Unlike the previous speakers, I’d never heard of Sal Khan before he popped up in my search results. I picked him based solely on the school he was speaking at without being privy to what merited him to be there. He was the commencement speaker at Carnegie Mellon University. I don’t know much about that school. I don’t even know where it is. I’m guessing on the East Coast. I’d have to look that up. But when I used to watch Jeopardy’s College Tournament, there was frequently a student from that school participating, so I figured it must be hard to get in. Competitive schools typically have the status to attractive noteworthy speakers. Because of that, I figured I probably won’t be disappointed if I listen to what this man had to say. Here’s what he said…
Inspirational Takeaways/Quotes:
“Develop your own sense of what gives you joy and meaning, not what’s projected on you by culture, marketing, friends and family.”
“Keep chipping away while being comfortable with the tensions in life….We tend to avoid tension, but it is actually healthy to embrace it.”
“Be optimistic and bold.”
Overall Thoughts
I really enjoyed this speech. When I think of commencement addresses, this is the type of speech I’m looking to hear…well, for the most part. I was a little turned off by how he promoted his new business venture with Carnegie Mellon at the beginning of the address. I found that to be a bit tacky. I think it would have been better to make that announcement either in the days leading up to the graduation or the days following, but not kicking off the speech with what was essentially a verbal ad. That just comes across as so transactional. It’s interesting that he goes on to mention the influence of marketing and promotions in his speech as something to be cautious of even as he just promoted something. But other than that, I really enjoyed his speech. He spoke with such clarity of thought. The speech was well structured. He gave great anecdotes, and points of advice for which he expounded on. Perhaps he could have closed it out with a bit more of a bang, but overall, very good speech. Very, very good speech.
The Clue Breakdown
Did you decipher yesterday’s clue? I’ve got the breakdown for you. But first, let’s revisit it:
You may not know this speaker by name but perhaps you’ve used his creation to learn something new.
I must admit I was stumped trying to come up with a clue for this one. Sal Khan is the founder of the Khan Academy, a nonprofit organization that produces educational videos on a variety of subjects.
The Clue for the Next Speaker
It’s your business if you don’t know who the next and final speaker is. Don’t worry, it’s one of the few times this person won’t be keeping score.
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