A) get us sidetracked from class
B) get us motivated to get back to class
or
C) learn some awesome ways to better ourselves
For those of you who have not already heard this friend talk about him, Randy Pausch was a college professor who died from a long battle with cancer in 2008. At Carnegie Mellon University (where he taught at) every professor would give a "last lecture" upon retirement from their position. They are allowed to invite past and present students, family members, friends, etc.
Unfortunately, Randy Pausch's last lecture as a professor was actually one of his last living testimonies and he titled it "living out your childhood dreams." It seems like a crazy thing to do to actually pursue your childhood dreams. I mean, come on, didn't we all want to be ballerinas and astronauts? But Randy Pausch managed to pursue ALL of his childhood dreams in some way shape or form, including becoming a Disney Imagineer. Pretty cool, right? He was a living inspiration and the most memorable piece of advice I received from reading his book and watching his lecture online is this:
"Brick walls are meant for those who do not want their dreams bad enough."
I don't think that is the exact wording because I do not have the book in front of me but it is such a true and sometimes difficult concept to understand. There are many obstacles in life and sometimes we may feel like giving up. But those obstacles may make reaching our goal that much more rewarding in the end. Hey, if life was perfect, think of how boring it would be...
That is just one of the many things I have learned from this man and it is truly unfortunate that it took a life changing illness for so many to think about their own, including myself. The book is SUCH an easy read, for those who don't like to read a lot. It is also VERY cheap on Amazon (see lovely link below). Even if you don't think you can manage a few pages just click on the link above (in red) for the video of his last lecture.
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