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Learn From Over 32 World Champion Speakers
As They Reveal How They Became World Champions!
Welcome to the world's first online summit for World Champion Speakers!
Hear the stories and discover the journey that each of these individuals took
-- surpassing more than 30,000 competitors from over 125 countries --
to become the best speaker in the world!
Discover how winning changed their lives!
Learn what it takes to be the best!
Hear what they discovered about themselves in the process!
We will collect, use and protect your data in accordance with our Privacy Policy.
World Champion Interviews
LIVE OPENING SESSION and ORIENTATION
Lance welcomes you to the World Champions Speakers Online Summit. He shares why he created this Summit and discusses how to get the most out of your Summit experience!
Lance Miller - Summit Host
2018 World Champion Speaker - District 68
"I was just happy to be there. I felt great, I was having fun. My speech turned out better than I thought it would!"
Ramona J. Smith
2017 World Champion Speaker - District 80
"I was on a journey of self-development to help myself. I was reading a lot of books and someone said, 'You have so much to share, you should start speaking.' It took me eight months after joining Toastmasters to give my first speech."
Manoj Vasudevan
2015 World Champion Speaker - District 79
"I had no intention to be a speaker. I had a stammering problem as a child. I noticed it started to come back. A friend suggested I try Toastmasters. I was stretching and they thought I raised my hand for Table Topics. When I went up to answer the question I spoke for 11 seconds."
Mohammed Qahtani
2014 World Champion Speaker - District 82
"As a troubled youth, my life was a roller coaster ride of self discovery and growth. In a journey that took over ten years, I managed to transform my life from being a lost teenager to a role model. All we need to do is make small changes that in return give us big gains. Life has and will always be the greatest teacher."
Dananjaya Hettiarachchi
2012 World Champion Speaker - District 7
"I was working for the Special Olympics. I did a lot of media interviews. I butchered the interviews and every other word was “like.” My dad told me I should join Toastmasters. I said, 'Isn’t that for old people?' He said, 'It is for anyone.' So I joined Toastmasters to stop saying 'Like.'"
Ryan Avery
2011 World Champion Speaker - District 69
"I gave a speech at a wedding and made a dog’s breakfast of it. I knew I needed to do something. Sometime later a woman at work invited me to a Toastmasters meeting. The club was 50/50 men and women. Most of the women had men’s names because they joined before Toastmasters allowed women."
Jock Elliott
2010 World Champion Speaker - District 55
"I was working a prosecutor for the San Antonio District Attorney’s Office. I had a difficult time controlling my emotions during closing arguments. I remembered that one of my mom’s friends was in Toastmasters and when I was a kid she told me I should join to be a good speaker. So, I joined to help me handle my emotions when I spoke."
David Henderson
2007 World Champion Speaker - District 31
"I was so poor at speaking in public that my supervisor wouldn't let me make presentations to clients--even when I had done all the work. Few speakers understand speeches at a fundamental level. Their overly prescriptive approach actually ends up confusing the speech and the tools that are used to deliver it, instead of connecting with the essential part of speaking--the transfer of emotion."
Vikas Jhingran
2005 World Champion Speaker - District 52
"It took me 9 years to win at my club. I went to District four times, Regional three times before making it to finals. I have lost more speech contests than I’ve ever won, in fact, I thought I won the contest and lost it more times than I ever won it! But losing speech contests and bad judging made me a better speaker. I remember thinking, 'I get better each year. I can win this if I don’t quit, I might be 70 years old, but I can win this!'"
Lance Miller
2004 World Champion Speaker - District 7
"Speak from your heart and the world will listen; be who you are and people will listen to what you have to say. Learn how to speak and write quotable quotes that audiences will repeat. When you have the absolute confidence of knowing who you are and what you are about you will find the messages that lead your life!"
Randy Harvey
2003 World Champion Speaker - District 50
"I was at a comfortable spot in my life both personally and professionally. I saw Zig Ziglar and Les Brown speak and the impact they had on the audience. I thought, 'I want to do that.' So, I emailed both of them and they wrote back and suggested I join Toastmasters."
Jim Key
2002 World Champion Speaker - District 44
"The reason I joined Toastmasters was so I could have something to do for lunch."
Dwayne Smith
2001 World Champion Speaker - District 31
"I felt invisible in high school. I was the nice guy, the quiet guy. I needed Toastmasters."
Darren LaCroix
2000 World Champion Speaker - District 26
"My favorite class in high school was Mr. Shapiro’s Creative Writing Class. Toastmasters reminded me of my favorite class in high school. For me it was fun.".
