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Davonadra Hasley
Professor Glenn Shiebler
Intro to Public Speaking
7 September 2014
Self-Introduction Speech
Basketball is a huge part of my life. Ever since I can remember, I have loved to
play. I played throughout high school and continue to play today. Along with just a love
for the game, it has taught me many qualities which I am able to use in my professional
life. In order to be a good basketball player, a person needs to first learn the basics of the
game, be a team player, and be coachable.
One of the first things I learned in basketball is the rules and regulations. In order
to be good at the sport a person needs to first understand it. Once I learned the rules and
regulations, I moved on to learn different skills and tricks to better myself. Because I
learned this early on, I was able to apply the same concepts to my job. When starting my
first job, I knew I had to start with learning the procedures and protocols before I could
move on to learn other parts of my tasks. This allowed me to be efficient and effective at
completing my tasks.
Basketball is a sport that requires you to be a team player. You have to rely on
your teammate, just as they have to rely on you. Before playing the game, I never
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enjoyed group assignments because there was always someone in my group that did not
want to do their part. Basketball was able to teach me how to motivate my teammates and
encourage them to get their part of the job done, along with them doing the same for me.
A good basketball player has to be coachable. When a coach gives their player
instructions to do something, they expect that person to listen. We don’t always want to
do what we are told, but at times it is in our best interest to listen to someone with more
knowledge and experience. Basketball taught me this many times over and over. My
coach would make a call that I didn’t necessarily agree with, but the outcome proved she
knew what she was talking about. The same thing applies in a job setting. If a supervisor
tasks a person, the supervisor expects the task to get completed.
There are many things throughout life which teach us lessons and morals.
Fortunately, I was able to learn some very valuable lessons doing something I loved.
When I first started playing basketball, it was just a hobby. Now looking back I have
realized all the sport has provided for me, not only in my personal life but also my
professional life. I am now able to realize just where to start to make things easier on my
life, along with my coworkers’ lives. This simply means to start with learning the basics
before I become too involved in my work and not understanding the general task at hand.
I also learned how to be a good team player and to be coachable.