Two Inspirational Addresses

Throughout my high school years and the three semesters at Dominican University of CA I have come across two speeches. As a sophomore at Sonoma Valley High School I was presented to Steve Job's Commencement Address to Stanford and also as a sophomore at DU of CA, just a couple of weeks ago I came across J.K. Rowling's Commencement Address to Harvard. I was touched by both speeches. They do not cover the same topics, but each have incredible messages. Both J.K. Rowling and Steve Jobs have become great inspirations, unfortunately Jobs' is being given more recognition now that he is not with is than when he still walked among us. But I cannot complaint because he left a legacy behind, he revolutionized the world with his inventions, he changed animated movies, he,... he was a great human being. Hopefully there is a different path for J.K. Rowling, and that her work becomes more appreciated now that she is still with us.

I really urge you to listen to the following addresses and leave your opinion. Thank you.

In 2008, the Harry Potter series author, J.K. Rowling, gave a great Commencement Address to the graduating class at Harvard. What I liked about Rowling's address was that she talked about "failure" being a good thing. Without "failure" it is almost impossible to learn, and most importantly without imagination we are not really human beings. When Rowling referred to imagination she was not talking about creating a magical story or a world like Hogwarts; what she meant is that we as humans have the opportunity to use our imagination to put ourselves in other peoples shoes. Yes, empathy. Without empathy, I am sure this world would be a total chaos.

Now I come to the second video. This video is about what I think was the world's luckiest and smartest human being, Steve Jobs. On 2005, Steve Jobs gave the Commencement Address to Stanford University. Which by the way, Stanford is such a beautiful campus. In Job's address he could not have made it anymore clear to the students and anyone who reads or watches his speech is that, no matter what career one decides to chose to make sure that you love what you are doing. Otherwise, your job will feel like a pain in the butt and life will not be completely full of happiness. In order to live a meaningful life, do the what you like, do not go around with your head down and arms crossed. Speak up, you can make a difference. To me the most important key to life is not to conform, just because someone else tells you to do a certain thing it does not mean that you HAVE to. You have the decision to take a different path for your well being. Like Steve Jobs' said in this particular address, "Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life."