1. People talk to walls... and it is considered normal.

If you ever go to a tournament, the first thing you will notice in the morning is that all the students are talking to walls. I am not kidding here. They all spread out down every hallway, doorway, stairwell, basically every open spot. It looks strange at first because some may be giving a normal speech next to someone who is rolling on the ground and singing songs. It is odd for the competitors at first too because, I mean, who talks to a wall normally?

2. Business is always the dress code.

Speech and debate is the perfect opportunity to whip out every suit jacket and pantsuit you own. It is also a good excuse to buy many more outfits to keep it "fresh" each time. It is interesting to see all the varieties of patterns and color combinations that people come up with.

I personally liked to have blazers that were white, coral, bright blue, and emerald green; it was always good to stand out with a good pop of color like those. All the boys wearing nice business suits is also a perk that comes with speech team, if you ask a girl like me.

3. You meet so many people from lots of different schools.

Speech and debate team gives you so many opportunities to meet some great people. You spend every weekend competing together, so you are likely to develop friendships. This is especially true for people that are not from the same school as you because they can come from all over the state to that one tournament. Many of my closest friends I met through speech team, and most do not even go to my school. (Shout out to Paige, Hannah, Sophie, Christian, Andrew, and all the other people that I have grown close to through speech.)

Also speech squads are a lot of fun when you get to hang out during lunch breaks together.

4. Traveling to out-of-town tournaments is a fun ride.

Riding on a bus is more enjoyable surrounded by your team when they are singing most of the time. Most of the fun memories I have were from the tournaments at other schools farther away. It is nice to be in a new setting for competitions. The only not-so-fun times were when we would leave at 5 a.m. and have to ride the cold school bus. I recommend getting those fancy travel buses for longer trips because those are really comfy and warm. (On most trips we took the fancy buses anyway.)

5. If you win a lot, your trophy shelf may become filled.

My shelf is full of trophies, medals, ribbons, rubber ducks, plaques and more from over the years. Each school is unique with the awards they give out, and they are all pretty cool if you are lucky enough to win. This is not the Olympics, but some people still take these awards a little too seriously. One school in my state even gives out full-sized personalized director chairs to the champions of each category which is maybe the coolest speech thing I have ever heard of. At the end of it all, it is nice to form a collection of stuff to flaunt maybe in front of other siblings at home on your shelves.

6. Speech and debate kids are masters of the power clap.

With the top six winning in each category, the ceremonies can take a decent amount of time. Each competitor also gets to line up onstage and be individually announced which is a special addition. The thrill of each name being called before your own is a feeling like no other. The closer they get to top two, the more your heart pounds in anticipation. Everyone in the audience claps for each winner, and the champion gets a major standing ovation from the crowd. If you have never been to an award show at a tournament, they can help put you in a better mood watching all the happy teams supporting their friends onstage. Every time someone wins for the first time (or the fiftieth time) it is cause for celebration... speech team style.

7. There are different categories for every personality... even slightly wild ones.

My personal category was called 'Humorous Interpretation' which made me look just like the above gif. I played a variety of fun characters using sound effects, dancing, singing, and weird body movements. Not everyone has the same personality, so there are other categories people can try.

Some of these include Dramatic Interpretation, Duo, Declamation, Original Oratory, Public Forum Debate, Lincoln Douglas Debate, Policy, Congress, Program of Oral Interpretation, and even others. Speech and debate is all about finding a category you are good at (or enjoy) and seeing what you can do with it. You can always switch to try new ones as well, so you will never be bored or stuck doing something you don't like.

8. The gathering area can get slightly overcrowded, in a good way!

Typically we gather in a huge cafeteria or gymnasium where there are hundreds of competitors, coaches, judges, parents, and just tons of people all in one place. Every table is full of bags, spare shoes, coats, and lots and lots of stuff in general. Speech kids tend to bring a lot of extra stuff to put all over the place. Just be careful you don't lose any of your belongings because it can be difficult to have to get your winter coat shipped back to you from another school.

Even though it is a little overcrowded and too busy at times, it also provides a great chance to talk to people from other schools. I always find it fun to be in those big rooms because everyone I want to talk to is all in one place without having to go search very far for them.

9. Group snap stories can get kind of wild.

At tournaments sometimes people like to make group stories based off of the location. Whenever this happens, there are nonstop snaps of speech kids making totally strange faces with their friends. Also at the end of the day, expect a lot of random people adding you even if you do not know them at all, that is just what they do at tournaments.

10. Some competition rounds can be a bloodbath.

Getting to the finals can be difficult depending on the amount of people and their talent levels. Everyone wants to win, but not everyone gets the chance. Competing against my friends can be a lot of fun because it motivates me to always try my hardest. When all six are bringing full throttle talent, however, it can become a bloodbath to try to be the champion. Just to clarify, there is no actual violence or blood being shed, but it still feels like winning a major battle to come out on top at the tournament.

11. At the end of it all, speech and debate team can change your life forever.

Speech and debate team will give you memories you will never forget. It gave me the confidence to perform in front of others. It gave me friends to turn to whenever I need to laugh or talk or cry. It gave me coaches and mentors to inspire and help me achieve. It gave me real-life networking and communication skills to take with me to the future. It gave me a whole wardrobe of suits to wear to nice places. It gave me support from my family to be able to compete every weekend for four years.

Most importantly, it gave me an environment where I could thrive and could be a better person.