Commencement speeches, with their mix of sage advice and celebration, mark a rite of passage and a chance to catch up with wisdom from people who have accomplished a thing or two in their fields. Plus the speeches are fun to read. Here are a few that I sampled.
Hold our country to its promise: Sally Yates
Sally Yates, the former acting attorney general whom President Trump fired for refusing to carry out a travel ban that violates the First Amendment, delivered remarks for Class Day at Harvard Law School.
Regardless of whether you go into private practice, or the corporate world, whether you become a public defender, a prosecutor or a public interest advocate, you are now a lawyer. And that means that you have not only a unique opportunity and ability that non-lawyers don’t have, but also the attendant responsibility to foster justice in this world. To reveal truth. To stand up for the voiceless. To hold our country to its promise of equal justice for all.
The people of this country care deeply about these values. They care about the rule of law, and our constitution, and the principles and freedoms on which our country was founded. And they are counting on you, the lawyers, to, in Bobby Kennedy’s words, ‘breathe life and force’ into the ‘promise of liberty and justice.’
A sense of purpose: Mark Zuckerberg
On Thursday, Mark Zuckerberg, Facebook’s chief executive, addressed the graduates of Harvard University.
Today I want to talk about purpose. But I’m not here to give you the standard commencement about finding your purpose. We’re millennials. We’ll try to do that instinctively. Instead, I’m here to tell you finding your purpose isn’t enough. The challenge for our generation is creating a world where everyone has a sense of purpose.
Defend truth: Hillary Clinton
On Friday, Hillary Clinton addressed graduates of Wellesley College, her alma mater:
Don’t be afraid of your ambition, of your dreams, or even your anger. Those are powerful forces. But harness them to make a difference in the world. Stand up for truth and reason. Do it in private, in conversations with your family, your friends, your workplace, your neighborhoods, and do it in public. In media posts, on social media, or grab a sign and head to a protest. Make defending truth and a free society a core value of your life every single day.
Life is about significance: Cory Booker
New Jersey Senator Cory Booker addressed the graduating class at Penn:
Ultimately, life is not about celebrity, it’s about significance; life is not about popularity, it’s about purpose; life is not how many people show up when you’re dead but about how many people you show up for while you are alive.
You’re never not afraid: Will Ferrell
Will Ferrell addressed graduates at the University of Southern California, the actor’s alma mater.
You’re never not afraid. I’m still afraid. I was afraid to write this speech. And now, I’m just realizing how many people are watching me right now, and it’s scary. Can you please look away while I deliver the rest of the speech? But my fear of failure never approached in magnitude my fear of what if. What if I never tried at all?
Your station in life does not define you: Howard Schultz
Howard Schultz, former chief executive of Starbucks, delivered the commencement address at Arizona State University
I grew up in Brooklyn, New York, in public housing. The projects, as it was called back then. My parents were both high school dropouts, and they could barely afford $96 a month rent in our two-bedroom apartment for my brother, my sister and my parents. However, from my earliest of memories, my mother instilled in me her belief in the American dream and the promise of America. That a good education and hard work will open the doors to a better life, and that provides me with an important lesson to share with you all today. That your station in life does not define you and the promise of America that is for all of us.
We can build resilience: Sheryl Sandberg
Sheryl Sandberg, Facebook’s chief operating officer, addressed the graduating class at Virginia Tech. There she spoke of her husband’s death two years ago.
The most important thing I learned is that we are not born with a certain amount of resilience. It is a muscle, and that means we can build it. We build resilience into ourselves. We build resilience into the people we love. And we build it together, as a community. That’s called “collective resilience.” It’s an incredibly powerful force – and it’s one that our country and our world need a lot more of right about now. It is in our relationships with each other that we find our will to live, our capacity to love, and our ability to bring change into this world.
Avoid intellectual walls: Lee Bollinger
Columbia University President Lee Bollinger addressed the class of 2017.
We should avoid, if at all possible, heedlessly erecting walls—intellectual walls—that will impair our ability to understand and engage our modern, interconnected world. For the world today is imbued with profound issues and needs that, however much we might wish otherwise, are simply not going away—that no wall can block—and that deserve as much attention and thought as our collective minds can possibly muster.
Imagine the possibilities when we remove imbalance: Pharrell Williams
Pharrell Williams, the musician, songwriter and producer, addressed graduates of New York University.
Speaking to you guys today has me charged up. As you find your ways to serve humanity, it gives me great comfort knowing this generation is the first that understands that we need to lift up our women. Imagine the possibilities when we remove imbalance from the ether. Imagine the possibilities when women are not held back. Your generation is unraveling deeply entrenched laws, principles and misguided values that have held women back for far too long and therefore, have held us all back. The world you will live in will be better for it.