of just telling the audience to listen, he makes them practice it in real time.

Everything before that builds toward this shift. He admits he does not know what to say, gathers other people’s answers, argues for compassion beyond the self, and then finally gives the audience the responsibility to speak and listen to each other.

Make the idea visual

For instance, instead of saying “we’re afraid of losing things” or naming “loss aversion” as a concept, imagine a speaker holding up an old backpack.

The backpack is worn down. It has been with them for years. It has sentimental value. They do not want to get rid of it. But it cannot hold everything they need for the next chapter.

The backpack becomes the metaphor. It carries the idea of memory, comfort, fear, growth, and transition.

The audience may not remember the exact phrase “loss aversion.” They will remember the backpack.

I first heard Admiral William McRaven’s speech, and nothing is as visual as “make your bed.”


And I love Tim Minchin, the musical comic behind Groundhog Day and Matilda, telling us to be ‘micro-ambitious’ and introducing an ‘amputee mountaineer.’

Earn the right to give advice

Advice sounds cheap when the speaker has not earned it. You earn it through specificity.

Do not say, “We overcame challenges.” What challenges?

Do not say, “This school changed us.” How?

Do not say, “We are ready for the future.” Why should we believe that?

If you talked to classmates while writing the speech, say that. If there is a shared story everyone knows, use it. If the class had a strange or difficult experience, name it. If the school has a milestone worth honoring, build around it.

The more specific the speech is, the more universal it becomes. Here’s Conan O’Brien, deeply adapting to his audience at Dartmouth.

The speech is packed with local specifics: President Kim’s nicknames, the bonfire run, Dartmouth’s motto, the green school color, Dr. Seuss, the “tree trunk” podium, and Dartmouth’s Ivy League sibling identity.

It’s not (only) about you

The speaker thinks they are honoring the class, but the speech quietly becomes an argument for why they deserved the microphone.

Look at my journey! Look at my accomplishments!

Some of that may belong in the speech. Personal story matters. But the story has to open outward. What does my story help the audience understand about themselves?

If the answer is not clear, the story probably needs work.

Issa Rae draws on her experiences to make things clear to us. I know what it’s like to pull up to the club like a VIP. (The world’s a club!)

Drill down delivery

Graduation speeches are usually given in gyms, auditoriums, stadiums, outdoor spaces.

People are emotional, distracted, proud, tired, hot, hungry, and waiting for a name to be called.

You have to commit! Your gestures should be visible. Your face should show the emotion. Your voice should change when the speech changes.

One of the best practice methods is simple: record yourself, then watch it with no sound.

Can you tell what emotion is happening?

Can you see when the speech shifts?

Can you tell when the speaker is thanking, challenging, inviting, or celebrating?

Donovan Livingston’s speech is great with or without the audio.

Ask these questions

Can I state the main idea in one sentence?

Does this speech clearly fit this audience, this school, and this year?

Did I prove that the audience needs this message?

Is there a story, image, or moment people will remember?

Does the speech build toward a climax?

Is my personal story serving the audience?

Have I practiced it on video?

Have I watched it with no sound?

Have I cut the lines that sound impressive but do not help?

Does the ending land on one clear idea?

Nora Ephron answers them all.

If you are giving one this season, do not settle for a nice speech.

Nice is easy, but memorable takes work.