Quotes in Retirement Speeches - Five Examples
Quotes can be very effective in any kind of speech but they have to support the content. On a site that I contribute to, a user recently asked for suggestions for “retirement quotes” to use in a speech for his retiring colleague. I replied that the topic of a retirement speech is not really retirement, it’s the colleague and what he or she brought to the organization.
1. Think about what the retiree meant to you.
2. Find quotes on that topic.
3. Find ways to integrate quotes.
Here are some examples, in this case I chose the topic “excellence”, looked for relevant quotes and then considered how I could integrate them into a speech.
Example 1 - Making Excellence a Habit
The Greek philosopher, Aristotle said that We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit. Sarah made excellence a habit, some days I had to remind myself to appreciate it. Excellence became normal, that is just how Sarah does things. A habit like that is hard to break and I know that whatever she does next, she will do it with excellence.
Example 2 - Doing Things Extraordinarily Well
According to the politician, John W. Gardner, Excellence is doing ordinary things extraordinarily well. Matt put a new twist on sales, simply by doing it extraordinarily well. No secrets, tricks or buzzwords. He took proven strategies and just executed them better than anybody else.
Example 3 - Doing Things Better
All my life I've always had the urge to do things better than anybody else. Babe Didrikson Zaharias, a remarkable American athlete said this but it could just as well have been Karen. With every new task it’s been the same, she learns “how it’s done” and then just does it better.
Example 4 - Doing Things in an Uncommon Way
American political figure, Booker T. Washington said that Excellence is to do a common thing in an uncommon way. I call this innovation, from Dan’s unusual but very effective file storage system to his creative recruiting strategies, he changed the way we operate for the better by doing things in ways nobody expected.
Example 5 - Defining Excellence
I once read that:
Excellence can be obtained if you:
...care more than others think is wise;
...risk more than others think is safe;
...dream more than others think is practical;
...expect more than others think is possible.
John defined excellence for us every day. His thoughtful care, bold risk taking, ambitious dreams and high expectations - these are the things that make him, this company and it’s staff truly excellent.
Excellence can be obtained if you:
...care more than others think is wise;
...risk more than others think is safe;
...dream more than others think is practical;
...expect more than others think is possible.
John defined excellence for us every day. His thoughtful care, bold risk taking, ambitious dreams and high expectations - these are the things that make him, this company and it’s staff truly excellent.
These are just examples, hopefully they give you some ideas for your retirement speech.
Start by deciding what types of quotes would be relevant in your speech. Loyalty quotes, friendship quotes or creativity quotes are all good examples of types of quotes you could consider. Here are a few places where you can find quotes:
Wikiquote
Quote lady
Think Exist
Have fun!