Ronald Reagan is among the honorees. So are Zig Ziglar and  Norman Vincent Peale.
Add a Mocksville man’s name to that list.
Steve Gilliland, a best-selling author and motivational speaker, was inducted into the National Speakers Association (NSA) Speaker Hall of Fame at the annual conference in Indianapolis, Ind.
Gilliland admitted his surprise at the honor, and that tears filled his eyes as his name was announced. The award recognizes speaking excellence and professionalism. He became the 196th inductee since it started in 1977.
The day prior to his induction, Gilliland brought the crowd of speakers to their feet with a keynote speech at the 2012 NSA convention.
“No speaker in the last 12 years has addressed his peers and touched us the way Steve did,” Hall of Fame speaker and best-selling author Harvey McKay said after Gilliland’s induction. “The standing ovation he received was not only deserved, but one of the longest I have ever witnessed at an NSA convention.”
In 1988, Gilliland began a career in the greeting card industry, where he climbed the corporate ladder. In 1999, he founded Performance Plus Professional Development, which in 2005 was recognized as one of the fastest-growing privately held companies in the Pittsburg, Pa. region. In 2006, he merged his company into what is today Steve Gilliland Inc., the parent company for five business entities, which owns 17 copyrights and 13 registered trademarks.
The author of six books, Gilliland was named author of the year by Advantage Media Group in 2010. His book, Enjoy The Ride, has been on the publishers best-selling list for a record seven consecutive years and serves as the cornerstone to his personal and professional philosophy.
In his newest book, Making a Difference, Southwest Airlines co-founder and chair, Herb Kelleher, wrote the foreward about purpose, passion and pride.
Gilliland speaks to more than 250,000 people a year and influences the lives of many more through books, CDs and DVDs. He has shared the platform with author Dr. Ken Blanchard, former New York Mayor Rudolph Guliani, University of Tennessee women’s basketball coach, Pat Summit, comedian Howie Mandell, as well as Mark Victor Hansen, creator and co-founder of Chicken Soup for the Soul.
Inductees into the Hall of Fame are evaluated by their peers in seven categories: material, style, experience, delivery, image, professionalism and communication …