Weekly Spark #219: The Last Lecture
Recently, I finished reading this week’s book of the week: The Last Lecture by Randy Pausch. Pausch was a Computer Science professor at Carnegie Mellon, husband to Jai Pausch, and father to Dylan, Logan, and Chloe. As he was diagnosed with terminal pancreatic cancer, he gave his final lecture at CMU, which has over 21 million views on youtube, and summarized many of his life philosophies in the book version of the lecture. As if we need another reminder of how short life is, this book asks the same question that Paul Kalanithi (neurosurgeon who also authored a book as he grappled with a terminal cancer diagnosis) did in “When Breath Becomes Air”: how do we spend our limited time? Specifically, in Randy’s final lecture, he taught through the lens that many professors do as they give their tradition of a final lecture: what wisdom would I impart to the world if we knew it was our last chance? If I had to vanish tomorrow, what would I want as my legacy? The book is moving and one that I highly recommend. I’ll share a few of my notes and key takeaways below:
“We cannot change the cards we are dealt, just how we play the hand.”
Similar to Matthew McConaughey’s concept of greenlights, brick walls are there for a reason. They give us a chance to show how badly we want something or they open a door to another opportunity.
A key way to impact others is to enable their dreams. Inspire them to dream and to pursue the things that they dream about. Help them along the way if you can.
Time is the most important resource
Time must be explicitly managed, like money
You can always change your plan, but only if you have one
Are you spending your time on the right things?
Take a time out - In a world that wants us to be unreasonably connected and always reachable, Randy set this as his automatic email reply while on his honeymoon: “Hi, this is Randy. I waited until I was thirty-nine to get married, so my wife and I are going away for a month. I hope you don’t have a problem with that, but my boss does. Apparently, I have to be reachable.” He then proceeds to list the names and city of his wife’s parents, before continuing: “If you call directory assistance, you can get their number. And then, if you can convince my new in-laws that your emergency merits interrupting their only daughter’s honeymoon, they have our number.” Of course, no calls. Legendary. Will keep that one in my back pocket.
Earnest is better than hip- hip is short term, earnest is long term. Focus on the fundamentals and forget the flash. People, particularly those entrenched in the shallowness of social media and superficial values, are enamored by hip because it’s flashy and catches attention. Would you rather shine for an ephemeral moment or exude greatness for a lifetime?
Let your actions be a vote for who you are. Approach others with the same perspective. Ignore everything that people say and only pay attention to what they do. It will speak volumes.
A bad apology is worse than no apology. Good apologies have 3 parts: what I did was wrong, I feel badly that I hurt you, and how do I make this better?
No job is beneath you - Randy advised people: “You ought to be thrilled you got a job in the mailroom. And when you get there, here’s what you do: be really great at sorting mail.”
Ask - The worst you’ll get is “no” but more than likely you’ll get a “sure.” You don’t know until you ask.
Mental Diet
Book of the Week: The Last Lecture by Randy Pausch
Video of the Week: Randy Pausch: The Last Lecture
Quote of the Week:
“Experience is what you get when you didn’t get what you wanted.” - Randy Pausch
I hope you enjoyed reading as much as I enjoyed writing. Until next time… Take care of yourself and take care of each other. 🙏
Nathan