Ed Tate
1999 World Champion Speaker - District 18
"I was an events manager and one of my jobs was setting up the stage and chairs for the speakers. I used to stand at the lectern and look at those chairs and say, 'Today I move the chairs, tomorrow I move the audience.'"
Craig Valentine
1998 World Champion Speaker - District 73
"My first job was with a human resources consulting firm and they did a lot of training. I was sent to Toastmasters to improve myself, it was not my choice. I wasn’t looking to improve myself, others had determined I needed improvement!"
Bret Rutledge
1997 World Champion Speaker - District 49
"I was in the Air Force doing leadership lectures. I had a friend ask me ten times to visit his Toastmasters club. I always said “No” because I am not a joiner. Then he told me it was his birthday and I met his to celebrate and took me to the meeting! I joined because of the evaluations, we didn’t have anything like that in the Air Force.
Willie Jones
1996 World Champion Speaker - District 72
"I was 21 and got hired as the manager of a small town supermarket. I was so nervous I couldn’t talk to my employees. The town was so small it didn’t even have a police station, but it had a Toastmasters club. I joined…"
David Nottage
1995 World Champion Speaker - District 46
"I was 18 and left Jamiaca for New York with $40.00 and two suitcases. I ended up with a job at Readers Digest where they had a Toastmasters club. I went to a meeting and was so overwhelmed and intimidated that I visited as a guest for more than 4 months."
Mark Brown
1994 World Champion Speaker - District 15
"There was a story on the TV show 20/20 about America’s fear of public speaking. Near the end they mentioned Toastmasters. I felt a need to do something and when the student is ready the teacher appears. The next day in the local paper there was an announcement listing the officers for the local Toastmasters club. I went to the meeting that night and was met by a past International Director."
Morgan McArthur
1993 World Champion Speaker - District 40
"Otis was adopted and raised in a low-income single parent home. Growing up, he watched his mother as she refused to make excuses, accepted responsibility, and worked hard. It was his mother’s example that made him say, 'If she can do it, I can do it!'"
Otis Williams Jr.
1992 World Champion Speaker - District 33
"By the time I got into Toastmasters. I had gone to Yale and USC and passed the Bar. I heard a lot, 'He’s blind, he can’t' and I set out to prove them wrong."
Dana LaMon
1991 World Champion Speaker - District 16
"I was in the Air Force and joined a Toastmasters Club each time I was transferred to a new base. I belonged to Toastmaster Clubs around the world. It was a great way to find out where the locals hung out on Friday night!.....I was deployed to Turkey between the Regional Competition and World Championship Finals…"
Dave Ross
1989 World Champion Speaker - District 1
"My boss called me in for a review and told me my presentations needed to improve greatly. It was sink or swim – I was overwhelmed – I was really intimidated – I was full of shyness and fear. Once you see the World Championship through the clouds, it beckons you…."
Don Johnson
1987 World Champion Speaker - District 16
"I was in sales. I was an introvert, living in an extrovert’s world. It was important to me to find some abilities to communicate, to be able to relate, just be a better salesperson. I was a little bit lost in that effort.
I went to a Zig Ziggler seminar and won a set of his cassette tapes. One of the things that Zig Ziggler said, was to gain self-confidence you had to get out in-front of people. He recommended to join Toastmasters. So, I looked in the phone book and found a number for Toastmasters. I joined a club and began to learn about communication."
Harold Patterson
1986 World Champion Speaker - District 60
"I was just promoted to being a trainer of trainers. My boss said, 'Arabella, you are much too shy. Why don’t you go to Toastmasters and get some practice?' It took a few months, but I did. I didn’t know it would open such a wonderful door to such a wonderful world! I was so shy, for so long. I am not a native language speaker of English. I was so scared of Table Topics!! But the club was so nice and kind!"
Arabella Bengson
1980 World Champion Speaker - District 52
"I had a journalism degree and wanted to be a writer. It was a dark time in my life, it was very difficult. A friend told me about an organization that trained speakers. I thought maybe I could develop the skill of writing speeches and that would help me get employment. I found a club, in Houston Texas, and I walked into those rooms the first part of 1975 and it changed my life. I knew after the first meeting, I had found a home!"
Jeff Young
1978 World Champion Speaker - District 58
"I had an insurance agency and I had a client of mine that had purchased a rather large insurance policy from me.
He said, 'Come to Toastmasters with me.'
I figured, I don’t want to do that, I thought it was a bunch of old farts sitting around Toasting one another.
He said, 'Well, you know, I can shop my insurance around.'
I said, 'When do we meet?'
