Dr. Wayne Dyer's top 5 motivational speeches of all time
By Dr. Wayne W. Dyer
The motivational speaker and author of such self-help books as "Your Erroneous Zones," "Wisdom of the Ages" and "10 Secrets for Success and Inner Peace," says one speech can change a person's life. "Sunday Morning" asked Dyer to list his five favorite addresses aimed at elevating and moving an audience to action. There are presented below, with video extracts.
- drwaynedyer.com
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- "I Can Do It 2015," Denver (April 24-26, 2015)
My five favorite motivational speeches (in no particular order of importance):
The Sermon on the Mount
Particularly what Jesus said about loving your enemies:
"I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you."
This would put an end to the endless wars that demonstrate man's inhumanity to man.
Above: A performance by Robert Powell in Franco Zeffirelli's 1977 TV miniseries, "Jesus of Nazareth."
"I Have a Dream"
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s call to judge people by the content of their character rather than the color of their skin.
"Never Give In"
Winston Churchill's powerful talk during World War II to the Harrow School, telling the young people:
"Never give in, never give in, never, never, never - in nothing, great or small, large or petty - never give in except to convictions of honor and good sense."
The Gettysburg Address
I memorized this speech when I was 14 years of age. A reminder that we should all be dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal.
- Gettysburg Address (National Archives)
- Preserving the original document (Library of Congress)
John F. Kennedy's Inaugural Address
"Ask not what your country can do for you ... ask what you can do for your country."
I listened intently to our new young president challenge us to become selfless in his inaugural address. I wrote an entire chapter in "I Can See Clearly Now" on how this speech was to be a turning point in my life, as I listened while stationed in the Navy on the island of Guam in the South Pacific.
- Transcript of JFK's Inaugural Address (ourdocuments.gov)
Dr. Wayne Dyer will be featured in a special report on CBS' "Sunday Morning" November 16: Golden words: The motivational speaker industry