- 1). Thank whomever is giving you the award, displaying the gratitude and sense of honor you feel at the recognition. If you're accepting it on behalf of a larger entity, make it clear that you're speaking for that entity.
- 2). Acknowledge the people who made the award possible. Cite their names and briefly mention the efforts they made. While you should stay away from laundry lists of contributors, a brief mention of a few specific names or a larger organization makes a fitting tip of the cap to the others involved in the achievement.
- 3). Briefly mention the process by which your achievement came about. You can speak about the values you feel it represents, the practical effects it has or periods when the going got tough--requiring fortitude and determination to persevere. Describe these events using whatever tone you feel is most appropriate for the occasion.
- 4). Stress the larger message that the award represents: not simply a nice trophy to hang on your wall but the emotions behind it and the "real world" influence you believe it may have. Look at it from a larger perspective and write a few words that illuminate the award in that light.
- 5). Close the speech by tying the values and accomplishments you mentioned in Steps 3 and 4 with the organization or people giving you the award, then thank them again.
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