Valley Chai

businessweek ran a story on carnegie mellon computer science professor randy pausch, diagnosed with terminal cancer, who has some words to live by that ring particularly true on thanksgiving. check it out.

it’s always interesting to hear from someone that doesn’t have anything to lose, and quoting below.

From the frenetic man in the black knit shirt and khakis, there was more, much more. Some of it you’ve heard before, from countless self-help books, management development courses, your mentor, or your mother or father. But coming from a dying man, it all seemed more real, more relevant, more gripping.

• “Never give up.”
• “Apologize when you screw up.”
• “Focus on other people, not yourself.”
• “Don’t bail. The best gold is at the bottom of barrels of crap.”
• “Show gratitude.”
• “Work hard. I got tenure a year early. Junior faculty members used to say to me: ‘Wow, what’s your secret?’ I said: ‘It’s pretty simple. Call me any Friday night in my office at 10 o’clock, and I’ll tell you.’”
• “Be prepared. Luck is where preparation meets opportunity.”
• “Find the best in everybody. You might have to wait a long time, sometimes years, but people will show you their good side. Just keep waiting. No matter how long it takes. No one is all evil. Everyone has a good side. Just keep waiting. It will come out.”
• “Get a feedback loop and listen to it…it can be one great man who tells you what you need to hear. The hard part is to listen to it. Anybody can get chewed out. It’s the real person who says: ‘Oh my God, you were right.’ When people give you feedback, cherish it and use it.”

from Oprah Winfrey

The CMU lecture