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Past Commencement Speeches 2009

Commencement Address
John Roberts
May 8, 2009

Graduations are solemn and serious ceremonies. 

I was told that in no way do we want clapping, or whistling, or cheering, or any outward displays of celebration to mark the end of a long and hard fought battle to earn your undergrad or graduate degree.

But I’ve never been one to stand on convention so I’m going to throw out the rules and invite you to let out all that pent up enthusiasm and joy in a cathartic display of CU spirit. 

So give yourselves not just a round of applause, but an explosion of emotion that after all the hard work and long hours and lectures and exams – IT’S OVER..!!!!!!
YOU MADE IT..!!!

For most of you, four years has come down to just a few hours and in a matter of moments, you will be free.  A year ago, I sat in the stands while my son graduated – and I wondered, as I watched the ceremonies unfold, what insights from my time on this planet would I impart to the graduating class?  Well, now I have the chance. 

I wish I could say it’s going to be easy out there, but it’s not. 
Times are not just tough right now – they are really tough. 
A lot different than when I went to school. 

Back then – somewhere between man landing on the moon and the invention of the personal computer, jobs were plentiful – you had your choice.

Now it seems, there are a hundred applicants for every position out there.
You’re going to need everything that you learned here to make a go of it.

But I am personally familiar with a few CU grads and I know that if anyone can make it in this world – it’s you.

CU has a way of shaping not just young minds but character.
After all, how can you spend 4 years in an extraordinary place like this and not come away changed for the better.

You’ve done a lot since those first few days as wide-eyed freshmen
You’ve developed the skills to cut 20” of fresh powder.
 You’ve slept in a car in the parking lot at the X-Games.
You’ve witnessed that it is possible for a grown man to stuff himself inside a box on Pearl Street.
And you’ve learned that oysters go down much better dropped into a shot of vodka at Jax.

As you go forward you’ll continue to grow in ways that you never imagined.

The first piece of life advice that I can give you is “Never stop learning”.

My colleague at CNN - Wolf Blitzer has a terrific mantra.
“Learn something new every day.”
When he wakes up in the morning, his goal is to come back home at night a little smarter than when he left.

Keep an open mind.  Let everything in.
Imagine the possibilities in everything that you see.

In everything you touch, in everything you taste, everything you say and everything you use – think of ways you could make it better.

The most successful and remarkable people are the ones who took an existing idea and figured out how to build on it.

And don’t discount an idea just because it seems ridiculous. 
If that were the case, no one would have ever put sleeves on a blanket and America would have been without the Snuggie.  Which, by the way, is headed towards $50 million in sales.
Ridiculous ideas can sometimes become pure gold.

Show humility.  You’re obviously smart – you wouldn’t be here if you weren’t, but humble intellect is much more powerful than that which announces itself when it walks into a room.  Plus, truly intelligent people don’t need to go around proving to others how smart they are.  They just are.

Don’t worry – worrying won’t add any time to your life – and it certainly won’t make you happy. 
Don’t worry that you don’t have enough money – or you’re going to lose your job, or you don’t have enough friends. 

Worrying won’t make you wealthy, or taller, or better-looking, or give you job security or attract new friends. 
In fact, if you go around filled with anxiety all the time it may have exactly the opposite effect. 

You’ll be so consumed with worry that you won’t have time to actually work on what is bothering you.

The great Sufi poet Hafiz has a terrific verse about the wastefulness of worry.  He wrote:
Now that all your worry
Has proved such an unlucrative business,
Why not find a better job?

You have a great gift – a first class education. 

You have been given the tools for a productive life. 
Put them to good use.  When a problem arises, don’t sit around worrying about it – use your talents and solve it.

At CNN, I keep a fabulous little book on my desk that I pick up whenever I need some inspiration on how to lead a productive life.

It’s called “The Last Lecture” – written by Randy Pausch – a Computer Science professor – and I recommend that each and every one of you read it.
Randy died from pancreatic cancer in 2008, but he kept living right up until the end.

And he had some pretty interesting ideas on how to live life.

Here’s one he had personal experience with:
“If something negative – even bad happens to you, don’t complain.  Don’t say ‘this isn’t fair’.  Just keep going.

I’m sorry to inform you of this on such a beautiful day, but lots of negative – even downright bad things are going to happen to you in the coming decades.

You could complain about them, about how it’s unfair or you didn’t deserve it to happen – or you could go around whining “oh, why me..!”

But how you deal with the crap that life will undoubtedly throw at you is the true measure of your strength and character.

Life will at times try to beat you down.
I am here to tell you to fight back.

As Professor Pausch said:  If you took one-tenth the energy you put into complaining and applied it to solving the problem, you’d be surprised how well things can work out..”

Here’s a few more great guidelines on how to live your life:

“Never make a decision until you have to.”  The more you consider all sides of an issue or idea before you have to make a decision, the more likely it is you’ll make the best choice.

“Have something to bring to the table, because that will make you more welcome.”  Everyone likes an ‘ideas’ person. 

“Know what you don’t know – be willing to admit it – and don’t stop until you understand it.”
If you don’t know something, you might be ignorant.  But if you refuse to learn – well, that’s just plain stupid.
And as LTG Russel Honore – the hero of Hurricane Katrina likes to say – “Ignorant is temporary.  Stupid is permanent.  Don’t get stuck on stupid.”

