how do you write an acceptance speech for an award

• PRO Courses Guides New Tech Help Pro Expert Videos About wikiHow Pro Upgrade Sign In
• EDIT Edit this Article
• EXPLORE Tech Help Pro About Us Random Article Quizzes Request a New Article Community Dashboard This Or That Game Popular Categories Arts and Entertainment Artwork Books Movies Computers and Electronics Computers Phone Skills Technology Hacks Health Men's Health Mental Health Women's Health Relationships Dating Love Relationship Issues Hobbies and Crafts Crafts Drawing Games Education & Communication Communication Skills Personal Development Studying Personal Care and Style Fashion Hair Care Personal Hygiene Youth Personal Care School Stuff Dating All Categories Arts and Entertainment Finance and Business Home and Garden Relationship Quizzes Cars & Other Vehicles Food and Entertaining Personal Care and Style Sports and Fitness Computers and Electronics Health Pets and Animals Travel Education & Communication Hobbies and Crafts Philosophy and Religion Work World Family Life Holidays and Traditions Relationships Youth
• Browse Articles
• Learn Something New
• Quizzes Hot
• This Or That Game New
• Train Your Brain
• Explore More
• Support wikiHow
• About wikiHow
• Log in / Sign up
• Education and Communications
• Communication Skills
• Public Speaking
• Speechwriting

How to Write an Acceptance Speech

Last Updated: March 21, 2024 Fact Checked

This article was co-authored by Lynn Kirkham and by wikiHow staff writer, Kyle Hall . Lynn Kirkham is a Professional Public Speaker and Founder of Yes You Can Speak, a San Francisco Bay Area-based public speaking educational business empowering thousands of professionals to take command of whatever stage they've been given - from job interviews, boardroom talks to TEDx and large conference platforms. Lynn was chosen as the official TEDx Berkeley speaker coach for the last four years and has worked with executives at Google, Facebook, Intuit, Genentech, Intel, VMware, and others. This article has been fact-checked, ensuring the accuracy of any cited facts and confirming the authority of its sources. This article has been viewed 1,098,397 times.

When you win an award or honor, it's traditional to share a few words. Writing an acceptance speech can be challenging, so it helps to brainstorm and prepare in advance. You should open your speech with a brief introduction of gratitude, move on to thanking your benefactors, and conclude your speech with some inspiration and optimism. This is your time to shine, but showing humility will leave your audience feeling truly pleased for you and your success.

Brainstorming Ideas

• After you make an initial list of people you want to thank, walk away and come back to the list later. There might be people you forgot to include that you'll remember at a later time.
• If you're worried about leaving someone important out of your speech, ask a close friend or coworker to help with your list. They might think of someone you forgot to include.

• For example, if you're receiving an award for your volunteer work, try searching “volunteer award acceptance speeches” in a search engine. If you're referencing speeches in a physical book, try to find a book that has the speeches organized by award type.

Writing Your Speech

• For example, you could write “I am so honored to be standing here today to receive this community leadership award. Serving my community has been a joy and a privilege that I am grateful for every single day. I wouldn't be able to do it if it weren't for all the amazing people in this city."

• You don't have to say someone's name to show you're thankful for them. For example, instead of thanking all of your coworkers individually, you could say “I can't express enough how grateful I am for all of my amazing colleagues.”
• You can thank the members of the organization giving you the award without listing off their names by saying something like “Thank you so much to the team at the New York Nonprofit Conference for recognizing me with this incredible award.”

• For example, if you're winning an award in recognition of your volunteer work with kids, you could mention how you think more work needs to be done to combat childhood illiteracy.
• Don't use your acceptance speech as a time to rant about your political viewpoints or talk heatedly about a controversial topic (unless it's directly connected to the award you're receiving). You'll likely alienate members of the audience and upset the organization that gave you the award.

Rehearsing Your Speech

• If there's someone mentioned in your speech that can't attend the event, invite them to practice with you. That way they get to hear your speech and you have someone to give you pointers.

• Notice how your voice sounds. Make sure you're speaking loud enough and that what you're saying is clear and understandable.

Writing Help

Community Q&A

• Make eye contact with members of the audience to appear more engaged. [11] X Research source Thanks Helpful 0 Not Helpful 0
• Bring a copy of your speech with you onstage. You might not need to use it, but it's helpful if you forget someone's name. Thanks Helpful 0 Not Helpful 0
• Avoid reading the copy of speech, but use notes and make sure to look up at the audience more tha you read what you write. Thanks Helpful 0 Not Helpful 0

• Avoid negative or apologetic statements during your speech. They can make you seem ungrateful. Thanks Helpful 10 Not Helpful 1

You Might Also Like

• ↑ https://www.huffpost.com/entry/how-to-prepare-an-accepta_b_9290348
• ↑ Lynn Kirkham. Public Speaking Coach. Expert Interview. 20 November 2019.
• ↑ https://www.gvsu.edu/ours/oral-presentation-tips-30.htm
• ↑ https://professional.dce.harvard.edu/blog/10-tips-for-improving-your-public-speaking-skills/
• ↑ https://www.washington.edu/doit/presentation-tips-0

About This Article

To write an acceptance speech, start with a brief introduction that expresses your gratitude and makes a connection with your audience. Then, in the body of your speech, focus on the people that you want to thank. Try to avoid thanking too many people so your audience doesn't grow impatient by sticking with the people directly involved with the award and your immediate support system. Finally, conclude your acceptance speech on a brief, positive note and thank the audience one last time. To learn how to rehearse an acceptance speech, scroll down! Did this summary help you? Yes No

• Send fan mail to authors

Reader Success Stories

Margaret Heath

Oct 24, 2017

Did this article help you?

Saurish Goswami

Oct 13, 2019

Mar 13, 2017

Robson Manjuu

Jan 8, 2018

Sep 11, 2020

Featured Articles

Trending Articles

Watch Articles

• Terms of Use
• Privacy Policy
• Do Not Sell or Share My Info
• Not Selling Info

wikiHow Tech Help Pro:

Level up your tech skills and stay ahead of the curve

• Speech Crafting →

How to Give an Award Acceptance Speech to Thank, Inspire and Impress

Let’s say you got nominated for an award and now you have to give an acceptance speech. It’s pretty important to give a good speech, no matter what you’re being awarded for. Looking good doesn’t hurt either!

So, how do you give a good acceptance speech for your award? First off, you should ask yourself what message you would like to convey to your audience.

Generally, an acceptance speech provides the speaker with an opportunity to not only thank the individuals who helped you win the award but also highlight ideas and issues that you care about and even inspire people to do something even bigger.

Which is why it’s important that you don’t mess up.

Writing a good speech, any kind of speech, requires a lot of time and preparation, in order to ensure that you are well prepared and have included any important details that you would prefer to not leave out.

Here are a few practical tips on how you can draw up your award acceptance speech.

What is an Award Acceptance Speech? 

This is a type of speech given by an individual who’s receiving a prize, honor or an award. It is an unwritten tradition to share gratitude to individuals who you’d like or acknowledge or thank by giving a few words.

Your audience may be made up of your family and friends but also individuals in your industry who you respect and admire, so when giving an acceptance speech, ensure you make the best of it. 

As compared to other speeches, an acceptance speech does not include a beginning , body or conclusion and doesn’t need a PowerPoint display. In addition to this, acceptance speeches aren’t allotted a lot of time as you would with a keynote speech, so you will have to make it short.

Acceptance speeches also provide you, the speaker who’s accepting the award, an opportunity to either make a great impression , no impression or a terrible one. So, you have to be careful with how you write up and give your speech.

What are the m ain Goals of an Acceptance Speech?

Your goals with regard to this speech should be to;

• Thank the individuals who helped you in whatever you did or in your career
• Center on one idea that you want to leave your audience with, whether it’s motivating them to work hard or inspiring them to follow their dreams
• Make a great impression

Since you’ll only have a few minutes to give your speech, focusing on one point or one of the most important lessons you’ve learnt in life is a good way to go.

Additionally, your speech should give your audience a favorable impression about you while also letting them know that you’ve thought about what you’ve said and that you’re respectful.

How to Write a Great Acceptance Speech

Most individuals who win an award start by thanking the individuals who helped them when they accept it.

There are many different ways of thanking people, so which one is applied in this context?   Being as specific as possible when thanking individuals is the best way to go.

Therefore, you should start by:

Be Specific

Thank people by telling them exactly what they did that assisted you

You should do this in a way that is meaningful. Saying “Thank you for your support” doesn’t really mean anything.

So instead, you should look at the individuals you mention and while addressing them by their names, thank them while telling them what exactly you are thanking them for.

For instance, you can say, “Lisa, you encouraged me after being rejected by 7 different publishing houses, you were there for me.”

This will make your speech much more interesting to your audience while also appearing sincere.

Pro-Tip: Make eye contact when thanking every individual while mentioning their name, as it will not only convey respect but also sincerity.  

Tell a story

Great award acceptance speeches usually tell stories. While the time allotted to give your speech may be short, 30 seconds is enough time to give a short story.

You can either;

• Recount an actual conversation you had with someone; be it a family member colleague or friend, about a challenge you had, how you conquered it and its relevance to the award you’re accepting.
• Talk about an encounter that happened

Keep in mind though that if you’ll be telling a story , ensure that its relevant to the award, it’s brief and that you tell it in a way that captivates your audience.

Now that we’ve discussed how to prepare for and write your acceptance speech, we can now look into how you will deliver that speech.

How to Prepare for an Award Acceptance Speech?

Nothing is worse than having no speech prepared when you win a major award; fumbling on stage in front of an audience is not a good thing for anyone.

It also shows the individuals who nominated you that you do not respect them, so take some time and prepare.

First and foremost,

Make your speech memorable

Many of the speeches given at award shows are short, so if it isn’t memorable, it can easily be forgotten.

Good thing is you have a lot of resources at your disposal, the biggest being the internet. Thank heavens for technology! Everyone, including yourself, wants to give a great speech . Looking up great acceptance speeches on YouTube will provide you with amazing examples of great speeches.

Most of these examples are short, as acceptance speeches should be. Besides this, they also seen genuine, contain an emotional moment and are funny.

You may not have a funny bone in your body, which is okay as being funny will entirely be dependent on what you’ll be talking about in your speech. So, no pressure.

Rehearse your speech

It may sound ridiculous to practice your acceptance speech, especially considering that it’s brief. However, this is a great way to modify your speech to your liking.

You can do this by recording yourself giving your speech using your camera or phone.

Looking through the recording will help you pick out what you don’t like and what you like about it. This allows you to repeat your speech as many times as you want while implementing the changes you’d like until you feel happy and comfortable with its final form.

Once you are satisfied with your final take, know you already have it in the bag; you’re going to give a great speech!

Pro-Tip: Practicing helps get rid of the jitters and helps you feel more confident in both yourself and your speech.

How To Deliver Your Acceptance Speech

When delivering your acceptance speech, ensure that it’s at least entertaining . It doesn’t have to make the audience laugh so much that their ribs hurt. However, it also shouldn’t be so boring that people doze off or make conversation while you address them.

So, first off,

Don’t Be Boring

If your speech doesn’t have a few jokes in it or isn’t funny, at least try to include some emotion or a dramatic moment. Boring speeches make people want to gorge their eyes out and seal their ears, so they don’t have to look at you and hear you drone on. Don’t subject your audience to unnecessary torture.

Be entertaining. At the very least, say something entertaining, interesting or amusing, even if you’ll be making fun of yourself.

If you are going to show emotion, don’t go overboard

Blubbering through your speech isn’t interesting, so try to keep it together. This is where practicing your speech comes in, it helps you show just the right amount of emotion while still conveying your message to the audience.

Pro-Tip: A little emotion goes a long way, so don’t overdo it.

Using what we have so far discussed, you should be able to not only write a great speech but also present your speech to your audience in a memorable way.

Now, let’s look at a few things to avoid when giving your acceptance speech.

What to avoid in an Award Acceptance Speech

• Do not tell your audience you don’t have a lot of time

This only uses up more time. Instead, use the time you’ve been given to the maximum advantage.

• Do  not tell your audience that you’re nervous

Even though you might be nervous , other people may not recognize that you are. So, there’s no need to waste valuable time.

By the way, deliberately pausing or speaking slowly helps you overcome any jitters you may have. Thank me later once you try this trick of the trade.

• Do  not thank too many people

Given that you’ll only have a few minutes to give your speech (at most), try to thank no more than five individuals.

You can send the people you didn’t thank on stage personal notes; that’s why such notes exist.

• Do  not read your speech from a piece of paper

Not only is this devoid of sincerity, emotion and personality but it also looks scripted . Again, practicing helps you capture your main points in mind.

In conclusion, it all comes down to being genuine when thanking individuals, entertaining and leaving your audience with a good life lesson or something that inspires them. Show your audience that you, indeed, were worthy of getting that award!

How to give an award acceptance speech

• James Haynes
• September 19, 2022

Table of Contents

Introduction.

Congratulations! You’ve won an award. Maybe you’ve been selected for the prestigious  National Speakers Association’s Speaker Hall of Fame . Maybe you’ve been named volunteer of the year for your local service club. Whatever you’ve won, now you may be wondering: how do I give an award acceptance speech? what kind of a speech am I supposed to give? Where can I find award acceptance speech examples ? How do I make sure my speech is memorable in a good way?

