Worldwide Success

Randy Pausch became an overnight web sensation after his last lecture was made available on the web, where it was viewed by more than 6 million people.  Pausch is a computer science professor at Carnegie Mellon University, where the “last lecture” is an academic tradition in which a professor is invited to speak as if it were the last lecture he would ever give.  What makes Pausch’s last lecture so enthralling is that this was indeed Pausch’s last lecture – Pausch, 47, has pancreatic cancer, a terminal disease, and his prognosis is not good.

What should you say in front of a captive audience as you prepare to leave this world?  What is so fundamental, that in your very last opportunity, you would want everyone to hear?  Here are the key points from Pausch’s last lecture, the things that are really important to a successful life, according to him:

• Never underestimate the importance of having fun.  Pausch emphasizes that he will continue to have fun every day, even as he is dying, because there is no other way to live life.
• Experience is what you get when you didn’t get what you wanted.
• There is goodness in everyone.  No one is pure evil.  Find the best in everybody – if you wait long enough people will surprise you and impress you.
• Brick walls are there for a reason – they give us a chance to show how badly we want something.  They are there to stop people who don’t want it badly enough.
• It is not about achieving your dreams.  It’s about living your life.  If you live your life the right way the dreams will come to you.
• We can’t change the cards we are dealt.  All we can change is how we play the hand. 

And here is one of my favorite quotes from Pausch, something to keep in mind when you are facing criticism or being pushed to do better:

“When you are screwing up and no one is saying anything to you that means that they have given up on you.”

Pausch is publishing a book appropriately titled “The Last Lecture”.  If the book is nearly as successful as the video it will be a bestseller.

If you are not one of the 6 million people who have already watched the last lecture, I would highly recommend it.  It is funny and entertaining, but most importantly, it hits on some very fundamental aspects of living a successful life and fulfilling your dreams.  Here is the video:

Live your dreams and enable the dreams of others and you will find success.

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