On April 18, 2012, the mayor of Los Angeles, Antonio Villaraigosa, gave his penultimate State of the City Address at Paramount Studios in Hollywood. For the first time in my life, I had the honor to attend one of his speeches. His speech was well delivered and structured. I’ve seen many people give a speech, but never in my lifetime have I seen a speech given the way he gave his. Villaraigosa gave his speech with confidence. He stood on that stage with a great posture, showing no sign of being nervous, and gave his 45 minute speech. What amazed me the most was the fact that he knew what he was talking about. He didn’t read his speech off a paper or had flashcards. It was all being structured in his mind, happening instantaneous. Villaraigosa used great techniques when delivering his speech. He caught the attention of his audience by adding humor and cracking a few jokes here and there throughout his speech. He also went straight to his key points and didn’t wander off his topics. Antonio Villaraigosa served a as great role model for me. As President of the Student Body at my school, I’ve learned a few techniques in improving my leadership skills. I now look up to Villaraigosa and I try to become more like him everyday!