Graduation Musings
06/05/12
Our firstborn says goodbye to pre-school this week. This is the kind of occasion that begs to be celebrated with pretty dresses, photos, a favorite lunch preceding a three month long summer vacation from schedules with exceptions for dance and drama camps. For me, preschool marks the end of “optional” school and the beginning of 13-19 years of studies that will shape the mind of our daughter. It’s no small thing. I’ve been extremely happy with her education and the sense of wonder that her school nurtures. It’s been the right place for her, for us to see her grow up a bit.
Some of you are watching children – now young adults in your lives – transitioning from higher learning which may remind us of our own graduations and the paths we’ve forged or followed. I wanted to share two commencement speeches I’ve read this week because the best ones address the issues that remain constant in our lives: staying true to oneself, knowing how to nurture your dreams, following your dreams, whatever they are.
So without further adieu…
Anne Lamott (of Bird by Bird, a creative’s self-help book) at Berkeley, 2012. To summarize, live each day as though its your last, because one day it will be.
“First, find a path, and a little light to see by. Every single spiritual tradition says the same three things: 1) Live in the now, as often as you can, a breath here, a moment there. 2) You reap exactly what you sow. 3) You must take care of the poor, or you are so doomed that we can’t help you.”
Sheryl Sandberg of Facebook at Harvard Business School, 2012. If offered a ticket on a rocket ship don’t ask what seat, get on it.
“As you start your post-HBS career, look for opportunities, look for growth, look for impact, look for mission. Move sideways, move down, move on, move off. Build your skills, not your resume. Evaluate what you can do, not the title they’re going to give you. Do real work. Take a sales quota, a line role, an ops job. Don’t plan too much, and don’t expect a direct climb. If I had mapped out my career when I was sitting where you are, I would have missed my career.”
And finally, this is a video called, Dear 16-Year Old Me, urging you take care of your skin and to check yourself for moles and sun damage regularly. This is something I have to worry with when I go for another mole removal next month. And I’ve decided that if I am left with a big gash, like the one on my back, I will be getting a tattoo to cover the scar. Maybe a flowery one like this.
Have you taken any advice to heart in your life? Was there something you wished you had known?
This entry was posted on Tuesday, June 5th, 2012 at 10:36 am and is filed under Events. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
