Motivational speakers are there to do just that – to motivate you through their speeches. Very often, their interesting perceptions can lead you to keep up the positivity in life.  Very often, they harness the power of words to rejuvenate a physically, mentally or emotionally drained individual, team or group of people, making them change the way they see a specific challenge.

It can come from anywhere or anyone, but usually a motivational speech will have a specific audience in mind. Whether it is a sporting event, a conference keynote, a staff meeting or even an individual seeking self-motivation, these speakers lend inspiration from their lives, showing us how to make our lives better and happier.

When should I listen to a motivational speaker?

Very often something that someone says may leave you feeling unmotivated. It may even alter the way you’ve been looking at a particular task or problem. Other times you may have had a bad nights’ sleep or you are experiencing some personal issues. You may not even experience any of the above, but you feel unmotivated and unable to understand why you have these negative feelings at all.

No matter your current state of mind, motivational speeches are meant to inspire, or convey a highly emotional message. Its purpose is to initiate action and is often useful in dealing with difficult times or a great deal of uncertainty. The one thing they all have in common? Resonance. They need to resonate with you. Any time you are feeling low, or lack motivation, this would be a great time to get inspired by a great motivational speech.

Benefits of listening to a motivational speaker

See a different perspective on life

Everyone has their own perspective on life. Sometimes a particular motivational speaker may have the same outlook on love, spirituality, career or family that really resonates with you and gives you the inspiration to believe in your dream. By them explaining how they are or were in a similar situation as you, could give you the motivation to work harder towards reaching your goal, knowing that somebody else went through what you did, and succeeded.

To value success and failure equally

Many people have been through numerous rejections, failures and sometimes, just really bad days, and yet still managed to succeed. They never gave up and through their difficulties, they found their path forward. When you hear about the obstacles that other people go through, you begin to realise that your own hardships can be conquered, and you are able to make a success of whatever you put your mind to. It further makes you realise that it’s worth it to work twice as hard at your goals in order to succeed.

Learn something new

There are many motivational speakers that love to share their ideas, tips and tricks on how to create or try something new. Often, they will share the workings of how they made themselves successful. By paying close attention, you could learn something new, or inspire yourself to try something that you may have felt would never work for you or your situation. They teach you to think out of the box, and show you how doing so can reap greater rewards than you ever thought was possible.

At the end of the day, it is vital to take care of your mental wellbeing, and if a motivational speaker helps to keep you in a great mood, so be it. Feeling motivated could earn you a promotion or allow you to have a breakthrough with a project you’ve been working on for ages. It may just put you in a better mood, making your day more enjoyable not only for you but everyone around you.

Here are 10 of the best motivational speeches of all time.

1. J.K. Rowling: “The Fringe Benefits of Failure, and the Importance of Imagination” (2008)

2. David Foster Wallace: "This Is Water" (2005)

3. Simon Sinek: Live2Lead 2016

4. Fearless Motivation: "It's Not Easy, But It's Worth It" (2018)

5. Jim Carrey: Commencement Speech at Maharishi University of Management (2014)

6. Brené Brown: "The Power of Vulnerability" (2013)

7. Steve Jobs: "How to Live Before You Die" (2005)

8. Ellen DeGeneres: Tulane University Commencement Speech (2009)

9. Sheryl Sandberg: Harvard Business School Class Day Speech (2012)

10. Dan Pink: "The Puzzle of Motivation" (2009)