Blog Post 6

Randy Pausch's Last Lecture

In the video, Randy Pausch's Last Lecture, he talked about three areas of his life that made him into the man that he was. Even though he was told that he had only three to six months left, he still had something to share with others. While his focus could have been on himself, he used the precious time that he had to inspire and enable others. Most importantly he was leaving a legacy for his children.

In the beginning of the video, Randy talked about his own childhood dreams. Of those five dreams, he achieved three of them. Even though he didn't achieve the dream of playing in the NFL or  becoming Captain Kirk, he learned valuable lessons from those experiences. As he stated, "experience is what you get when you didn't get what you want." Through those failed experiences he learned about fundamentals, hard work, determination, and leadership. These characteristics played a significant role in shaping him into the man that he was. When his dream of becoming Captain Kirk changed to meeting Captain Kirk, it showed us how are dreams can change. Even though he was able to achieve three of his dreams, they didn't come without "brick walls".  The point is not that he had brick walls, because we all do, the point is he didn't allow those brick walls to stop him from achieving his dreams. It shows us, if you want something really badly, you won't let those brick walls stop you from reaching your dreams.

Another point of his message was about enabling the dreams of others. At one point he speaks of his boss who pulls him aside to tell him in a rather nice way that his attitude could greatly limit his ability to impact others. Later someone tells him to consider the advice a good thing because when someone won't tell you that you are messing up, it means that they have given up on you. This made a difference in the way he looked at this situation. As teachers we should always look for ways to help our students to become better. We all need to be held accountable. As in the video, Pausch states the way in which we do that can have a huge impact on how someone will respond. If we are truly trying to enable others to follow their dreams, then we need to be careful how we say things. Another point that he made was when we are trying to enable others, we should also be careful that we don't set limits for them. Each person has to determine for themselves what their limits will be. We are there to encourage them to be all that they can be. Some key lessons he tried to teach to his class was the importance of focusing on others, learning to work in groups, and accepting self-reflection.  These lessons were what really mattered. It wasn't about test scores. It was about taking what he had taught you and applying it to all aspects of your life.

His final focus was on the lessons that he had learned. As mentors, parents, friends, and colleagues, we all have roles to play. We have to decide what role that will be. How we chose to fulfill that role will determine the impact we have on others. Some of the lessons that he learned was: respect authority while questioning it, teachers can learn from students, never lose your child-like wonder, and loyalty is a two-way street. These are all lessons that we can take and apply to our own lives. It is so important that we pass on the lessons we learn. The greatest role I have is the role of a parent. I have a responsibility to teach my children important life lessons. These lessons will mold them into the person they will grow up to be. Even if they don't apply those lessons, I know that I fulfilled my part by teaching them. This has to be done not just in words but more importantly in actions.

Randy Pausch learned that "moments change our life". I wonder if he figured that out before he was told he had cancer. As sad as it is, we often have to face drastic measures before we understand how precious life is. At the end of his last lecture, Randy wanted the audience to know two things: the lecture was not " how to achieve your dreams but how to lead your life" and secondly the talk "was for his kids not the audience". He felt that it was important to teach them to tell the truth, show gratitude, look for the good in everybody, and to never give up. Randy Pausch left a legacy for all the world ,but most importantly for his children.

Who do you want to be Eeyore or Tiger?