As far as it may seem, the end of the school year is approaching and graduation is just around the corner for this year's senior classes. Before we know it we will be in their position, sitting down in our caps and gowns listening to someone give a commencement speech. No matter what, as we continue to move on to new chapters, we are constantly learning not only from the past but how we should lead our lives.One of the most inspiring commencement addresses to me was that of Steve Jobs. As most of you may know Steve Jobs is the CEO of Apple. However, in his commencement speech he revealed much information that many of us did not know and probably would have never guessed. Put up for adoption, not attending college, and being diagnosed with a rare type of Pancreatic cancer, were several things he spoke about. Linking them to the importance of "finding what you love" he wanted to leave the new grads with the curiosity to simply to what they love and if they do not know what their love is, to find it. In his very own life Steve Jobs followed his own heart. It was his choice to drop out of college, yet by following his heart he provided himself with the confidence to do what he desired and overall, it was by far the best decision he has ever made. After finding Apple in his parents garage at the age of twenty he was actually fired since the company sided with the other co-founder. But that did not stop him nor the love he had for his job and what he did.
He would later find a company called NeXT, and help find the company Pixar which would both blow up. Apple would eventually buy NeXT, and Pixar would grow into animation's finest company.
If he would have stayed in college, Apple may have never been founded. If he never stayed compassionate for his job, maybe Apple would not be what it is now. But that was not the point of his speech. The point was to show these Stanford grads how integral it is to find what you love, no matter how difficult it is, and to do it.
Like Steve Jobs said,
"Sometimes life hits you in the head with a brick. Don't lose faith. I'm convinced that the only thing that kept me going was that I loved what I did. You've got to find what you love. And that is as true for your work as it is for your lovers. Your work is going to fill a large part of your life, and the only way to be truly satisfied is to do what you believe is great work. And the only way to do great work is to love what you do. If you haven't found it yet, keep looking. Don't settle. As with all matters of the heart, you'll know when you find it. And, like any great relationship, it just gets better and better as the years roll on. So keep looking until you find it. Don't settle."
"Your time is limited, so don't waste it living someone else's life. Don't be trapped by dogma — which is living with the results of other people's thinking. Don't let the noise of others' opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary."
Not only was his speech very inspiring but very true. By failing to do something you do not love and choosing to live someone else's life you lose a sense of who you are and live a life full of regrets. Do your own thing even if it requires you to continue searching for what yo want to do. Just do not give up searching, because only time will tell you when you know what you want to do. Just be open and continue to learn.
Here is his complete commencement address.
Here is a list of other notable college commencement addresses that hopefully you will learn something from.
http://www.humanity.org/voices/commencements/
I think Jobs' message is really important. These days, people only focus on what is considered right and normal. They go to college because they are told it's the only way to get a good job and be successful. But this is definitely not the case; many people that skip college and start their own businesses end up becoming very succesfull. I think that we need to realize that college is important, but it's not necessary for everyone.
ReplyDeleteI side fully with Bridget's comment above. We all strive for success. I think American society highly upholds a specific road to success. For one, preschool is thought to be very important in instilling valuable qualities in a child. After preschool, a child must attend a prestigious elementary and middle school providing a strong foundation in each subject. Next, the now teenager is placed into a rigorous and extremely challenging college-preparatory high school, not only focusing on top notch report cards, but also intense extra-curricular activities. The teenager is expected to maintain a social life as well, in order to keep connections for later in life. Then comes college applications, and with it the infamous competitive atmosphere. Once safely accepted into a college, the person must work even harder to complete required courses and achieve their degree. But that's not the end. After college, the person must face even more competition in finding a well-paying job. It's an endless process. And for what? Often times we blindly follow step after step and we don't even think about what we're trying to obtain. We think, "it worked for everyone else, it needs to work for me too." But that's not the case. We have to branch out sometimes, stray from the path, and find what's best for us personally.
ReplyDelete-A Little Bird