One of the #1 fears across the United States is the fear of public speaking. Some people fear public speaking more than they fear getting on airplanes and roller coasters. In other words, it can be quite the serious fear, and you're perfectly normal if you feel a little apprehension before your college graduation speech. But if you're afraid of giving a speech that doesn't deliver and that doesn't hit all of the points you wanted to hit, this article should help you cover all the bases. Here's what you'll want to include in your college graduation speech:

• A thanks to teachers, parents, relatives, and the community. All of these people will be attending the graduation, so if you don't at least give them a good mention, you'll have missed the chance to do so. You want everyone to feel welcome and if your speech only focuses on the graduates, you'll have cut some people out of the loop.
  
• A story or anecdote. You can give a nice speech that talks about experiences well, but you can really highlight what you're talking about by using a story or anecdote that will pull your audience in with you. If you can use a good story or anecdote earlier on and win your audience over, you can have their attention for what you talk about later on in the speech.
• The future. It's important to address the fact that a college graduation is not the end of a journey. You'll want to note the opportunities available in the future and the responsibility to be a fully-functioning contributor to society in whatever ways possible.
• Humor. You want to be funny, but not perform a stand-up routine or a "roast." you want to keep things light so that there is even more contrast when you do get a little more serious at some point during your speech.
• Sincerity. You want to be sincere in your speech. Say what you feel without being inappropriate. Remember your audience and do your best to meet their attention with a quality speech. Take your responsibility to provide a good speech seriously.

If you keep these items in mind, you shouldn't have any post-speech "guilt" for missing something in your college graduation speech.