Maybe you’ve never given a speech before, and after toiling for years far from the spotlight, being put on stage is a nerve-wracking prospect for you. One of the best ways to minimize those nerves is to do your homework beforehand so you know exactly where you’re going with your talk, and reading this article is a great start! (For more on managing  nerves when you speak, check out this episode of The Speaker Lab podcast .)

Even if you’re a seasoned speaker, the structure and format of an award acceptance speech may not be what you are used to. To master the shortened format and time limits you may have, you’ll need to structure your speech in a more specialized way. For more on how to do so, read on.

Free Download: 6 Proven Steps to Book More Paid Speaking Gigs in 2024​

Download our 18-page guide and start booking more paid speaking gigs today!

Determine the goal of your speech

First of all, what is the goal of your acceptance speech? The starting point for most, if not all, acceptance speeches, should be a humble “thank you” for whatever they have received. It may also be appropriate to highlight particular experiences or individuals who helped you to get where you are. But this can be overdone; fake modesty and a long list of thank-yous to people the audience doesn’t know can cause your audience to tune out just as much as a braggy or even vindictive diatribe. How do you strike the balance?

One way to start could be watching others’ acceptance speeches, and ideally not just speeches from the Academy Awards. Award acceptance speech examples can be found on Youtube, Vimeo, and other video-sharing sites. Learn from others but don’t mimic – You’ve probably watched a lot of speakers before haven’t you? You know the things they do that work. It’s easy to want to just duplicate what you saw them do since you know it works. But don’t do that. Learn from why it worked and how you can incorporate a similar (but not copied) methodology into your own talks.

Structuring your speech

Another tip: figure out from the event organizer what the time restrictions are for your talk. You don’t want to plan a 20-minute overture when the event organizers expect you to speak for just a minute or two! This will also set the tone for your talk.

Remember that your speech is supposed to be  shorter  than your typical speech. You shouldn’t have that much to write out. Once you’ve determined a few people you’d like to thank, maybe a story you’d like to tell, and determined the overall goal or vibe of your talk, you should start structuring your speech.

Perhaps you could begin by breaking down your speech into a few sections. For example, you could structure the speech as follows: Introduction, thanking a few specific people, telling a story or an anecdote, and conclusion. This should all take no more than 3-5 minutes. And it will  fly by .

Consider telling stories

Want to tell a story in your acceptance speech? It’s a good idea. Humans relate to stories. We connect to stories. Funny stories. Sad stories. Inspirational stories. We love stories. So tell them. Lots of them. Stories will keep your audience engaged and are also easier for you to memorize.

There’s nothing wrong with telling a 3rd person story or using some case study or example. But especially for an award you’re receiving, telling a story that you lived and experienced generally makes the story better for you and the audience. For the audience, they can oftentimes find themselves in your story. For you as the speaker, it’s much easier (and more powerful) to tell a story that you lived versus one you read in a book.

What kind of story to tell

In an award acceptance speech, any such story should be short and sweet. One way to keep an eye on the length is to try timing yourself telling the story out loud. As Harriet Turk discusses in our  podcast on creating your talk , “If you practice out loud, you learn a whole lot more about what the story hits on and what parts need to be told.” Turk goes on to say that sometimes we find that we try to tell a story the way we wrote it, but authoring a story is much different than presenting a story. A story that reads well in a book may not work as well on stage.

Some examples of stories or anecdotes that you could do well to include would be about a setback you overcame in your role, or how someone helped you in a particularly meaningful way. If that person who helped you is one of those you want to thank, it would serve as an incredibly powerful testament to their character to include such a story. Of course, if something about that story is sensitive, it would be prudent to notify them in advance that you plan to tell that story. Even if not, it could be polite to give them a heads-up, particularly if they will be in the audience for your acceptance speech.

Using humor: advantages and pitfalls

You might wonder whether or not humor is appropriate in an award acceptance speech. Generally, humor is not a bad thing to include if you want to liven up your talk. However, keep in mind that you are being spotlighted as an individual accomplishing something in an award acceptance speech, and harsh joking about other people, in particular, may reflect poorly on your deserving the award. Negative jokes about the organizer, your collaborators, or others in the audience are no-nos.

On that point, as we cover in our 100 speaking tips article,  you don’t need to be crude or inappropriate just for a laugh. It’s not worth it. If you deliver a killer keynote and are flawless throughout, but you make one inappropriate remark, nobody will remember anything else you said. There’s nothing wrong with using humor or making a strong point on something, but don’t do it at the expense of crossing the line and turning people off.

On the other hand, a dash of humor, such as light self-deprecation, can be perfectly good at keeping your speech from sounding sanctimonious or stuffy. When you tell a joke or deliver a punchline, give the audience time to laugh. Sometimes speakers like to rush to the next point, but don’t do that. You need to give the audience a chance to respond to what you just said (in this case to laugh), but also if you rush on to the next thought while the room is still laughing, nobody will hear what you’re saying.

Practice makes perfect

You’re not going to have a Powerpoint. You’re probably not going to have any visual aids. So how are you going to stay focused and find cues for your award acceptance speech?

Consider writing your speech out and timing yourself to ensure you don’t go way over any time allotments you might have. And if you don’t have time limits, consider your audience – they will almost certainly tune out after 15+ minutes of seemingly-endless acknowledgments…

Remember: Professional speakers don’t just make stuff up. They don’t write a few thoughts on a notecard and then shoot from the hip for an entire presentation. They take the time to write and carefully craft their material.

As Harriet Turk discusses in our  podcast on creating your talk , bullet points can be one way to succinctly outline a talk in a way that you can rely on, even when you’re on stage and nervous. “Bullets are easy because they trigger what it is that you’re really wanting to do,” she said, “Whereas if you write it out and then you memorize it, you could have stage fright, or you’ve practiced it so much that you get to a point that you’re nervous and you forget.”

Although you shouldn’t just be reading from a page the whole time, writing out specific names of people you want to thank can help keep you from forgetting anybody.

When you’re on stage

So you’ve written, practiced, and are headed to your acceptance speech venue to give your killer talk. What should you remember when you’re standing on the stage?

As we outline in our 100 speaking tips piece,  remember that on stage, you can be an amplified version of yourself. The bigger the venue, the bigger you need to be on stage. The way you would communicate to a group of 10 people is very different than how you would need to communicate to a room of 10,000. Both should be an authentic version of you, but simply amplified to the setting. The bottom line is don’t try to be something you’re not on stage. Be you.

Keep it slow and steady. When you are talking really fast, it becomes difficult for the audience to follow. It’s hard to keep up and process. Plus the faster you talk, the harder it is to understand what you’re saying. So slow down and enunciate. Give the audience the chance to keep up with where you’re going.

Don’t be afraid of the silence. Silence, to a speaker, can feel deafening but it can be powerful. Silence shows confidence that you’re in control of the talk and the room and you’re continuing to guide them towards a common purpose. When you make a strong point, don’t rush to the next line. Stop and let it hang there. The silence is your friend.

What Type Of Speaker Are You?

Click below to discover your Speaker Archetype and how to start getting booked and paid to speak!

All in all, giving an award acceptance speech is a great opportunity to practice your speaking skills while simultaneously a big honor! Whether you’re an experienced speaker or haven’t given one for years, these tips and processes can help you conceive of, outline, and deliver an awesome acceptance speech.

If you found this piece helpful, we have a  great podcast with Grant Baldwin on how to create your talk.  He tells us how he prepares for talks, what makes a talk good versus another talk, and what types of structures you can use to organize your content. You can listen to this  podcast on creating a talk here . Want to read more about speaking tips? Take a look at our  100 tips for motivational speaking for any speaking engagement ! Happy speaking!

• Last Updated: February 29, 2024

Explore Related Resources

Learn How You Could Get Your First (Or Next) Paid Speaking Gig In 90 Days or Less

We receive thousands of applications every day, but we only work with the top 5% of speakers .

Book a call with our team to get started — you’ll learn why the vast majority of our students get a paid speaking gig within 90 days of finishing our program .

If you’re ready to control your schedule, grow your income, and make an impact in the world – it’s time to take the first step. Book a FREE consulting call and let’s get you Booked and Paid to Speak ® .

About The Speaker Lab

We teach speakers how to consistently get booked and paid to speak.  Since 2015, we’ve helped thousands of speakers find clarity, confidence, and a clear path to make an impact.

Get Started

Let's connect.

[email protected]

Copyright ©2023 The Speaker Lab. All rights reserved.

Speech Writing

Acceptance Speech

How to Write the Best Acceptance Speech for Your Audience?

People also read

The 10 Key Steps for Perfect Speech Writing

Understanding the Speech Format - Detailed Guide & Examples

How to Start A Speech - 13 Interesting Ideas & Examples

20+ Outstanding Speech Examples for Your Help

Common Types of Speeches that Every Speechwriter Should Know

Good Impromptu Speech Topics for Students

Entertaining Speech Topics for Your Next Debate

How to Write a Special Occasion Speech: Types, Tips, and Examples

Introduction Speech - A Step-by-Step Guide & Examples

Presentation Speech - An Ultimate Writing Guide

Commemorative Speech - Writing Guide, Outline & Examples

Farewell Speech - Writing Tips & Examples

How to Write an Extemporaneous Speech? A Step-by-Step Guide

Crafting the Perfect Graduation Speech: A Guide with Examples

So, you have achieved an award. Congratulations! Now you have to deliver an acceptance speech in front of an audience.

Writing an acceptance speech may not seem important initially, but it becomes challenging once you begin writing it. 

When you're in the spotlight, receiving an award or recognition, giving a great acceptance speech may seem tough. But with the right approach, it can be a rewarding experience that leaves a lasting impression on your audience.

This guide is here to help you craft an outstanding acceptance speech that conveys your gratitude and connects with your audience. 

Whether it's an award, honor, or any form of recognition, these tips will make your speech shine.

So, let’s begin!

• 1. What is an Acceptance Speech?
• 2. How to Write an Acceptance Speech?
• 3. Acceptance Speech Examples 
• 4. Mistakes to Avoid When Writing An Acceptance Speech
• 5. Phrases You Can Use in Acceptance Speech Writing
• 6. Tips for Acceptance Speech Writing

What is an Acceptance Speech?

The main goal of writing the speech is to say thanks to those who've recognized your achievements. 

An acceptance speech is a special occasion speech that gives a chance for the recipient to express gratitude and acknowledge the people for the honor.

It's a way to share your vision with humility, showing appreciation for those who've honored you.

How to Write an Acceptance Speech?

Your words for an acceptance speech for an award should leave a lasting impression on your audience. 

Here's a step-by-step guide on how to create a memorable acceptance speech:

Immediately Start With a Thank You

Begin your speech by expressing heartfelt thanks to those who have not only supported you but also recognized your achievements. This sets a positive and appreciative tone from the very beginning, showing your gratitude for the honor.

Discuss the Organization

Take a moment to reflect on the significance of the organization that is presenting the award. Explain how this organization contributes to the community or field, and why their recognition is valuable.

Recognize Supportive People

Acknowledge the people who have played essential roles in your journey to success. This includes family members, friends, mentors, and anyone else who has provided guidance, support, or inspiration along the way.

Include Humor in Your Speech

Injecting humor into your speech can be a great way to engage your audience and make your speech more enjoyable. You can pick an entertaining speech topic to include in your speech. 

End With Impact

The conclusion of your speech is a crucial part where you can leave a lasting impression on your audience. Conclude with a statement, quote, or message that makes your speech memorable and thought-provoking.

Express Gratitude

Finally, reiterate your appreciation for the organization that presented the award and for the audience that has listened to your speech. Convey your thanks with sincerity and humility.

By considering the above-mentioned elements in your acceptance speech, you can create a memorable address that resonates with your audience and expresses your gratitude. 

Acceptance Speech Examples 

Here are some excellent speech examples for students and working professionals:

Acceptance Speech Sample

Award Acceptance Speech

Scholarship Acceptance Speech

Jennifer Coolidge Acceptance Speech

Brendan Fraser Acceptance Speech

Austin Butler Acceptance Speech

Ke Huy Quan's Acceptance Speech

Sheryl Lee Ralph's Acceptance Speech

Jamie Lee Curtis Acceptance Speech

Michelle Yeoh Acceptance Speech

Harry Styles's Acceptance Speech

Lizzo Acceptance Speech

Acceptance Speech as President of An Organization

Acceptance Speech for a Leadership Position

It is recommended to look at additional speech examples to have a better understanding of writing a speech. 

Mistakes to Avoid When Writing An Acceptance Speech

Here are some things you should avoid when writing your acceptance speech:

• Overwhelming Thank-Yous: While expressing gratitude is crucial, don't overdo it by individually thanking every person you've ever met. Keep it concise and focus on key supporters.
• Lack of Structure: Avoid a disorganized or lengthy speech. Structure your speech with a clear beginning, middle, and end to maintain your audience's attention.
• Being Negative: Stay positive and avoid any negative remarks or criticisms, whether related to the award or other aspects. Maintain a gracious and optimistic tone.
• Overusing Jargon: Use language that your audience can easily understand. Avoid excessive use of technical terms or industry-specific jargon.
• Inappropriate Humor: Humor is excellent if used appropriately, but steer clear of offensive or overly sarcastic jokes that might alienate your audience.
• Not Rehearsing: Practice your speech before the event. Avoid reading it for the first time on stage, which can lead to stumbling or a lack of engagement.

