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The 10 Best Pieces Of Advice from Graduation Speeches.

The 10 Best Advice from Graduation Speeches. It's incredible how much amazing advice we can get on Youtube. This world really becomes amazing. I compiled the best advice from 3 extraordinary people. Please take some time to watch theses videos and share them with your friends.

Steve Jobs' - Stanford Graduation Speech - 2005


  • "You've got to find what you love, keep looking, don't settle"
    This is a common advice but unfortunately it tends to be forgotten...
    Creativity, Energy, Perseverance come with passion. Here Steve Jobs also insists on the importance to take the right time to find your passion.
  • "Knowing that we're all going to die it's the best way to avoid the trap of thinking you've something to lose"
    Japan's earthquake reminded me that. Everyone can die tomorrow, all fears disappear when we're facing death. And yet most people don't success because they're scared of something (Risking? Leading? Looking Stupid?)
  • "Don't be trapped by dogma which is living with the results of other people's thinking"
    We have this great quality to learn faster and better than any races. But because of that we let ourselves being influenced by outside thinking. His message here is "you can't be happy if you don't follow your heart".
  • "Stay Foolish, Stay Hungry"
    I love this one. The world knowledge is unlimited and constantly moving forward. Modesty is the most powerful tool to keep learning. I meet so many people who act like they know everything. Silly.

Watch the video from Youtube - Read the full transcript

J.K. Rowling - Harvard Graduation Speech - 2008


  • "There is an expiry date on blaming your parents for steering you in the wrong direction"
    You might not be happy to read this one if you have kids. Sorry. Our world's rules are changing so fast, especially in the last 10 years with the the arrival of internet, that you can't keep up. Building your life based on your own vision is so much more motivating. See the third advice above.
  • "You will never truly know yourself, or the strength of your relationships, until both have been tested by adversity"
    Here she is talking about the benefits of failure and how poverty can help us focusing on the essentials such as family and personal happiness.
  • "Choosing to live in narrow spaces leads to a form of mental agoraphobia"
    If you've watched Shutter Island or travelled a lot you know what she's talking about. Most of us are stuck in their own world, don't the reality of things and can really suffered from that both socially or professionally. That's why she's talking about "The important of Imagination" and how learning from situation you never been through in real but just imagined can be incredibly helpful.
  • "It's not how long is it, it's how good it is"
    Q.E.D.

Watch the video from Vimeo - Read the full transcript

Marissa Mayer - Illinois Institute of Technology - Graduation Speech - 2009


  • "Surround yourself with the smartest people you know"
    It's even more true since Twitter and Facebook. Now you can know what the smartest people on earth are saying. Look at Robert Scoble's lists for example here. I find this amazing. But Marissa here also meant to physically surround yourself with the smartest people you know and sometimes it can mean scarifying a lot... Like money.. At the beginning at least..  
  • "Do something you're not ready to do"
    This is hard. Have you ever talked in front of 500 people? Accepted a project you have no idea how to manage? Good. Pushing his own boundaries seems to be the only way to really learn and grow.

Watch the video from Youtube

Conclusion


Finding your passion, surrounding yourself with the smartest people you know, standing up, learning from The Fringe Benefits of Failure and the Importance of Imagination are some of the most valuable advice I've ever had. Though it's very easy to forget them. I thought writing them down would help you, me and maybe your friends never to forget them. If you have more great advice & videos, write them in the comments. And Please share this article with your peers for a better world.

Other great inspiring graduation speeches:
  • President Barack Obama at Michigan Commencement "Are people being nice?" - Watch
  • Jeff Bezos delivers graduation speech at Princeton University "You're your choices" - Watch

You might also like:
Alex Toulemonde is the CEO of a startup based in Vancouver.
For more interesting articles or to stay in touch you can follow @alextoul on Twitter
or Facebook and find me on http://about.me/alextoul.

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