Changing the world

Recently I was directed to an amazing, life changing commencement speech delivered by Naval Adm. William H. McRaven, ninth commander of U.S. Special Operations Command, at the University-wide Commencement at The University of Texas at Austin on May 17. This admiral was in charge of the group that captured Bin Laden among other feats, see here. 

To read the full speech click here. Or better yet, watch and listen on You Tube here.

He used what he learnt during his basic SEAL training to come up with these lessons he imparted to the graduates, to see his full description of each lesson, follow one of the links above:

If you want to change the world:

• start off by making your bed. 
• find someone to help you paddle.
• measure a person by the size of their heart, not the size of their flippers. 
• get over being a sugar cookie and keep moving forward.
• don’t be afraid of the circuses.
• sometimes you have to slide down the obstacle head first.
• don’t back down from the sharks.
• you must be your very best in the darkest moment.
• start singing when you’re up to your neck in mud.
• don’t ever, ever ring the bell.

He summarized his talk with this:

Start each day with a task completed.
Find someone to help you through life.
Respect everyone.
Know that life is not fair and that you will fail often, but if you take some risks,
step up when the times are toughest,
face down the bullies,
lift up the downtrodden and never, ever give up
—if you do these things, then next generation and the generations that follow will live in a world far better than the one we have today and—what started here will indeed have changed the world—for the better.

Very impressive speaker and a life changing message.