Phrases You Can Use in Acceptance Speech Writing

Here are some useful phrases you can use in your speech:

• I am deeply honored to accept this award for...
• I share this recognition with...
• I stand here today with a profound sense of gratitude for...
• I want to express my heartfelt thanks to...
• This award is a testament to the hard work and dedication of...
• I couldn't have achieved this without the unwavering support of...
• This honor means the world to me, and it is a reflection of the incredible team I've had the privilege to work with.
• I accept this award on behalf of all those who believed in our vision.
• This recognition serves as a reminder that dreams can come true with perseverance and the support of loved ones.
• As I stand here, I am humbled by the collective effort of our team.
• I am excited to see where this award will take us in the future.
• This honor encourages us to continue our mission and make an even greater impact.
• I would like to acknowledge the outstanding work of my colleagues, who have been instrumental in our success.
• It is not just my award; it's a celebration of our shared dedication and hard work.
• Whether speaking to a few or many, your words can inspire and connect with those who respect your accomplishments.
• I am deeply grateful for the opportunities this award brings, and I pledge to use them to make a positive difference.

You can use these phrases in your acceptance speech.

Tips for Acceptance Speech Writing

Here are some essential tips to keep in mind while crafting your acceptance speech. 

• Start Early: Begin your speech preparations well in advance to allow time for thoughtful reflection and revisions.
• Maintain a Respectful Tone: Use polite and respectful language throughout your speech to show gratitude and appreciation.
• Keep It Brief: Acceptance speeches are typically short, so aim to be concise and to the point.
• Adapt to the Occasion: Tailor your speech to the formality and theme of the event.
• Create an Outline: Develop an outline to help you organize your speech effectively and ensure all key points are included.
• Understand Special Requirements: Inquire about any specific requirements or guidelines set by the hosting organization.
• Seek Inspiration: Study and learn from exceptional acceptance speeches online to gather ideas and insights.
• Edit and Proofread: Carefully review and edit your speech, and consider seeking input from others to refine your content.

So there you have it!

Your acceptance speech is your opportunity to shine and express your gratitude. With these guidelines and tips, you can craft an acceptance speech that resonates with your audience and leaves a lasting impact. 

Whether you're addressing a small gathering or a large audience, your words can inspire and connect with those who have chosen to honor your achievements.

Nonetheless, being a good speaker doesn't always translate to being a good writer. That's why many opt for expert assistance from professional writers.

MyPerfectWords.com stands as a reputed essay writing company , offering genuine support for your academic assignments and professional speeches.

Just reach out to our customer service to buy speech of the best quality!

Write Essay Within 60 Seconds!

Dr. Barbara is a highly experienced writer and author who holds a Ph.D. degree in public health from an Ivy League school. She has worked in the medical field for many years, conducting extensive research on various health topics. Her writing has been featured in several top-tier publications.

Paper Due? Why Suffer? That’s our Job!

Keep reading

What Not to Do If You Win an Oscar

A Hollywood speechwriter on what makes for a great—or a terrible—moment at the mic

The moment an artist wins an Oscar or a Grammy or a Tony, they are handed two things: some kind of statue (sure, nice) and, perhaps more important, 45 seconds—maybe a minute, two tops—of live, relatively unbridled stage time with millions of people watching. They can use that time however they choose, thanking their parents, thanking their agents, thanking God, advocating for causes, crying. After that the music will play.

Wendy Shanker is a writer with a niche skill: She helps celebrity clients draft acceptance speeches so that they can maximize these high-adrenaline, high-profile moments.

Shanker told me that she once found herself moved to tears when a client seemed to be forgoing the drafted speech in favor of something else—only to suddenly realize that Shanker herself had in fact written the words in question. “She’s such a phenomenal actress that I didn’t even recognize my own writing,” Shanker said.

Ahead of this weekend’s Oscars, Shanker and I caught up by phone to discuss the art of acceptance speeches (keep the thank-you list short, she says) and her biggest pet peeve (reading off a phone).

Our conversation has been condensed and edited for clarity.

Caroline Mimbs Nyce: Let’s pretend you get hired by a new A-list client tomorrow. Walk me through your process.

Wendy Shanker: My process is to try and do a lot of research and to get to know that person’s voice as well as I can before I actually connect with them directly. So I’m reading interviews and watching videos. The best is when I do get to work directly with that client as opposed to going through a publicist or a manager. Just even having a really brief conversation with somebody, I can really hear really, really quickly what it is that they want to say and the voice that they want to say it in. And I can also provide a little bit of guidance to them on what might work and what might not work.

A good example of this would be I wrote an acceptance speech—this wasn’t a televised show; this was a private event. A woman was being honored, and her team had said, “Look, whatever you do, don’t talk about her mother.” Her mother is also famous. “Don’t make this about her mother.” I went, “Okay, okay, okay.” And then I got 10 minutes with my client on the phone. And the first thing she said is, “I really just wanted to talk about my mother.”

Read: The speeches that saved the Golden Globes

Nyce: Do you think they were trying to keep her from it?

Shanker: I don’t think they were trying to keep her from it. I just think nobody knows the heart and soul of what that person wants to say in the moment except for that person.

Nyce: Do you ever get intervening agents telling you, “Don’t let them say that. Cut that line”?

Shanker: Yeah, that happens a lot. Most representatives are trying to protect their clients. But a lot of what I do is get this very busy person to focus in on this thing they know is coming and haven’t really thought about. Just like any of us lowly humans, they procrastinate. The conversation with me gives them time to shut out all the other noise and focus on What is it that I really want to say?

Nyce: About how long are acceptance speeches usually?

Shanker: It depends on the show. For a network show that’s airing live, the time is tight; it is 45 seconds or 60 seconds. While the person on the stage is accepting the honor, there are the producers backstage trying to figure out how long they’re going to let them talk. Maybe it says 45 seconds on the clock, but if you’re saying something really good or you’re a legend in the industry, they’re going to let you go a little longer. I’ll also say from the producing side of it that nobody ever wants to cut anybody off.

A lot of people don’t want to prepare because they think they’re going to hex it. And I would like to congratulate anybody who thinks they have the magical-thinking power to win or lose an Oscar by preparing a speech or not preparing a speech.

Nyce: How much can you fit into 45 seconds?

Shanker: I advise clients to have one central thought, especially one that could be connected to your performance or your album or the theme of the project that you were in—something that speaks to a social or cultural issue connected to the work that you are being honored for.

I really, really encourage people to limit the thank-you list. If there’s one special thank you that you want to give out—to your parents or to your fifth-grade theater teacher or to the real-life person whom you were portraying on screen—great! But we don’t need to hear about your agent’s assistant’s assistant’s Uber driver. If you are going to go the list way, write them down, practice it, get everybody in there. “Oh, I’m going to forget somebody!” I should never hear that from you onstage.

Read: My favorite awards-season ritual

Nyce: This gets at the question of “Who are award speeches for?” The people in the room or the audiences at home?

Shanker: We all know that the numbers of people watching awards shows are sinking. And I think that’s because we have so much access to a lot of these people that we laud all the time. The Oscars might have been the only time in a year when I would get to hear Barbra Streisand say something. But now Barbra’s tweeting.

I think people get excited about the pageantry of it. I think people still get excited about films and albums and Broadway shows that mean something to us and mean something to the culture, that give us something that we didn’t have before.

And there’s still so much coverage of these shows. We get excited when our beloved film wins and frustrated when it goes the wrong way. So they continue to have a lot of cultural worth, even if they’re losing the numbers.

Nyce: What have you noticed about the acceptance speeches this season? Are there any that have stood out to you?

Shanker: I do think there’s real joy in seeing people who have been in the industry for a long time and haven’t been recognized speak. Ke Huy Quan has this amazing comeback story, and that’s what a lot of his speeches have centered on. Michelle Yeoh is talking about inclusion and representation in a really wonderful way. It’s thrilling and exciting to hear Jamie Lee Curtis say , “I’m 64, and this is just amazing.” Sheryl Lee Ralph bursting into song —completely memorable. Watching Jennifer Coolidge get a lot of awards in this cycle has been super fun because she’s another person who’s worked for decades in an industry that hasn’t always been kind and generous to her or to her talent. When she’s up there, I think she’s being very genuine, and she’s also savvy about giving the audience what they want.

Nyce: What are some of your acceptance-speech pet peeves?

Shanker: My No. 1 pet peeve is going onstage with your cellphone. To me, it just seems unprepared and casual; it doesn’t step up to the intensity and honor of the moment.

The other thing that really bugs me is false humility. When people approach and go, “I just didn’t think I’d … Who, me?” It’s like, You were nominated. You campaigned for it. You’ve spent months wining and dining and talking to people. You’ve been standing in front of a mirror with a hairbrush since you were 4 years old. This is not a shock. Humility is wonderful, but false humility is annoying.

How to Give an Award Acceptance Speech?

• Filed under: Featured articles , Public speaking articles , Public speaking tips and tricks , Speech preparation

You’ve been nominated for an award and now you have to give an acceptance speech. It might be an Academy Award where the whole world is watching or it might be an award for the best coach in your little league. Regardless, it’s still important and you would like to look good while giving this speech.

So, how to give an award acceptance speech? It is an opportunity to put a spotlight on ideas you care about, to thank the people who helped you win the award and to give your audience at least one take away.

Therefore, don’t blow it. Don’t wait until the last minute with the preparation and don’t make excuses.

And if you don’t win… well, maybe you will use the acceptance speech next year or next time. So, today I am going to give you practical tips on how you can prepare for your award acceptance speech.

But there’s a lot more to public speaking you should know so I wrote an article about best public speaking books to read. Check out these books here .

Table of Contents

What is an acceptance speech?

An award acceptance speech is a speech given by a person who is receiving an award, honor or prize. When you win something, then it is a tradition to say a few words and share some gratitude toward those you would like to thank or acknowledge.

In the audience are your friends, family and perhaps people in your industry who you respect, so make the best of it.

Let’s start off by focusing on your goals for this speech because, after all, an award acceptance speech is still the same as any other speech. Now, it might be a short one. It might only be 60 seconds long before that music comes in and you’re asked to get off stage…but it’s still a speech.

How is award acceptance different from other speech types?

Well, it is different in a lot of ways. For example: you’re not going to have a PowerPoint display. You’re not going to have a beginning, middle and end, and you’re not going to share funny stories.

Also, you’re not going to walk around the stage and talk for 50 minutes like you would in a keynote speech.

Acceptance speech gives you an opportunity to make:

• A great impression
• An awful impression
• No impression.

Main goals of the acceptance speech

Your goals are not to just get through this. Also, your goal is not to thank your tax attorney and 29 other service providers.

Therefore, your goal should be to:

• Make a great impression
• Thank the people who were relevant in helping you in your career or whatever it is you did
• Try to focus on just one idea that you want to leave people with, whether it is inspiring people to follow their dreams or maybe motivating people to work hard, etc.

This is not an opportunity to communicate five points or more. Instead, it is an opportunity to focus on one of life’s lessons or on one really important idea.

Give people a favorable impression of you and let them know that you’re respectful and that you’ve thought about this and planned.

Recommended books

How to Deliver a TED Talk: Secrets of the World's Most Inspiring Presentations

Jeremy Donovan

Resonate: Present Visual Stories that Transform Audiences

Nancy Duarte

Confessions of a Public Speaker

Scott Berkun

Talk Like TED: The 9 Public-Speaking Secrets of the World's Top Minds

Carmine Gallo

The Checklist Manifesto: How to Get Things Right

Atul Gawande

The First 20 Hours: How to Learn Anything... Fast!

Josh Kaufman

Throughout your short award speech, let them know that you’ve got a particular idea you want to communicate and that you thank the people who helped you get to the point where you’re getting this award.

How to prepare for an acceptance speech?

There’s nothing worse than someone winning a major award (whether it is an Emmy Award or just a local club member of the year award) and sort of getting up and fumbling around, “Oh, God – I never thought I would win. So, I didn’t prepare anything…”

Show the people who took the trouble of nominating you a little respect. Do them justice and prepare. It doesn’t really take that long.

Learn from the best

Let’s face it – most acceptance speeches are not memorable. They’re instantly forgotten and they’re perfunctory.

That shouldn’t be your role model. Your role model should be great speeches. Here’s what I want you to do. I want you to go to YouTube and type in “great acceptance speeches” or “great Academy Award acceptance speeches.”

You’ll find tremendous speeches. Most of them are brief because they are acceptance speeches on TV. They’re usually always funny. They have an emotional moment and they seem genuine.

Now, you might be receiving a speech for the best accountant in your county and therefore you might not feel the need or the ability to be wildly funny, but you can still learn from the masters.

Practice your speech

I know, now you want to say, “What? It is ridiculous to practice an acceptance speech!” But actually, it is not. The best way to practice your speech is by recording yourself.

Therefore, grab a phone or camera and record yourself. Next, take a look at the recording and write down everything you liked about it and everything you didn’t like about it.

After, repeat this process as many times as needed until you’re feeling comfortable and happy. If you do that, I guarantee you’re going to deliver a great speech.

Also, don’t be afraid of jinxing yourself. Prepare to accept the award and prepare to give the speech.

How to write an acceptance speech?

The first thing most people do when they win an award is to thank the people who helped them. Of course, you should thank people but remember that there is a particular way of thanking people.

Thank people in a meaningful way

Thank people in as specific a way as possible and tell them exactly what they did that helped you. Don’t just say, “Thank you for your support.” Support is too generic. It’s abstract and doesn’t really mean anything.