I liked the idea that someone could stand in front of a group of people and bring them to a new level and motivate them.."
Michael Aun
CLOSING SESSION and NEXT STEPS
Hear Lance's closing comments regarding the summit. Hear about additional programs he is launching. Learn how to stay in touch and join the Online Summit Community where you can continue to learn and grow. Find out how you can connect with Lance in-person when he is in a location close to you.
Lance Miller - Summit Host
Contest Video Archive
25 Years of Contestant Speeches!
Here are twenty-five years of Toastmasters' International Speech Contest winners! This includes all of the 1st, 2nd and 3rd place competition speeches.
Contest Speeches
Bonus Materials
From the Champs!
Speaking tips, Audio and advice directly from the Champs!
Specials!
WHAT PEOPLE ARE SAYING...
“This has been the best $49 I have spend in years. I only saw a few speeches and interviews and I am trully amazed by the wealth of experience that these Toastmasters are sharing. I am really glad I was able to buy the VIP Pass and I will for sure enjoy bit by bit each one of these presentations for a long time. Thank you very much Lance for giving us this opportunity.”
- R.V.
“Superb material....Love having access to so many great speeches and interviews. Appreciate all the effort, dedication, and persistence to bring all these stunning people together. Thank you, Lance! (We met at the District 74 Humorous speech contest in East London, SA in 2016 🙂 )”
- J.R.
“Thanks for putting this on. This has been extremely insightful, not just to those who are in competition, but for any Toastmasters in general as the real competition we all have is with ourselves, to improve through the TM program.”
- V.L.
“Lance, I've shared your event to all the dignitaries in District 4, 57, and 101 Toastmasters to forward with their clubs. Hope this helps more folks benefit from your amazing program. In addition, Jon has been exceptional and responsive! I'm amazed at how fast he is at resolving problems. Thanks a bundle.”
- Jenny
“Thanks, it's great to hear if we are breaking the systems in terms of traffic. Believe it is testimony to the wonderful content you have created and how much people appreciate it”
- A.G.
“On the other hand, Lance, thank you for charging so little so I can partake of your extraordinary work.”
- S.N.
“Lance, you must be button-popping proud of what you have created and generously shared with the world of Toastmasters. Based on the World Champion interviews I have seen so far, their openness about their hopes and egos, their disappointments and let-downs, their scars and successes, their experiences and lessons, are priceless to Newbie and Repeat-Competitor alike. Every person interested in speaking will gain from viewing even a few of the interviews. The whole series should be made into a special Pathways Optional Module. Huge thanks for this and what you keep giving back to Toastmasters.”
- B.W.
“Thank you for the wonderful opportunity to listen to the world champion public speakers. It requires a lot of effort and passion to undertake such a project - Kudos for that!”
- Vivek
“Hi Lance. Thanks for accepting my connection request. I would like to thank you for creating the world championship online summit. It has answers to all the questions I had about the championship journey and the key lesson of being humble is going to stay with me forever. Thank you once again!”
- K.V.
“Lance, Please no apology. What you have created is very touching. In karate the kid who works the hardest to get their belts appreciates it the most. I can see how hard it was for u to win world champion speaker and why this is so valuable to u. The messages that these speakers bring, and their backgrounds are amazing. You are making the world a better place with these stories.”
- E.T.
“I'm so glad I subscribed to your World Champion Speakers Summit. It's a great resource. I'm currently watching the video on Dave Ross.”
- D.M.
Certified Personal Trainer, Yoga Instructor, Speaker
“Thank you again for all your hard work on this great project! Although I am busy, I will take time to learn from it. It’s good that I can watch this project anytime. And I can do it many times, over and over again! For spreading this information, I have shared it with some toastmasters including DTMs. I don’t know how many people take it. I will do it. Hope more people learn more for becoming a better person and for a better world!”
- Y.S.
“Dear Lance, I watched your interview with Ryan Avery and then Willy Jones. They were both stunning and inspirational. Thank you to all of you for sharing your invaluable insights and charismatic stories.
Even if I don’t have time to see any more, this was gold, just Fabulous!”
- Celia
LANCE MILLER
HOST, WORLD CHAMPION SPEAKER
Your host for this year’s Summit is Lance Miller.
Lance has been speaking for over 25 years. He has delivered more than 5,000 speeches in over 60 countries on communication, leadership and effective management. In 2005 he emerged from a field of over 30,000 contestants from 125 countries to earn the title of - World Champion of Public Speaking.
As an international keynote speaker and expert on leadership and team building he creates his messages from real life experiences that inspire, educate and entertain audiences.
