So I have recently been encapsulated by the teachings of Professor Randy Pausch - you probably know him as he was the centre of a viral youtube video known as the “Last Lecture” and his teachings on “How to Achieve your Childhood Dreams.” His story of leaving a legacy for his wife and three young children as he tackles terminal pancreatic cancer has left a lasting impression on me. After reading his book I just wanted to put some of his ideas here on my blog for others to read - if anything just a reminder to myself on how to live life. These ideas are so simple - but too many times we are making life more complicated than necessary.Ways to overcome the “brick-walls” that we encounter...
It's a long, regurgitated list ... but it was all so good ....
pg 87: “Not everything needs to be fixed” (like dented cars)
pg 108-109:
“Time must be explicitly managed, like money”
“You can always change your plan, but only if you have one”
“Ask yourself: Are you spending time on the right things?”
“Develop a good filing system”
“Delegate”
“Take a Time Out”
pg 133: “Give yourself permission to dream”
pg 138: “Don’t complain, just work harder”
pg 139: “Treat the disease not the symptom”
pg 148: “Experience is what you get when you didn't’ get what you wanted”
pg 156: “A lot of people want a shortcut. I find the best shortcut is the long way, which is basically two words: work hard”
pg 162: “Proper apologies have three parts: 1. What I did wrong 2. I feel badly that I hurt you 3. How do I make this better?”
pg 168: “There is more than one way to measure profits and losses. On every level, institutions can and should have a heart”
pg 171 “If you can find your footing between two cultures, sometimes you can have the best of both worlds”
pg 174: “If you want something bad enough, never give up (and take a boost when offered)"
pg 176: “When we’re connected to others, we become better people”
pg 177: “Sometimes, all we have to do is ask”
pg 200: Caregiving advice from flight attendants: “Put on your own oxygen mask before assisting others”
pg 206: “If you lead your life the right way, the karma will take care of itself. The dream will come to you”
Ironically, Dr. Pausch passed away from his cancer the day after Emily showed us the video of him, which just made me appreciate his strength throughout the battle even more.
The Book: Pausch, R. (2008). The Last Lecture. Hyperion: New York.
The lecture: http://www.cmu.edu/randyslecture/
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