What you should do is:

• Look at the people you mention
• Address them by name
• Thank them and tell them what you’re thanking them for. For example: “John, you were there for me when no one else was and when I couldn’t raise a penny to get this idea going. You wrote the first check.”

If you do that then it’s going to be so much more interesting to everyone. It will be meaningful and it will come across as sincere. That’s much more effective than just rattling off a long list of names.

Tell people exactly what you’re thanking them for. Look them in the eye if they’re around. Give specific examples; this way, your thanks has real meaning.

Make a point, tell a story

The best award acceptance speeches always tell a story. Now you may ask, “Well…how is there time for a story?” But I assure you that you can tell a story in 30 seconds.

• Talk about something that happened
• Recount a real conversation (with a friend, a colleague or a family member) about a challenge, how you overcame it and how it’s relevant to the award.

Main rules for the story you’re going to tell:

• Make it brief
• Make sure it’s relevant
• Tell it in a compelling way

If you do that, you have a good story for your acceptance speech.

How to give an acceptance speech?

When you’re giving an acceptance speech, especially if it’s for anything in the creative field, keep in mind that you’re an entertainer. Therefore, something in your speech should be entertaining.

Don’t be dull – be entertaining

Now, ideally your speech should be funny but if it’s not, at least have a dramatic moment or something with a little emotion . It’s always disappointing when people who are known as world-class entertainers seem, during their acceptance speech, about as entertaining as if an accountant were reading the phonebook to you.

Remember who you are and what your strengths are. Use those strengths to entertain. You’re not going to give a humorous speech for an hour, but you do have a minute where you can say at least something amusing, interesting or entertaining.

So, plan on having something entertaining even if you’re just making fun of yourself.

Show some emotion but don’t overdo it

A little emotion goes a long way. If you’ve had a tough life and now you win some important award it’s understandable to have some emotion…but you need the right amount.

It is not very interesting if you’re out there blubbering. So, keep it together. This is one of the beauties of having rehearsed your acceptance speech – you can show the right amount of emotion and the words can still come out rather easily because you thought of it, you planned it and you rehearsed it.

But if you just take the attitude of, “Oh, I don’t want to jinx myself. I’m not going to plan anything to say – I’ll just get up there,” and then the actual emotion of the moment may overwhelm you and you just can’t say anything. Instead you kind of look like an idiot – especially if it’s on TV for the whole world to see.

So, you want emotion but not so much that you’re just blubbering.

What to avoid while giving an acceptance speech?

Here are a few things that you really need to avoid when giving an acceptance speech.

#1 Don’t read your speech

One thing I would suggest you do is to avoid reading your speech from a piece of paper. It’s just awful – it’s devoid of personality, emotion, and sincerity. So don’t read.

It’s OK to have some notes, but you certainly should not have a word for word scripted out.

#2 Don’t thank more than five people

Also, I really don’t think you should thank more than five people. If you have more people than that to thank then send them a personal note.

Don’t give a long laundry list of names and don’t read because those are the two biggest blunders that people make in the major awards shows when they are receiving awards.

#3 Don’t tell people you’re nervous

You may not know this but no one even recognizes that you’re nervous. You can tell your family and friends later that you were nervous but don’t waste valuable time.

#4 Don’t tell people that you don’t have much time

Speaking of time – don’t waste your time by telling people that you don’t have much time. “Oh my gosh, I don’t have much time. I don’t know where to start because…”

Don’t ever comment on the time. Simply use your time to maximum advantage. Use every second. Say something interesting to the audience and don’t waste time talking about the fact that you don’t have much time because now you have even less time.

So, if you avoid these pitfalls, it gives you more time to focus on saying something interesting. Perhaps something lighthearted or thanking people in a sincere way.

Final thoughts: What to say in an acceptance speech?

If I got to vote for you, I would. I’m pulling for you. I hope you win this award so you can show off your public speaking skills and give a great award acceptance speech.

It really all comes down to:

• Be genuine in your thanks. Don’t just list names.
• Have one interesting or entertaining thing to say.
• Share one little story
• Focus on your audience and don’t talk about how you’re nervous or scared.

Finally, the most important tip of all: practice your short speech in advance on video as many times as it takes so that you see in advance the speech you want to give. And then once you win, you can simply deliver the speech that you’ve already practiced. Do that and you will be in absolutely great shape.

Related questions

How long is an acceptance speech? It depends on the event but usually, it is between 45 and 60 seconds.

How do you outline a speech? Have your speech ready with nice gigantic text so you don’t have to memorize anything. Ideally, it fits on a single sheet of paper. That way you can simply glance down, scoop up a few words and keep going. This keeps you on track. (Full article here)

Useful reading

• How to deliver a ceremonial speech? A Full Guide
• How to Introduce Yourself in a Presentation Without it Being Awkward?
• How to Use a Teleprompter During your Speech? A Complete Guide

Posts about public speaking you may also like

9 effective Ways How to Teach Public Speaking to Kids

There are a lot of kids who are getting anxious when their parents force them to go out and meet other people. This is because

How to memorize a speech in less than an hour?

It’s the big day! Time is running out and you have yet to work on memorizing your speech. The only problem is, you’re due to

How to be comfortable in front of a video camera? 14 great tips

Even if there is no official videographer for your upcoming speech, it is very likely that someone in attendance will be recording on their smartphone

• Tags: Impromptu speaking , Impromptu talk , Making a speech , Pauses in speech , Performance anxiety symptoms , Prepared speech , Public presentation , Public speaking topics , Unprepared speech , Unprepared speech topics

Recommended gear

Best Portable Speakers For The Presentations

Best Video Cameras for Public Speakers

Best rresenter remotes for public speakers

Best Portable Thumb Drives And Hard Drives for the Presentations

Who is janek tuttar.

My name is Janek Tuttar , and I am the founder and author of Speak and Conquer website.

I have been teaching public speaking at Estonian Entrepreneurship University of Applied Sciences

Here, I am sharing the wisdom of how to cope in different public speaking situations.

More information about Janek »

Share this post

Hi! My name is Janek Tuttar, and I am the founder and author of SpeakAndConquer.com.

I have been teaching and blogging about public speaking since spring 2007. Here, I am sharing the wisdom of how to cope in different public speaking situations.

Send me an e-mail: [email protected]

LEGAL INFORMATION

This site is owned and operated by Janek Tuttar. SpeakAndConquer.com is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com.

This site also participates in other affiliate programs and is compensated for referring traffic and business to these companies.

Best teleprompters

Best Computer Mice for the Presentations

Best Laptop Backpacks for Public Speakers

Acceptance Speech Thanks Those Who Made Excellence Possible

When achievements are acknowledged with an award or accolade, the recipients should respond with a gracious acceptance speech. A well-delivered acceptance speech conveys thanks, identifies people instrumental in the speaker’s success, and inspires others to strive toward their goals. 

Whether it’s Meryl Streep and one of her many Academy Awards or John F. Kennedy and his nomination for president,  knowing how to deliver the right acceptance speech is an essential skill.

Table of Contents

What Is An Acceptance Speech

An acceptance speech is an address given by an individual recognized for their achievements or contributions in a particular field.  It serves as a way for the recipient to express gratitude and appreciation for their recognition.

Examples of these speeches can be seen at  Hollywood awards shows , such as the Academy Awards (otherwise known as the Oscars) or Golden Globes. In these ceremonies, achievements like Best Actor, Best Supporting Actress, or Motion Picture of the Year are examples of awards given.

But acceptance speeches are given in many fields for many types of achievement s. Academic achievements, sports, career advancements, and even political events like the Republican or Democratic conventions, when presidential nominees are named, require people to give acceptance speeches.

Anytime a formal recognition of success is announced, an acceptance speech should be given.  The purpose of an acceptance speech is to acknowledge those who have helped you achieve your success, whether it be family members, colleagues, mentors, or fans. It also allows you to share any insights or advice you gleaned with others.

An effective acceptance speech should be  concise and heartfelt, conveying humility, confidence, and gratitude . The speaker should  avoid being overly boastful or self-centered and instead focus on expressing gratitude and acknowledging the contributions of others.

Nominees at these events come prepared with an award acceptance speech that allows them to thank those involved with their success and the organization honoring them.

Awards are given as early as kindergarten, though responding with acceptance speeches might not start till high school.

How Do You Write A Speech About Accepting An Award?

When it comes to writing a speech about accepting an award, there are a few key elements that you should keep in mind. You will have limited time, so being prepared and precise is essential.

• Create an outline.  A well-organized speech will have an introduction, body, and conclusion.
• Introduction.  The introduction should express your gratitude for the honor you’ve received. You do so by thanking the organization or individual presenting the award and any colleagues or supporters who have helped you along the way.
• Body.  In the body, you’ll want to reflect on what the award means to you personally and professionally. Consider how it aligns with your values and goals and how it will impact your future endeavors.
•   Conclusion.  During the conclusion, you’ll share some words of inspiration with your audience. Whether encouraging others to pursue their passions or reminding them of the importance of hard work and dedication, your speech should leave a lasting impression on those who hear it.

What Is The First Step In An Acceptance Speech?

The first step in an acceptance speech is to  express gratitude . Whether it is an award, a promotion, or any other form of recognition, expressing gratitude is essential.

It’s crucial to  thank the organization or individual who bestowed the honor on you and acknowledge the efforts of those who helped you achieve it.

Thanking family, friends, and colleagues for the support and encouragement they provided is also crucial. No one achieves success alone, and recognizing everyone (or as many as possible in the given time) who has played a role in your achievement demonstrates your understanding.

Additionally, if time permits, this is an excellent time to  share your perseverance and hard work story . Your circumstances can inspire and encourage others to pursue their dreams and never give up on themselves.

What Should An Acceptance Speech Include?

A well-written acceptance speech should have a  clear introduction  that captures the audience’s attention, a  body that conveys the message effectively , and a  conclusion that leaves a lasting impression.

An acceptance speech can be tricky, so preparing ahead of the event ensures you can deliver the right message quickly, even if you don’t expect an award. For someone feeling humbled and brimming with emotion, the inclination can be to talk extensively about the journey and stumble over the right people to thank.

A good acceptance speech must be both thorough and concise. This can be a tricky balance to strike.

When preparing your acceptance speech, be sure to include the following:

• A sincere expression of gratitude towards the organization or individuals who have bestowed the award.
• Recognition of family, friends, colleagues, mentors, and anyone else who has played a significant role in their success.
• An inspiring message that motivates others to pursue their dreams  and work hard to make them a reality.
• Personal experiences  highlight the importance of perseverance, dedication, and never giving up.

It’s also vital to end positively by expressing hope for the future and thanking everyone again for this recognition. A well-crafted acceptance speech can leave a lasting impression on its audience and inspire others to strive towards excellence.

What Is The Most Important Part Of An Acceptance Speech?

The most important part of an acceptance speech is undoubtedly its message of gratitude.

The proper expression of appreciation and thanks to those who supported and participated in your success creates a  personal connection with the audience.  Appearing entitled or ignoring the contributions of others will be off-putting to the audience and those who are bestowing the award.

Family, friends, and colleagues involved in another’s success may feel slighted if they are not mentioned in an acceptance speech. Nominees should come with cue cards to refer to if they win and need to give the speech!

How Do You Write A 5-Minute Acceptance Speech?

Writing a 5-minute acceptance speech can be daunting, especially if you are not used to public speaking or if it’s your first time.

Five minutes is incredibly long, yet not nearly enough time when you find yourself needing to prepare an acceptance speech.

However, with careful planning and preparation, you can create an impactful speech that will leave a lasting impression and be appreciated by your audience.

The steps below can be used as a guide when crafting your acceptance speech:

• Brainstorm . Write down everyone you think you need to thank. This may be a long list, including family members, friends, colleagues, or mentors. Acknowledging the organization or institution giving you the award is also important.
• Create a priority order of thanks.  You have limited time, so arrange your list in priority order with those essential to thank those that you can thank personally later if time doesn’t permit.
• Determine the key message that you want to convey in your speech.  You might include an inspiring story about overcoming challenges or achieving success in your field. Alternatively, it could be a call to action for others to follow in your footsteps and positively impact their own lives.
• Create a strong closing statement.  The best closing statement leaves a lasting impression on your audience. You could use a quote or personal anecdote that summarizes your message and inspires others to take action.
• Edit.  With all of these elements created, put them together and edit.
• Practice.  You have 5 minutes, so you’ll need to practice. Knowing what you’d like to say and speaking eloquently will give you the most opportunity to include all the elements you’d like to in your speech.

Writing a 5-minute acceptance speech requires careful planning and preparation . By thanking those who have helped you along the way, conveying an inspiring message, and ending with a strong closing statement, you can create an impactful speech that will leave a lasting impression on your audience.

What Is An Example Of A Short Speech About Accepting An Award?

Accepting an award is a moment of great pride and honor for any individual. It is an opportunity to express gratitude and appreciation toward those who have supported and encouraged us throughout our journey. A short speech about accepting an award should be concise, heartfelt, and gracious.

An excellent example of a short acceptance speech is the one given by Denzel Washington in 1990 when he won the first Oscar of his career for best male actor in a supporting role. His Oscar speech went as follows:

I want to thank the Academy. I’m gonna thank Ed Zwick, and Freddie Fields, who did a fantastic job, who made what I consider to be at least one of the best five films of the Year. I’d like to thank my friend and manager, Flo Allen. Fabulous Ed Limato. And Todd Smith and George Freeman. And God bless you, my mother. I love you. My beautiful wife Pauletta, the kids. My son said he was gonna make one of these out of clay for me; now I got the model for him. I want to thank my first agent, the late Ruth Aronson, who believed in me. I’d also like to pay homage to the 54th, the black soldiers who helped to make this country free. I thank God. I thank you.

