QUOTE & POSTER: The vision must be followed by the venture. It is not enough to stare up the steps – we must step up the stairs. -Vance Havner

WORTH WATCHING AND READING: Denzel Washington Commencement Speech, University of Pennsylvania

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WORTH WATCHING AND READING: Oprah Winfrey Commencement Speech, Spellman College

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WORTH WATCHING AND READING: Conan O’Brien Commencement Speech, Dartmouth College

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WORTH WATCHING AND READING: Ellen DeGeneres Commencement Speech, Tulane University

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WORTH WATCHING AND READING: J.K. Rowling Commencement Speech, Harvard University

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WORTH WATCHING AND READING: John F. Kennedy Commencement Speech, American University

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WORTH WATCHING AND READING: Steve Jobs Commencement Speech, Stanford University

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He Who Has a Right to Criticize

He who has a right to criticize, who has a heart to help. –Abraham Lincoln

Memo From Michael: Thoughts on School Graduations

This is a week dominated by thoughts and preparations for my daughter Abrielle’s graduation from high school and a post-ceremony party I’m hosting at our home. As has been the case with the brother and sister that preceded her, and as it will be with the two sisters who will follow her, this occasion – the graduation from high school, …

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QUOTE & POSTER: FAILURES AND MISTAKES ARE LIKE KNIVES. Whether they cut us or serve us depends on whether we grasp them by the blade or the handle. Success is not prevented by failure it is the result of learning from failure and grabbing every misfortune by the handle. – Michael Josephson (adapted from a quote from James Russell Lowell).

QUOTE & POSTER: Have the courage to say no. Have the courage to face the truth. Do the right thing because it is right. These are the magic keys to living your life with integrity. – W. Clement Stone

QUOTE & POSTER: Love isn’t a state of perfect caring. It is an active noun like struggle. To love someone is to strive to accept that person exactly the way he or she is, right here and now. –Mister Rogers

QUOTE & POSTER: No opportunity worth seizing is going to come knocking on you door. Opportunities are like hidden treasures. They are everywhere but you have to find them. – Michael Josephson

QUOTE & POSTER: When a door closes, try to re-open it. If it does not yield, look for another door. If you can’t find one, look for a window. If there is no window, poke a hole in the wall and make one. There is always a way out. NOTHING THAT CONFINES YOU IS STRONGER THAN YOUR WILL TO BE FREE.- Michael Josephson

QUOTE & POSTER: Take Memorial Day seriously. The people who sacrificed for us did. Please take a moment to experience and express gratitude to those who have and are serving their country.

WORTH READING: Victims of natural disasters like those in Moore Oklahoma have the awful experience of “losing everything” yet the wisest of them understand that what they lost was minor compared to what they still have. Look closely at the picture of rubble below and the small sign in the middle. “The most important things in life are not things.”- Michael Josephson

QUOTE & POSTER: Thank you for your dedication, your duty, your unwavering loyalty and most importantly your unbelievable sacrifice. Americans have the freedom to be Americans because of you. There are many ways to serve. None is more significant or worthy of appreciation than sacrificing personal comforts and gain to serve in the military. Remember, we have this long weekend not simply to vacation and picnic but to say thank you to those who have served and sacrificed in the past as well as those who do so at this very moment. Please be sure to experience and express your gratitude.

QUOTE & POSTER: All gave some. Some gave all. Please take Memorial Day seriously. Find a moment to genuinely pause and reflect on the sacrifice of others to keep our country free.

WORTH READING: Thoughts on expressing condolences by Nancy Bern

People often worry that they will not know the right words to say when facing someone grieving. The truth is, there are no “right words.” Nothing can take away the pain, but that is okay. We do not need to take away people’s pain in order to help. Acknowledging a person’s loss or struggle can be supportive. Walk beside someone …

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QUOTE & POSTER: It’s easy to dodge our responsibilities, But we cannot dodge the consequences of dodging our responsibilities. –Sir Josiah Stamp

QUOTE & POSTER: Happiness is like a butterfly: the more you chase it, the more it will elude you, but if you turn your attention to other things, it will come and sit softly on your shoulder. –Henry David Thoreau

WORTH READING: Beautiful in Broken Places

Nietzsche told us “what doesn’t kill you, makes you stronger” and Hemingway wrote about becoming stronger in broken places. A different way of thinking is found in the Japanese concept of kintsukuroi the art of repairing broken pottery with gold or silver lacquer in a way that makes the object more beautiful than it was before. I think this is so …

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QUOTE & POSTER: If only you could sense how important you are to the lives of those you meet; how important you can be to people you may never even dream of. There is something of yourself that you leave at every meeting with another person. –Fred Rogers

QUOTE & POSTER: The only way to do great work is to love what you do. If you haven’t found it yet, keep looking. Don’t settle. – Steve Jobs

Who You Are

It’s not where you’re from; it’s where you’re going. It’s not what you drive; it’s what drives you. It’s not what you think; it’s what you do. It’s not who you were; it’s who you become. It’s not who you know; it’s who you are.

QUOTE & POSTER: Don’t look so hard at my past. I don’t live there anymore.

QUOTE & POSTER: Choose to be happy. Choose to be cheerful. Choose to be optimistic. 

QUOTE & POSTER: Creativity is intelligence having fun –Albert Einstein

QUOTE & POSTER: If you are not willing to learn, No one can help you. If you are determined to learn, No one can stop you. You hold the key to your education.