Condo Marketer Bob Rennie gave an inspirational speech at Killarney Secondary that focused on embracing our personal qualities, trusting our intuition and building positive relationships.   

The speech started with a humorous introduction by Charles Li, one of the top marketing and business students at Killarney.

Rennie then gave a powerful speech which touched on the importance of honing one's individual talents.

"You remember people for their differences," he said. "You have to find out what your difference is. Your difference may be a strength or it may be a weakness. Work on your strength and mature your weaknesses."

Rennie encouraged students to use their strengths and talents not only during school time but also in extracurricular activities such as volunteering.

Although Rennie did not finish secondary school, he encouraged his audience to not follow in his footsteps. He said today's jobs are scarce, and the pool of talent is much bigger than it used to be when he started out.

"It's a lot tougher today," he explained. "You don't get the same breaks. Finish your Grade 12 and graduate."

He empathized with his audience's current pressures from their peers, instructors and family members, but encouraged students to recognize where others were coming from.

"Parents in particular, don't understand the school or the social pressures about that hallway, or the social pressures of youth," he said.  "You have to understand where they are coming from or where your teachers are coming from. If you understand them, it makes it a lot easier to manage them and get them to support you."

Following his speech, Rennie was thanked by Danny Hisham, a Grade 12 business and marketing student.