Lorin Harrott

After years as a professional speaker and corporate trainer,Lorin Harrott has turned her attention to sharing her knowledge through writing. She's currently a writer, photographer, and mom in Sacramento, CA, with occasional speaking engagements related to education and STEM topics in the public school system.

Recent Posts

Active Listening Absorbs The Whole Message, Not Just The Words

Active listening goes beyond hearing the words someone is saying to you and understanding the message they are conveying. Many only hear a small percentage of what is being said as they are...

Counteracting Fear Of Public Speaking With Coaching And Therapy

Nearly 75% of people experience the social phobia of fear of public speaking. The result may be nervousness before speaking or a full-blown panic attack. Practicing public speaking may lessen the...

Module 11: Speaking to Entertain and for Special Occasions

Award and acceptance speeches, learning objectives.

Define the characteristics of award speech.

Identify characteristics of an acceptance speech.

Presenting an Award

In an award speech, a speaker or emcee introduces an award and the winner. The introduction is meant to build excitement, and often the winner is not known until just before the award is to be presented.

Introduce yourself and thank the group or organization asking you to speak. Then name the award and explain briefly about the award you are presenting. Be sure to include the scope of the award, be it local, regional, national, or international.

Next explain what the winner accomplished to win this award. Did they write a paper or did they lead for a cause? Did they grow the largest pumpkin, finish first in a marathon, or bring community groups together to fight for justice? Your job is to present the facts and summarize the story behind their story.

Lastly, if there are other people in attendance who were competing with the winner, make sure to acknowledge them in the time you were allotted. Be sure to finish with the actual award presentation to the person or team, raising your voice and starting the applause after inviting them to receive their award.

Accepting an Award

An acceptance speech often follows an award speech and is given by the winner of the award.

An acceptance speech, like any other speech, should be prepared in advance. Thanking the givers of your award is your first order of business. State how much and why you are grateful for this honor, and if possible, name the people in the organization individually.

Then thank and give credit to those who helped you achieve the award including family, friends, mentors, and others who supported you in this endeavor. Include their names, their roles, and how their combined efforts made it possible for you to receive this honor. If you can’t name all the individuals, name the groups as time will allow.

Briefly share what the honor of the award means to you, and be generous with your praise and your gratitude toward your colleagues and the organizations involved. Smile and carefully look for directions on leaving the stage.

To Watch: Berta Cáceres, Goldman Prize acceptance speech

Environmental and indigenous-rights activist Berta Cáceres, co-founder of the Council of Popular and Indigenous Organizations of Honduras (COPINH), won the Goldman Prize for grassroots environmental activism is 2015 after organizing the Lenca people of Honduras to force the world’s largest dam builder to pull out of the Agua Zarca Dam project on the Río Gualcarque. Tragically, Cáceres was assassinated the following year.

You can view the transcript for “Berta Caceres acceptance speech, 2015 Goldman Prize ceremony” here (opens in new window) .

What to watch for:

In the case of winning an award for a social cause (in this case, environmental activism), it is common to focus on the severity of the problem at hand—that is, to shift the focus from yourself to the problem you are fighting against. Note how Cáceres begins by framing the cause within the belief system and worldview of the Lenca people. She then explains the mission of the organization she helped to found. Next she turns to her call to action: “¡Despertemos¡ ¡Despertemos Humanidad¡ Ya no hay tiempo.” (Let us wake up! Let us wake up, humanity! We’re out of time.) The ending of her speech reminds us that gratitude and humility are the most important elements of an acceptance speech. If thanks aren’t in line with the gravity of the topic, a dedication can serve a similar purpose: “Dedico este premio a todas las rebeldías, a mi madre, al Pueblo Lenca, a Río Blanco y a las y los mártires por la defensa de los bienes naturales.” (I dedicate this award to all the rebels, to my mother, to the Lenca People, to the Río Blanco, and to all the martyrs who gave their lives in the struggle to defend our natural resources.)

• Berta Caceres acceptance speech, 2015 Goldman Prize ceremony. Provided by : Goldman Environmental Prize. Located at : https://youtu.be/AR1kwx8b0ms . License : Other . License Terms : Standard YouTube License
• Award and Acceptance Speeches. Authored by : Patricia Atkinson with Lumen Learning. License : CC BY: Attribution

The Sideroad

Practical advice, straight from the experts..

Home » Business » Public Speaking » How to Give an Acceptance Speech

By: Patricia Fripp

Article Summary:

Patricia Fripp, CSP, CPAE is a San Francisco-based executive speech coach, sales trainer, and award-winning professional speaker on Change, Customer Service, Promoting Business, and Communication Skills. She is the author of “Get What You Want!” and “ Make It, So You Don’t Have to Fake It! ” as well as Past-President of the National Speakers Association. She can be reached by email , ph:1(800)634-3035, or online at www.fripp.com .

Read all advice by Patricia Fripp ; Find more Public Speaking experts

More advice on Public Speaking » Overcome The Fear Of Public Speaking » How to Give an Acceptance Speech » all Public Speaking articles

The Sideroad: Practical advice straight from the experts Home | Business | Life | Travel | News & Expert Interviews | Find an Expert | About Us | Privacy Policy

The Sideroad is a Blue Boulder Internet Publishing site. Simcoe, Ontario, Canada, N3Y 4X2.

The Sideroad © 2007, Blue Boulder Internet Publishing. For REPRINTING RIGHTS, please contact the authors directly.

How to Give an Award Acceptance Speech for Someone Else

How to Give a Dedication Speech

Award ceremonies are used across the world to highlight the work and achievements of a certain individual, team or organization. Nearly all award ceremonies tend to be formal or semi-formal occasions during which recipients of awards are asked to give an acceptance speech.

Acceptance speeches are primarily used by award recipients to convey the honor and appreciation that they feel from winning the award. Sometimes, recipients are unable to attend an awards ceremony and have someone close to them accept the award in their place. Accepting an award for someone else can be a nerve-wracking task. After all, you are representing that person or organization and speaking for them in that moment. With some preparation and gratitude, though, you will have the ability to accept an award on behalf of anyone.

Talk to the person who is receiving the award ahead of time. Ask him if there is anything specific he would like you to say when you accept the award on his behalf. If so, ask him to give a paper copy of what he wants said so that you can deliver the speech correctly. Also ask him if he wants you to explain to the audience why he could not accept the award himself in person.

Practice your planned speech many times in the days leading up to accepting the award. Practice reading the speech in front of a mirror so that you can see how you look as you talk. Continue to practice the speech until you are so familiar with it that you nearly have it memorized. If the person who won the award gave you a speech, strictly stick to it.

Be humble in your delivery. Any time someone wins an award, even if they are deserving of it, it is best to show your appreciation and gratitude. Include a nod to the other nominees, a thank you to the person or organization who awarded the award and a few positive comments about the winner of the award. Tell the audience how honored you are to accept the award on the winner’s behalf and always end your speech with “Thank you” or a similar sentiment.

Keep your speech brief. Most acceptance speeches range from three to five minutes long, depending on the award and the situation. If you are accepting the only award of the evening, your speech may run longer, but if you are receiving one of 20 or 30 awards, it’s best to keep your speech short and sweet so that the show can keep moving. While you don’t want to zip on and back off stage in 30 seconds, you also don’t want to drone on endlessly for 10 minutes.

Related Articles

How to Write a Speech to Welcome People to an Event

How to Write a Speech About Someone I Admire

How to Greet an Audience When Giving a Speech

How to Do a Tribute Speech

How to Announce Graduation From Med School

How to give an annual day speech in school.

How to Do a Acknowledgement Speech

How to Write a Greeting for a Graduation Speech

Dan Richter began freelance writing in 2006. His work has appeared in a variety of publications, including the "Wausau Daily Herald," "Stevens Point Journal," "Central Wisconsin Business Magazine" and the "Iowa City Press-Citizen." Richter graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point in 2009 with a Bachelor of Arts in communication and media studies.

How to Give an Award Acceptance Speech

April 6, 2023

We’ve all done it—imagined giving an acceptance speech for winning gold in Olympic figure skating, Album of the Year, or a Nobel Prize. We’ve watched countless examples of award acceptance speeches that begin with I’d like to thank… Maybe you’ve even practiced this speech, teary-eyed in front of your mirror, thanking all the people who helped you get to where you are today.

While you might think that giving an acceptance speech at one of these prestigious award ceremonies is a pipe dream, it can’t hurt to be prepared. There are all kinds of organizations that put on award ceremonies to honor local businesses, changemakers, excellent students—there are even awards for safe driving. You name it, there’s a prize for it.

This article will discuss several key components of giving an award speech. These include:

• Famous examples of award acceptance speeches
• How to write an award acceptance speech
• Delivering your acceptance speech

By the end of this article, you’ll be well-equipped to give a fantastic award acceptance speech in front of an audience (or just in the mirror).

Examples of Great Award Acceptance Speeches

Before you start putting together your own acceptance speech, find some that exemplify the genre of awards show speeches. These can serve as inspiration for your own acceptance speech. Here are a few from this year’s major awards shows that will go down in history as outstanding, unforgettable speeches, along with top keyword analysis courtesy of Yoodli .

Ke Huy Quan’s Acceptance Speech at the 2023 Academy Awards

Ke Huy Quan won Best Supporting Actor at the Oscars this year for his role in Everything Everywhere All at Once, a film that swept the awards show with seven wins in the directing, acting, and best picture categories. Quan’s most frequently used keywords, according to Yoodli’s speech analytics, include thank, brother, day, love, mom, and much .

Kim Petras’s Acceptance Speech at the 2023 Grammy Awards

On February 5th, 2023, Kim Petras made history by becoming the first transgender woman to win a Grammy. Yoodli’s AI speech coach identifies her top keywords from this speech as award, believed, transgender, hit, go, and home .

Beyoncé’s Acceptance Speech at the 2023 Grammy Awards

The 2023 Grammy Awards was a historic event across the board: on February 5th, 2023, Beyoncé made history as the most awarded artist in the history of the Grammy Awards. The Yoodli speech app identifies five top keywords from Beyoncé’s acceptance speech:  thank ,  like ,  beautiful ,  much , and  trying .

In all of these speeches, notice how top keywords reflect something about the speaker, their work, or the award they are receiving. Examining other successful speeches’ top keywords can help you when coming up with your own acceptance speech. Think about what keywords you want to feature when you accept your award.

Last but not least, there is, of course, Will Smith’s infamous award acceptance at the 2022 Oscars. This speech is not particularly noteworthy in itself—rather, it’s notorious because of what happened before Smith’s acceptance speech. We just couldn’t discuss well known award acceptances without mentioning The Slap.

How to Write an Award Acceptance Speech

How you structure your acceptance speech can differ depending on the event you’re speaking at. Some award shows have strict time limits for award acceptances. Luckily, you can avoid the embarrassment of orchestral music playing you off stage with some simple preparation. For that type of event, you need to prioritize people you want to acknowledge . Next, determine what keywords you want to feature during your speech. When writing your speech, you need to incorporate these people and keywords in as little text as possible.

Not all award ceremonies have such limited time slots, though. If you aren’t concerned about keeping your speech down to 45 seconds, you’ll have a bit more freedom in structuring your speech. Again, you should use keywords and significant people as the guideposts for structuring your script. One strategy you can use to fill the time and captivate your audience is incorporating anecdotes . One way to do this is thinking of a personal story that illustrates how someone helped you on your path to success. That person should be one of the people who contributed to your winning this award. An anecdote like this can serve both to acknowledge someone important to you and to share a more personal side of you with your audience.

The Bottom Line

Regardless of how much time you are allotted, the ability to express yourself concisely is essential when delivering a powerful speech. Tools like Yoodli ‘s AI speech coach are great resources for developing the skill of speaking as concisely as possible. Yoodli gives you automatic feedback on your use of fillers and redundant words. We often use unnecessary fillers without being conscious of them. This is why getting quantitative feedback— you used seven ums in your introduction —is a gamechanger. Minimizing repetition and filler words can not only help you deliver an excellent speech under a time crunch, but also make you a stronger speaker overall.

For most award ceremonies, you won’t need to completely memorize your speech; it’s perfectly acceptable to read from a notecard. However, memorizing a speech can help you deliver it to your fullest potential and reduce nerves. Check out our blog for advice on how to memorize a speech .

The difficulty in delivering one of these speeches is in finding the balance between confidence and humility. You need to be prepared, but not too prepared. If your speech isn’t well-structured and rehearsed, the audience might assume you don’t deserve the award. On the other hand, if your speech is too polished, you run the risk of coming off as arrogant, as if you knew you would win over the other nominees. There is a level of performance and theatricality required for this—maybe this is why great actors give such great acceptance speeches. You don’t have to be an award-winning thespian to find the balance between appearing confident and humble; all you need to do is prepare well and practice. Again, watching examples of famous award acceptance speeches is a great strategy for deciding how to deliver your speech.

A straightforward way to ensure you come across as humble is acknowledging your fellow nominees . For example, say a few words about how honored you feel to be in the same category as such inspiring people as (insert names here). However, there are many awards that only have one nominee. In this case, research the past recipients of the award. You can then express how honored you are to carry on their legacy.