“Don’t obsess about what people think of you.” 
You need to set your own course in life. 
If you live your life obsessed about what other people think of you, you will keep making so many course corrections in an attempt to keep them happy that you will lose sight of who you are, which WILL affect how they think of you, which will cause you to make more course corrections.

Be of good moral character, be kind and generous, be humble and be fun.  If you’re all of those things you can truly love yourself for who you are, and it won’t matter what other people think of you.

“Give yourself permission to dream – and encourage other people’s dreams – particularly your children”.  Boy – that’s a really important lesson. 
Dreaming is so liberating. 

Our brains realize the importance of it. 
After all, when we’re asleep – when all the noise and junk of the day has been turned off, what do we do? 
We dream.
If you don’t dream, you’ll never realize your potential. 

Back in the 1980s, I was a music journalist.  I even helped start Canada’s version of MTV. 
I interviewed rock stars from Ozzy Osbourne to The Clash to U2. 

But I had a bigger dream. 
I told my colleagues I wanted to be a news correspondent for one of the big American networks. 

They thought I was nuts.  One of them even said “yeah, right…keep dreaming”. 
So I did.  I kept dreaming. 
And I went from pop music to covering the President of the United States  
I made my dream come true in ways I never could have imagined.

So - Dream big things, little things, impossible things, silly things.  And encourage your friends, colleagues and loved ones to do the same.  Dreams don’t always come true, but one thing’s for sure. 
If you don’t dream, they never will.

I have one other great lesson from Dr. Pausch, but I’ll leave it to the end.

Here’s a tip from me – be a good listener.  And I mean a REALLY good listener. 
You’ll be amazed at the things you can learn.
Let people talk.
As Hafiz put it: 
Everyone is God speaking.
Why not be polite
And Listen to Him.

Listening is a sign of respect. 

Don’t be afraid to allow dead spaces in conversations while you consider what’s been said, then respond. 
People will appreciate the fact you listened to them in ways you can’t even imagine. 
And they’ll remember it.
Who knows, the person you extend that courtesy to today may be the one who is interviewing you for a job tomorrow.

Be frank with people.  Don’t play games and make them wonder what you’re thinking. 
If you have a problem with someone – tell them about it. 
If you appreciate something someone has done, praise them for it. 

But remember, there is a difference between being frank - and being harsh. 
Being frank doesn’t mean being critical. 

Its simply telling people how you honestly feel about something they’re doing. 
Honesty helps build character. 
In the end, they’ll most likely appreciate the input.

Give back.
Help to make your community a better place. 
Give to a charity.  Work for a charity.
Mentor a young person.
Volunteer.
Coach a youth sports team.

People often get so caught up in who they are, or who they want to be, or how much wealth – or ‘stuff’ they can accumulate that they don’t care a whole lot about others.
But how you care about others is a real measure of who you really are.

And that brings me to the last, and most important life lesson I have learned.
When you go out there in the world, you’re going to run into some brick walls. 
And some of those walls are going to seem as formidable as the Flatirons. 

I ran into some pretty significant brick walls in my life. 

I wanted to join the tennis team in high school. 
We didn’t have any money, so I came to the tryouts with an old wooden racket in cutoff shorts, a scruffy t-shirt and sneakers that were split down the side. 

The returning members of the team were all there, resplendent in their tennis whites. They scoffed at me. 
The coach basically said – “thanks kid, but I don’t think we need you”. 
So I made him a deal.  “Put me up against your best player”, I said.  “If I lose, you’ll never see my face around here again.  But if I win, I’m on the team.”   

It was a difficult match.  He was good.
And I had to dig deeper than I ever had to maintain my belief in myself.
At moments, doubt crept into my mind, and when it did, I would inevitably lose a game.
But I wanted it.  I really wanted it.
And I made the team. 

It was particularly satisfying to see the look of disbelief on that top player’s face when the scruffy kid from nowhere handed him his lunch.
It taught me a valuable lesson.  It doesn’t matter where you come from.
If you really want it, and you believe in yourself, anything is possible.

You might be trying to make a team, or applying for a job, or trying to get into graduate school - even trying to get a date. 
Somewhere, somebody is going to throw a wall up in front of you. 

And here’s what I thought was the most fascinating idea in Professor Pausch’s fabulous little book
“Brick walls are there for a reason.  They’re not there to keep you out.  They’re there to give you a chance to show how much you want something.”

Life isn’t easy.
Life isn’t fair.
Life will frustrate you.
It will even make you cry.
But it can also exhilarate you.
It can lift you up to heights you never thought you could attain.

It’s going to be a challenge.  You might get lucky.  You might not.  You might even feel defeated at times. 

People of my generation screwed things up pretty good with their limitless hubris and wretched excess in the pursuit of wealth above all else.

But here’s the great thing about who you are.

You’re young.
You’re educated.
You’re full of positive thoughts and feelings.
When I was your age, I felt like there was nothing I couldn’t do..

I admire you.  
I envy you.
I’d trade positions with you in a heartbeat.
You are the future.

Use what you learned here.
Take the energy from this incredible place..
Take the beauty of Colorado
Take the bonds of friendship you developed here
And bring them all together as a force for change.

You are the most diverse, most culturally aware generation yet.
You are a real reflection of the world around you.
Individually, and together, you can do great things.
Make us proud. 
Show us there’s a different way to run the world.

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