Practice Makes Perfect

Once you’ve written your speech and contemplated how you want to deliver it, all that’s left to do is practice. Practicing a speech is all about becoming comfortable presenting it. The more at ease you are with your material, the more effectively you’ll be able to deliver it. The end goal is for you to feel 100% relaxed while giving your speech. While any amount of practicing will help you improve your delivery, there are three strategies you should implement to make your practice time worthwhile.

First, time your speech . You should always have a stopwatch or timer at hand during your practice sessions. This is to make sure that your speech fits into the time constraints of your award ceremony. Additionally, it helps you ensure your delivery is consistent—if your speech comes in at four and a half minutes one time you deliver it, and seven minutes the next time, something is wrong and you may have missed a section of your script. Every time you rehearse your speech, it should become more routine and feel more comfortable.

Second, you should record yourself practicing your speech. Practicing in front of a mirror is convenient, but it’s difficult to catch presentation pitfalls in the moment. This can more easily be accomplished by taking a video of yourself giving your acceptance speech and watching it back.

Third, it’s essential that you get feedback when you’re practicing. There’s only so much you can notice about your own speech patterns without getting an outside opinion. Recording your rehearsal sessions can make this process easier. If you have a video, you can send it to people in your circle and ask for their constructive criticism.

Finally, you can integrate these three strategies—timing your speech, recording yourself, and getting feedback—seamlessly into your practice time on Yoodli . Yoodli’s AI speech coach can not only time and record your speech for you, it also automatically provides a transcription. Getting feedback on a speech has never been easier: the AI-powered coach provides suggestions on your presentation, including your rate of eye contact, how concise your language is, and potential follow-up questions to your talk in a matter of seconds. Our platform also makes it easy to share recordings you make in the app with colleagues and friends to get their feedback.

In this article, we’ve discussed the ins and outs of giving an award acceptance speech. We covered famous examples of award acceptance speeches, writing a speech, and delivering it. We hope you feel prepared to graciously accept any award. Whether it’s a Pulitzer Prize or employee of the month, the next award you receive is an opportunity to dazzle the world with your elegance and humbleness. Now go out and get your EGOT.

Start practicing with Yoodli.

Getting better at speaking is getting easier. Record or upload a speech and let our AI Speech Coach analyze your speaking and give you feedback.

• EXPLORE Random Article

How to Give an Acceptance Speech

Last Updated: May 18, 2021 Approved

This article was co-authored by Lynn Kirkham . Lynn Kirkham is a Professional Public Speaker and Founder of Yes You Can Speak, a San Francisco Bay Area-based public speaking educational business empowering thousands of professionals to take command of whatever stage they've been given - from job interviews, boardroom talks to TEDx and large conference platforms. Lynn was chosen as the official TEDx Berkeley speaker coach for the last four years and has worked with executives at Google, Facebook, Intuit, Genentech, Intel, VMware, and others. wikiHow marks an article as reader-approved once it receives enough positive feedback. In this case, 100% of readers who voted found the article helpful, earning it our reader-approved status. This article has been viewed 291,592 times.

Giving an acceptance speech can be a daunting task when you're naturally humble, especially if you've been working so hard earning the accolades that you haven't brushed up on your public speaking skills! Luckily, with the right planning and execution, an acceptance speech can be an opportunity to shine, rather than something that must be suffered through. By following a few basic rules of thumb during the writing and polishing stages of your preparation process and knowing basic standards of speech-giving etiquette ahead of time, you can make your acceptance speech as painless as possible — fun, even!

Sample Speeches

Writing a Great Speech

• As a general rule, the smaller your audience and the more intimately you know its members, the more casual your speech may be.

• "Hello. Thank you for honoring me this evening. As you've just heard, my name is Jane Smith. I joined this company in 2009, and since then, I've worked with the marketing, content, and analytics departments in varying capacities. Earlier this year, I had the honor of collaborating with my boss, John Q. Public, on a new data processing system, which is why we're here today."

• "I'm here today to offer my sincerest gratitude to the dozens of people without whom this experience wouldn't have been possible. I'd also like to briefly discuss the role that the idea of "going the extra mile" has played in setting this company apart from the others in the tech field."

• “As much as I appreciate this award and as grateful as I am for it, the greatest reward I’ve ever been given is the simple opportunity to help generations of kids learn how to think critically about the world around them.”

• "As we leave here today, I'd like to ask the members of the audience to take a moment to think about the importance of educating the children of this generation. Tomorrow's problems demand bright, hard-working individuals to solve them, and the only way we can create these individuals is by acting as a community to support our schools, our teachers, and the countless people that they depend on for their continued strength."

• When you're thanking people, it's a wise idea to end with something along the lines of, "and finally, I'd like to thank everyone else who supported me during my work — there are too many people to list, but I want to thank you all personally." This covers your bases in case you forget anyone who played a minor role in your success.

• As a positive example, consider Jimmy Valvano's phenomenal acceptance speech at the 1993 ESPY awards. Just eight weeks before his premature death from cancer, the famed college basketball coach delivered an immensely moving speech to an ecstatic standing ovation from the crowd. [2] X Research source
• As an example of what not to do, consider Hilary Swank's Oscar acceptance speech for "Boys Don't Cry" in 2000. Swank accepted her award gratefully, doling out thanks to all of her supporters, with the major exception of her husband , whom the cameras famously caught crying tears of joy during Swank's speech. [3] X Research source
• As an oddball example, consider Joe Pesci’s Oscar acceptance speech. After taking the podium at the 1991 Oscars for his work in "Goodfellas," Pesci said simply, "It's my privilege. Thank you." Pesci was both praised and lampooned for his five word speech.

Polishing Your Speech to Perfection

• Knowing the outline of your speech ahead of time is useful for multiple reasons. For instance, not only will this prevent certain technical snafus (for instance, a breeze carrying your speech away) from derailing your speech, but it can also help you deliver your speech more confidently. After all, if you know basically what you need to say ahead of time, what need is there to worry?

• Also, don’t forget that there may be people in the audience who were in the running for the honor you ended up receiving. Because of this, you won’t want to demean the organization that’s honoring you or jokingly imply that you were a bad choice. Maintain respect for yourself, the organization honoring you, and the audience as you accept your award.

• As you practice, time yourself. You may be surprised how much longer (or shorter) your speech is than you thought it would be. If you have a hard time limit for your speech, use the results of your timed practice to edit your speech as necessary.

Delivering your Speech with Dignity

• Rapid heartbeat: Breathe deeply and slowly. Concentrate on someone in the room you're comfortable around, like a friend or family member. Start delivering the words of your speech — you'll naturally relax once you start talking.
• Racing, panicked thoughts: Take deep breaths. Look out into the audience and see the humor in their blank, expressionless faces. Alternatively, imagine that the members of the audience are somehow unimportant or laughable (e.g., that they're all in their underwear, etc.)
• Dry mouth: Bring a bottle of water with you onstage to drink as you need it. Consider also chewing gum before (but not during) your speech. Mimicking the process of eating can have a calming effect on the emotions. In addition, it can stimulate saliva production, preventing a dry mouth.
• Trembling: Breathe deeply and slowly. If necessary, try slowly tensing and releasing the muscles in the trembling body part to work out the excess energy from your adrenaline high.
• Above all, relax . You've prepared, so you have no reason to worry about how the speech will turn out. Worrying will only make it harder to deliver the great speech that you're perfectly capable of giving.

• Hurrying or rushing through your speech.
• Fidgeting or messing with something in your hands
• Swaying from side to side.
• Coughing/sniffling excessively

• If you can remember to do so, try to gradually move your gaze from side to side as you look at your audience. Sweeping your eyes back and forth gives the members of the audience the impression that you're addressing them all individually. If this "sweeping" motion is tricky for you, try randomly picking individuals in the audience to look at for a few seconds at a time as you talk.

Expert Q&A

• Keep any jokes clean and flattering. Don't debase yourself or anyone else. Thanks Helpful 1 Not Helpful 0
• When writing your speech, stay mindful of the audience. Your knowledge of the attire and the age group should dictate your vocabulary. Thanks Helpful 1 Not Helpful 0
• At all costs, avoid forgetting to mention someone. It is always better to mention groups, or teams, and avoid speaking about individuals, than it is to disregard someone unintentionally. Thanks Helpful 0 Not Helpful 1

You Might Also Like

• ↑ Lynn Kirkham. Public Speaking Coach. Expert Interview. 20 November 2019.
• ↑ http://www.jimmyv.org/about-us/remembering-jim/jimmy-v-espy-awards-speech/
• ↑ http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/oscars-acceptance-speech-flubs-422360
• ↑ http://www.cypressmedia.net/articles/article/19/overcome_your_fears_and_become_a_great_speaker
• http://www.sideroad.com/Public_Speaking/acceptance_speech.html
• http://www.write-out-loud.com/acceptance-speeches.html

About this article

To give an acceptance speech, start by introducing yourself, then get right to the main theme of your speech. Keep your words simple, speak slowly and clearly, and try to center at least part of your speech around thanking those who helped you get to where you are. Explain what personal meaning the honor holds for you, then wrap up your speech with a concise, powerful ending! For tips on polishing and practicing your speech, read on! Did this summary help you? Yes No

Reader Success Stories

Veronica Arlo

Dec 21, 2017

Did this article help you?

Hersey Gray

Mar 12, 2018

Peter Oluoch

Jul 3, 2018

Sophia Soliman

Apr 16, 2018

Amanita Muscaria

Dec 19, 2016

• About wikiHow
• Terms of Use
• Privacy Policy
• Do Not Sell or Share My Info
• Not Selling Info

Rice Speechwriting

Mastering thank you speech for award: winning techniques, how to write a winning thank you speech for award.

Winning an award is a great accomplishment that deserves recognition and appreciation. One of the best ways to do this is by delivering a thank you speech that expresses your gratitude to those who have supported, encouraged, and contributed to your success. In this blog post, we will take you through the key elements of a winning thank you speech, step-by-step guide to writing one, tips to make your speech stand out, examples of thank you speeches for awards, and common mistakes to avoid. We’ll also explain why a thank you speech is important and how it impacts the audience. So whether you’re preparing for an upcoming award ceremony or just want to be ready for future events, this guide will help you write a memorable thank you speech that leaves a lasting impression on your audience.

Understanding the Importance of a Thank You Speech for Award

Acknowledging appreciation for the recognition received through an award is crucial. It conveys sincere gratitude for the prestigious award, highlighting its significance in one’s journey. A good thank you speech for an award not only expresses gratitude but also sets the tone for future endeavors. The nervousness associated with public speaking can be eased by genuinely expressing gratitude. Additionally, the acceptance speech at an award ceremony holds great importance, as it is a specific type of speech award that is anticipated and valued.

The Role of Gratitude in Speeches

In award speeches, expressing gratitude is essential. Sincere thanks fosters encouragement and acknowledgment, especially when receiving a leadership award or recognition at work. A good way to deliver the speech is with dedication and sincerity, recognizing the awarding body and supporters. It’s crucial to understand that a thank you speech is a type of speech that demands genuine appreciation. In India, expressing gratitude after receiving the best employee award holds great importance. Therefore, incorporating personal stories and a touch of humor can make the speech stand out and ease any public speaking jitters.

The Impact of a Thank You Speech

Expressing gratitude in a professional setting is a good way to appreciate team members for their hard work. A thank you speech for receiving an award at work holds great importance as it recognizes various challenges faced and highlights the dedication of the team. Eye contact during an award speech enhances its impact, conveying sincerity and acknowledgment. Crafting a great speech of thanks for an award ceremony is crucial, as it acknowledges the efforts of the team and fosters encouragement. Sincere gratitude expressed in a thank you speech for a professional award plays a significant role in acknowledging the support and dedication of the team members.

Key Elements of a Winning Thank You Speech

An effective award speech should encapsulate the essential details of the recognition, conveying sincere gratitude for the honor received at work. Acknowledging the awarding body is crucial in an acceptance speech, emphasizing the genuine nature of the appreciation expressed. Sincerity is a key element of a compelling thank you speech for an award, resonating with the audience and leaving a lasting impression. The speech should articulate the significance of the award and how it has personally impacted the recipient, reinforcing the depth of gratitude.

Recognizing the Awarding Body

When accepting an award, it’s essential to sincerely acknowledge the organization or individual presenting the honor. A good way to express gratitude is by recognizing the awarding body and the hard work they’ve put into the recognition process. Whether it’s a professional award or a personal achievement, the type of speech used to thank the awarding body should convey genuine appreciation. Moreover, in India, acknowledging the efforts of the awarding body in a speech award greatly impacts the audience’s perception of the recipient’s gratitude.

Expressing Gratitude to Supporters

Expressing gratitude to supporters in a thank you speech for an award is essential. It’s important to convey sincere thanks to the individuals who have shown unwavering support. Additionally, acknowledging their encouragement for future endeavors is crucial. A good way to do this is by recognizing the impact of their support on your journey towards the award. This type of speech should reflect genuine appreciation and gratitude, especially when receiving an award at work. The speech award acceptance should be heartfelt, recognizing the role of supporters in your success. By expressing gratitude to supporters in a meaningful manner, you can effectively convey the impact of their support on your achievement.

Sharing the Journey towards the Achievement

Recognition of team members’ dedication plays a key role in an award thank you speech, emphasizing the collaborative journey towards achievement. Sharing important details of this journey during the type of speech awarded adds depth and sincerity to the expression of gratitude. A good way to express appreciation is by recognizing the contribution of individuals who have been part of the journey. This acknowledgment not only reflects the significance of the award but also highlights the collective effort that led to it. Incorporating personal experiences and specific examples can further enhance the impact of the speech, making it relatable and engaging for the audience. Expressing gratitude for an award in India or any other location should encompass the journey’s milestones and the team’s unwavering support, truly capturing the essence of the achievement.

Step-by-Step Guide to Writing a Thank You Speech for an Award

Starting with a captivating opening is imperative when crafting a thank you speech for winning an award at work. The body of the speech should be carefully constructed, conveying sincere gratitude and appreciation. Writing an acceptance speech for a prestigious award requires authenticity and a good way of expressing gratitude. For a great honor speech at an award ceremony, it’s essential to ensure that the speech is not only sincere but also engaging. Crafting a type of speech that resonates with the audience, especially in India, where appreciation for formalities plays a significant role, can make a speech award-winning.

Starting with a Captivating Opening

Commencing the address with an engaging anecdote or a thought-provoking question instantly captures the audience’s attention. Setting the tone for the speech and establishing a connection with the audience right from the start is crucial. A well-crafted opening sets the stage for a captivating delivery, ensuring that the audience remains attentive throughout the entirety of the speech. Engaging the audience from the beginning creates a conducive environment for conveying gratitude effectively.

Building the Body of the Speech

When crafting a thank you speech for an award, it’s crucial to structure the body thoughtfully. Start by expressing gratitude genuinely, highlighting the significance of the honor. Incorporate personal anecdotes to connect with the audience emotionally, making the speech relatable and engaging. A good way to maintain the flow is by acknowledging the efforts of those who contributed to the achievement, such as mentors, colleagues, or family members. This type of speech should also emphasize the impact of the award, both personally and professionally, underscoring the value of the recognition. Additionally, considering the cultural context, especially in a diverse country like India, can add depth to the speech. Crafting the body of the speech with these elements ensures that the message resonates authentically and leaves a lasting impression.

Ending with a Memorable Conclusion

End your speech with a compelling call to action or an inspiring thought, leaving the audience with a deep sense of appreciation. Express hope for future endeavors and challenges, ensuring a lasting impact. Conclude with genuine gratitude for the award and recognition, reflecting your dedication and sincerity. Crafting a powerful ending that resonates with the audience is a good way to wrap up this type of speech, ensuring that your message lingers long after the speech award ceremony. India has a rich tradition of recognizing achievements, making it essential to close your speech on a memorable note.

Tips to Make Your Speech Stand Out

Make meaningful eye contact with your audience to communicate sincerity and genuine gratitude. It’s essential to recognize and thank the team members and mentors who have been instrumental in your journey to success. When delivering your speech, incorporate pertinent details about the award, emphasizing its significance and impact on your life and career. To ensure a memorable and impactful acceptance speech, employ effective public speaking techniques, such as engaging storytelling and confident body language. Utilizing an appropriate tone and language, sharing personal anecdotes, and incorporating a touch of humor can further elevate your speech and captivate your audience.

Use of Appropriate Tone and Language

When delivering a thank you speech for an award, it’s crucial to choose an appropriate tone that reflects sincerity, gratitude, and encouragement. The language used should convey genuine appreciation for the prestigious award and maintain a good balance of sincerity and gratitude. It’s important to express thanks in a way that truly resonates with the audience and adopt a tone and language that reflect the significance of the award. By recognizing the type of speech and the impact it can have, one can convey heartfelt gratitude in a good way. Incorporating personal stories and adding a touch of humor can also enhance the speech, making it more relatable and impactful.

Incorporating Personal Stories

Incorporating personal stories in a thank you speech for an award adds a touch of authenticity and emotion to your delivery. By sharing personal narratives that highlight the impact of receiving the award, you create a genuine connection with the audience. Anecdotes showcasing dedication and perseverance not only make the speech relatable but also inspire and uplift the listeners. Additionally, illustrating the importance of the award through personal experiences underscores its significance and value to you. Weaving in stories that convey the challenges you overcame and emphasizing the role of encouragement and acknowledgment further enriches the speech, making it a type of speech that resonates deeply with the audience.

Adding a Touch of Humor

Infusing your speech with a tasteful, light-hearted humor that resonates with the audience can be a good way to engage and delight them. Adding a touch of humor to your speech will lighten the atmosphere and build rapport, making it a type of speech that is memorable and enjoyable. Remember to use humor sparingly and appropriately to enhance the impact of your speech. Incorporating light-hearted anecdotes or witty remarks can be a good way to add humor to your thank you speech for award, ensuring that it is well-received by the audience in India.

Examples of Thank You Speeches for Awards

Crafting a type of speech that conveys sincere gratitude for the honor and recognition bestowed upon you is a good way to start. Delivering a heartfelt acceptance speech that reflects genuine appreciation for winning the prestigious award is crucial. Expressing thanks in a manner that reflects sincerity, dedication, and gratitude is vital. Incorporating personal anecdotes and elements of encouragement will add depth to your speech. Your aim should be to convey sincere appreciation for receiving the award, expressing gratitude for the recognition while sharing the positive impact it has had on your life.

Short Thank You Speech Example

Expressing profound gratitude for this esteemed honor and extending my heartfelt thanks to everyone present. The recognition I’ve received today serves as a motivating force, propelling me to persist in my unwavering commitment to excellence. Accepting this award is an immense privilege, and I am genuinely appreciative of the encouragement it signifies. My gratitude knows no bounds for this recognition, and I eagerly anticipate making further meaningful contributions in the future. I sincerely appreciate this award and the acknowledgment of my dedication and effort.

Long Thank You Speech Example

Receiving such a prestigious award is truly an honor, and I want to express my sincere gratitude for this recognition. The significance of this award deeply touches me, and I am truly moved by the acknowledgment of my dedication and hard work. I am immensely grateful for this recognition, and it motivates me to continue striving for excellence in all my endeavors. The encouragement and support I have received from everyone here have played a crucial role in my journey, and I extend my heartfelt thanks for this prestigious award. I am truly appreciative of the recognition of my efforts and dedication, and it inspires me to contribute even more in the future.

Common Mistakes to Avoid When Writing a Thank You Speech

When writing a thank you speech for an award, it’s important to steer clear of overly formal language that may detract from the sincerity of your gratitude. Refrain from delivering a speech that lacks an appropriate tone of sincerity and gratitude while avoiding speaking at length without conveying genuine appreciation. Additionally, it’s crucial to avoid using language that may undermine the significance of the award and recognition, as well as to steer clear of overusing jargon or technical terms that may dilute the sincerity of your speech. Ensuring that your speech strikes the right balance between formality and sincerity is a good way to make it impactful and memorable.

Avoiding Overly Formal Language

In crafting your type of speech for an award, it’s crucial to find a good way to strike a balance between formality and approachability. By doing so, you can avoid an overly formal tone that may hinder the genuine expression of gratitude. Focus on using language that is sincere and earnest, steering clear of excessively formal or stiff speech patterns. This will ensure that your speech award acceptance is heartfelt and free from overly formal, stilted language. Essentially, aim for an acceptance speech that is both warm and genuine, reflecting the heartfelt appreciation you feel towards the awarding body and your supporters.

Should a thank you speech only express gratitude?

A thank you speech should go beyond expressing gratitude. It can acknowledge the hard work of team members, convey sincerity, and inspire future endeavors. A winning speech at an award ceremony should encompass gratitude, appreciation, and recognition of challenges overcome.

If you want to give a memorable thank you speech for an award, it’s important to take the time to craft a message that is both heartfelt and authentic. Start by reflecting on what the award means to you and why you are grateful to receive it. Use specific examples to illustrate your appreciation and show your audience how much the recognition truly means to you. Remember that your speech isn’t just about you – it’s also an opportunity to thank the people who helped you get to where you are today. From mentors and colleagues to friends and family members, be sure to acknowledge everyone who has played a role in your success. By doing so, you’ll not only create a winning speech, but you’ll also leave a lasting impression on your audience.

In conclusion, a winning thank you speech for an award is not just about expressing gratitude, but also about recognizing the awarding body, sharing your journey towards the achievement, and connecting with your audience on a personal level. Use appropriate tone and language, incorporate personal stories, and add a touch of humor to make your speech stand out. Remember to avoid overly formal language and to go beyond just expressing gratitude. A well-crafted thank you speech has the power to leave a lasting impact on your audience and create a memorable moment. So, take the time to prepare and deliver a speech that truly reflects your appreciation and showcases your personality.

Mastering Award Acceptance Speeches: Winning Tips

Inspiring awards ceremony speech examples.

Popular Posts

How to write a retirement speech that wows: essential guide.

June 4, 2022

The Best Op Ed Format and Op Ed Examples: Hook, Teach, Ask (Part 2)

June 2, 2022

November 21, 2023

Mastering the Art of How to Give a Toast

Short award acceptance speech examples: inspiring examples, best giving an award speech examples.

November 22, 2023

Sentence Sense Newsletter

Speech Writing

Acceptance Speech

Learn How to Write an Acceptance Speech like Experts

Published on: Mar 27, 2022

Last updated on: Mar 25, 2024

People also read

The Art of Extemporaneous Speech: Mastering the Unexpected

Good Motivational Speech Topics for Beginners

Commemorative Speech Definition & Complete Writing Guide

Best Impromptu Speech Topics for Public Speaking

Types of Speeches: The Ultimate Guide for Your Next Presentation

How to Write a Speech That Stays With Your Audience

Share this article

A short, well-written speech is expected at a public event when you receive an award. It is the golden opportunity that you thank the awarding organization or individuals. 

However, you need proper planning and good writing skills that make your speech impressive for the audience.  

It's important to have an acceptance speech prepared before the event. However, you can avoid making mistakes by following some guidelines and proper structure, which you will find in this guide.

Thus, continue reading this guide and learn how to create a perfect acceptance speech with our professional written examples. 

Tough Essay Due? Hire Tough Writers!

On This Page On This Page -->

Acceptance Speech Definition

An acceptance speech is a type of speech given by someone receiving an award or prize. However, not all awards have speeches.

Some are other forms such as trophies and certificates that can be used to give thanks for achievements in fields like academics, engineering, science, and medicine.

When you're accepting a prestigious award, it's important to give a speech that is both concise and engaging.

However, you need to create a basic outline and a list of people you want to thank for a great speech.

Also, it is better that you take time and write a perfect speech that impresses the audience.

How to Start an Acceptance Speech?

Starting a speech can be hard when there are many different thoughts in your mind. You may not know where to start or what points should go into the introduction of your speech. Don't panic!

Follow these simple steps, and you'll get on stage with confidence:

Think hard about what you are thankful for. Then, write down a few reasons why you are grateful. The people who gave you the award want to know that you appreciate it. They want to hear your thoughts on this honor, so tell them.

Make a list of people you want to thank in your speech. Put their names on the list. You can thank organizations, people who worked on the project with you, and family and friends that supported you.

Read other people's speeches for inspiration. You can find those on the Internet or in your local library. It is important to read speeches from people who received awards similar to those you will be getting.

An outline is a plan for the speech. It will have all the ideas and headings you need. Also, follow the proper format for the outline. Therefore, you can easily write a great speech.

You can also check out this video guide on how to give an acceptance speech!

How to Write an Acceptance Speech?

A public speaking opportunity is a golden moment for any award winner. But you need to plan and work on your writing skills before the big day comes.

Here are some steps that you should follow and write a perfect speech.

1. Write an Introduction

The introduction sets the tone of your entire speech. It is also important to connect with the people in the audience at first.

You could start by telling a light-hearted joke, but do not talk about how great you are or why you deserve this award.

Also, start by thanking people who helped you in achieving your goals. The length of your introduction depends on how much time you have to speak, but try not to keep it too long.

2. Write the Main Body

The body of the speech focuses on those who deserve recognition. The bulk of your speech should be devoted to thanking those people that helped you get this award.

Reference the list you made of people who deserve recognition and thank them by name in a heartfelt way.

However, you don't need to thank everyone in your life, just the people who deserve it. Therefore, make sure you only give thanks to those involved with your award and family/friends close to you.

Also, you can add humor to your speech and make it interesting. However, do not make your speech humorous; it will lose its real expression.

3. Write the Conclusion

Conclude your speech with a positive message that makes a great impact on the audience. Also, keep the speech conclusion short and brief.

Summarize the group of people who have helped you in accomplishing the goal. You can also suggest a call to action to inspire the audience.

Highlight the few organization’s achievements if you received an award for your work from an organization. Also, thank the audience in your last sentence for their time and efforts.

4. Rehearsing and Proofread

After writing the speech, proofread it and remove all the mistakes. The most important thing to remember when giving a speech is to practice.

Reading your speech is important because it tells you to see what the listener will hear. You should read aloud while noting any sections that sound awkward or confusing.

To make it easier to pronounce, remove words and phrases which are hard.

Ask someone you trust, such as your friend or partner, to help you rehearse and give constructive feedback. Then, keep practicing until both of you feel that it is perfect with no flaws at all.

Acceptance Speech Examples

Examples are always helpful, and they can help give you some ideas for writing an acceptance speech. Therefore, for your help, we gathered some professionally written examples that make your writing phase easy.

Acceptance Speech Sample

Acceptance Speech for Student Council President

Acceptance Speech As President Of An Organization

Acceptance Speech After Election

These are some Nobel Prize acceptance speech examples:

Acceptance Speech For The Nobel Peace Prize

Nobel Prize Acceptance Speech Summary

Martin Luther King Jr. Acceptance Speech

You can check out our descriptive list of acceptance speeches for award examples here: 

Jennifer Coolidge Acceptance Speech

Brendan Fraser Acceptance Speech

Will Smith Acceptance Speech Oscars 2022

Austin Butler Acceptance Speech

Ke Huy Quan Acceptance Speech

Troy Kotsur Acceptance Speech

Jamie Lee Curtis Acceptance Speech

Sheryl Lee Ralph Acceptance Speech

Michelle Yeoh Acceptance Speech

Acceptance Speech Writing Tips

The following are the tips that you should follow to create a well-written speech that impresses the audience.

• Know your audience: Research the audience and occasion to get a sense of the tone and expectations. Understanding your audience can help you tailor your speech to their interests and needs.
• Keep it concise and focused: Avoid going off-topic or rambling. Keep your speech concise and focused on the message you want to convey.
• Practice, practice, practice: Practice your speech multiple times to get comfortable with the content and delivery. This will also help you identify areas where you may need to revise or clarify your message.
• Be authentic and sincere: Speak from the heart and convey genuine emotion. Authenticity and sincerity can help you connect with your audience and make your message more impactful.
• Acknowledge and thank others: Don't forget to acknowledge and thank those who have supported you along the way. This can help you demonstrate humility and gratitude and show that you recognize the contributions of others to your success.

Common Mistakes to Avoid in an Acceptance Speech 

When delivering an acceptance speech, it's important to remember that the audience is not only interested in your achievements. But also in your ability to convey gratitude, humility, and inspiration. 

To ensure that your acceptance speech hits the right notes, it's important to avoid these common mistakes:

1. Focusing solely on oneself and neglecting to thank others:

An acceptance speech is not just about you; it's also about the people who have supported you along the way. 

Failing to acknowledge their contributions and express gratitude can make you appear self-centered and ungrateful.

2. Rambling or going off-topic:

While it's important to convey your gratitude and address the occasion, it's equally important to keep your speech concise and focused. 

Going off-topic or rambling can make your speech difficult to follow and leave your audience disengaged.

3. Using inappropriate language or humor:

An acceptance speech should be professional and respectful, regardless of the occasion. 

Using inappropriate language or humor can offend or alienate your audience. It detracts from the message you are trying to convey.

Now, you get all the information about the acceptance speech. You can start crafting your own with the help of our essay writer !

But sometimes, not every good speaker is a great writer. So many people hire professional writers to do their work for them.

CollegeEssay.org is the place where you can get professional help for your college essay and professional speeches.

So, contact us now and avail the best online essay writing service at affordable rates. 

Frequently Asked Questions

How long should acceptance speeches be.

Acceptance speeches can vary in length. But typically they're pretty short because everyone wants to turn their attention back to what's really important. 

How do you end a speech?

When ending a speech, it's important to summarize the main points of your message. Don't just repeat what was said earlier; paraphrase the key themes and arguments you have just presented.

What do you say in an acceptance speech?

Here are some key points that will help you and give you a better idea of what you need to say in your speech. 

• Be genuine. 
• Keep your remarks short. 
• Don't apologize. 
• Conclude with an inspirational note. 

Caleb S. (Literature, Marketing)

Caleb S. has extensive experience in writing and holds a Masters from Oxford University. He takes great satisfaction in helping students exceed their academic goals. Caleb always puts the needs of his clients first and is dedicated to providing quality service.

Paper Due? Why Suffer? That’s our Job!

Keep reading

Legal & Policies

• Privacy Policy
• Cookies Policy
• Terms of Use
• Refunds & Cancellations
• Our Writers
• Success Stories
• Our Guarantees
• Affiliate Program
• Referral Program
• AI Essay Writer

Disclaimer: All client orders are completed by our team of highly qualified human writers. The essays and papers provided by us are not to be used for submission but rather as learning models only.

• Skip to main content

How to Write Great Acceptance Speeches

by Jezra on August 2, 2023

For the past few years, I’ve had the honor of writing speeches with some of America’s greatest (American) football players.

And I’ve also had the honor of being featured in a New York Times article about that work.

How can that be? (you might ask), when I know almost nothing about football or, in fact, any sport besides lying on the couch reading romance novels?

It can be because we are writing acceptance speeches

Are All Acceptance Speeches Created Equal?

A speech that you would give to accept an Academy Award or enshrinement in the Pro Football Hall of Fame is not the same as a speech you would give to accept an honorary degree or thanks from a local charity.

But they’re not that different, either, because they’re all about the gratitude you feel toward the community that’s honoring you .

So—at the risk of making myself obsolete by sharing these professional secrets—I’ve sketched out an approach to expressing that gratitude in an organized way, in a limited amount of time.

The Elements of Good Acceptance Speeches

You don’t need to hit all of these beats, and you don’t need to deliver them in this order. But if (like my clients who are being enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame, you have dozens and dozens of people to thank), this outline will help you pull that off.

1. “Housekeeping”

(So called because it’s not part of the body of your speech)

• Greet the audience. Let them know how much you appreciate their presence.
• Thank the organization that’s honoring or recognizing you.
• If this is relevant, comment on how proud you are to be part of the long tradition of exceptional people who’ve received this honor before you.
• And if you’re inclined to thank God, this is a good place to do that, too.

2. Share a Little Background

• If it’s appropriate and you have time, share a little bit about what started you on the path to this award.
• This could be as short as 30 seconds or as long as several minutes.
• If you have a charming or funny story about your early involvement with the topic, now is the time to tell it.

3. Acknowledge Your Debt to Others

• Let the audience know that you know that you couldn’t have made it this far without help from many, many other people—some of whom are present today. (Don’t list them all right now, that will come soon. 🙂
• Lots of people thank and/or talk about their parents at this point in their acceptance speeches. Whether your folks drove you to football practice or gave you a moral foundation that helped you excel, they helped put you on the road to success.

4. Now Talk About the People Who Helped You Develop and Grow

• Begin with the people who helped mold you into the person you are today. They deserve the most recognition, and if you have time, a brief comment about what makes them so special to you.
• Then, as you go down the list, you can start putting slightly less important people into groups (“all of the great line coaches I worked with, including…”). Here, you’re mostly listing people, since you don’t have time to share a personal detail about each one.
• Finally, thank people in categories (“the great back office team,” “all of our fine training staff,” etc.)
• And don’t forget your audience members, fans, or volunteers who helped you achieve your success . (You wouldn’t anyway! :-)) Without them, you would literally be nowhere.

5. Finally, Thank Your Family

• Your spouse, your children (if any), maybe your siblings, your parents (if you haven’t already spoken about them), and again, God, if God is central to your life, all deserve public gratitude.
• Say a few words about what your family members have sacrificed, how they’ve stood by you during the hard times, and how they are the best spouse/kids/siblings anyone could ever have! (Assuming that all of this is true. If it’s not, don’t say anything! :-))

6. If You Want, Get Big Picture

• If you want to share advice, or a philosophy of success, now’s a good time to do that.
• And if you told a personal story at the beginning, does it tie back to your advice? (“Watching my Dad work in the fields helped me understand how to be a success in life…”)
• Make your advice (or the values you’re recommending) simple and to the point.

7. Close with More Thanks

• “So I just want to say again how much I appreciate being part of this great community. Thank you for being here with me today; I’ll never forget it.”
• “All of you are the reason I’m getting this award, and I wish I could share it with each and every one of you. So thank you again, and let’s keep winning together.”

Ready to Write Your Acceptance Speech?

Even though acceptance speeches generally hit these traditional beats, they should still be highly individual. Your speech should convey your feelings , and your thoughts, in a way that nobody else but you could express.

Writing acceptance speeches isn’t rocket science— but it is a skill that, as the New York Times pointed out, speechwriters like me have worked hard to perfect.

So if you find out that you’re going to be honored, congratulations!

And if you want a hand with your acceptance speech, just give a yell.

You May Also Want to Read...

• Your Complete Guide to Making Public Speaking Notes Work for YOU
• Public Speaking Tip 4: Writing "Rules" Aren't for Public Speaking
• Public Speaking: Give a Great Wedding Toast

Thank You Speech for Award

Are you a candidate for an award or are you attending a ceremony that expects you to make a speech? Have you won an award and expected to make a speech? A good thank you speech is the one you would need. Thank you speeches can come as short or long, for a ceremony and to show your appreciation for receiving the award. This article will help you with what you should and should not say. What to write in your thank you speech and how to present it. So check it out below, here are some 10+ thank you speeches for award examples.

10+ Thank You Speech for Award Examples

1. thank you speech for award template.

Size: 96 KB

2. Sample Thank You Speech for Award

3. Basic Thank You Speech for Award

Size: 118 KB

4. Thank You Speech for Gold Medal Award

Size: 159 KB

5. Thank You Speech for Award Example

Size: 137 KB

6. Thank You Speech for Award in PDF

Size: 75 KB

7. Printable Thank You Speech for Award

Size: 11 KB

8. Formal Thank You Speech for Award

Size: 71 KB

9. Thank You Speech for Award Acceptance

Size: 120 KB

10. Standard Thank You Speech for Award

Size: 223 KB

11. Thank You Speech for Award Format

Size: 49 KB

Definition of Thank You Speech

From the term itself, a thank you speech is a type of speech given to express your thanks or gratitude to the people or a specific person. To address a person or a group of people your gratitude for the things they have done for you. To show your joy and present them something in return like an award.

Definition of Award

An award is a prize given to someone or a group of people for something they have won. An object given to the winners of a contest. To give credit or merit to someone who has done a good deed.

Definition of Appreciation

Defining Appreciation, this means to show approval to someone. To express a good feeling towards someone especially when they have done something good. To vocalize your feeling of thankfulness towards a person or a thing.

Definition of Ceremony

A ceremony is an event that is held usually for people to gather. A public gathering to celebrate something important like a wedding, a funeral, an awarding, and a graduation . Ceremonies often have speeches in the beginning or the end.

Tips to Write Thank You Speeches

Imagine this, you are about to go to an award ceremony or any type of ceremony that needs you to say a few words. Or you are actually going to an award ceremony and expected to say something. What on earth are you going to do? Well no worries there, this article is going to help you sort out what you should and should not write about. Check out some of these tips:

Some Do’s and Don’ts on writing a speech.

Let’s start with Do’s:

• Do think about it: Before writing down your speech, it is important to think what you want to say. Who are you addressing your speech to? Also, think of the tone in which you want to express it. 
• Do write a draft : Start with a draft after you think about what you want to say. Drafts before the actual speech can help you rearrange your thoughts in a better way. This is also going to help you find the right voice for your thank you speech.
• Do know your audience: To avoid an awkward moment on stage, do know your audience. Think about it when you write your speech. Are your words appropriate for your audiences?
• Do write the appropriate speech for the ceremony: When attending a ceremony, thank you speeches are always expected. Once you are done  writing one down, look at it carefully and see if this is the appropriate speech for the ceremony you are attending.

Now for the Don’ts:

• Do not use foul language: Avoid any profanities when you are writing your speech down. This is not pretty nor needed.
• Do not insult: Like the one above, when you write your speech, do not place anything insulting about the person or people you are thanking for.
• Do not forget to add important information: This includes the people you are thanking for, like honored guests, sponsors, judges and participants.
• Do not forget to be familiar with your speech:   You need not memorize it, but be familiar with it. 
• Do not use your speech as a tool for hurting people: Writing a thank you speech is used mainly to show gratitude . To thank people for coming or to thank people for their hard work, or something they have done to help you. This is not a tool to use to hurt others or bring them down. Remember that.

Tips to Present Thank You Speeches

Now that we mastered the tips to writing a good thank you speech, let’s begin with some tips on presenting a thank you speech. Some Do’s and Don’ts. Let’s begin with the Do’s:

• Do know your audience
• Do understand the importance of your speech
• Do make eye contact once in a while
• Do make your voice clear
• Do use a welcoming and friendly tone

Let’s turn to some don’ts:

• Don’t mutter when making your speech
• Don’t yell at the audience
• Don’t look down at the copy of your speech
• Don’t make rude gestures
• Don’t say foul languages during your speech

Why is a thank you speech important?

A thank you speech is a type of speech that you used to show appreciation towards an individual or a group of people for doing a good job. Thank you speeches are important as this is your way of showing gratitude for the help you were given, or to show thankfulness for the hard work they have done.

How do I write a good thank you speech?

Think, make a draft, use familiar words so you won’t forget the important details. Know your audience, avoid foul language when writing. Write from the heart.

What are the things to avoid when presenting your speech?

Avoid making unnecessary movements. Avoid saying foul language. Avoid being rude to your audiences and avoid hinting rude things.

Are there other things I need to watch out for when presenting my speech?

Do not read your speech, as much as possible be familiar with what you have written.

Thank you speeches can be written in any way you wish. As well as they may depend on the ceremony you are attending. But the one thing that is always certain is to write the speech from the heart. A thank you speech is your way of saying thank you for what they have done for you.

Thank You Speech Generator for Award

Text prompt

• Instructive
• Professional

Write a Thank You Speech for Award recognizing your team's effort.

Create a Thank You Speech for Award for an innovation prize.