The brick walls are there for a reason. They’re not there to keep us out. The brick walls are there to give us a chance to show how badly we want something. The Last Lecture by Randy Pausch is a remarkable and inspiring lecture one could understand and implement in their life.
What do you want your last words to be?
What do you really want to leave behind in this world? You want to leave a legacy that goes for centuries or do you want to raise good children and let them be your legacy? These are the questions that you consider before you die.
The fact is we really do not know when we will die so we live on in blissful ignorance of death. We go on blindly thinking that we have this life and nothing bad like death could happen.
But the truth one needs to face if they live is that they will die one day definitely. We often think
I will think about dying when I get older but sadly death is uncertain
About the Author of The Last Lecture
The Author Randy Pausch of the Last lecture faced a sudden demise of suffering from cancer. He wrote this book before dying while fighting with this deadly disease and decided to leave a legacy for his children.
Unique about the author which he himself says is that he was able to achieve all his childhood dreams one or the other way.
The brick walls are there for a reason
was his mantra all his life? By the 1880s, a brick wall was a figure of speech for an effort considered impassable or impossible or uncaring person (e.g., talking to a brick wall).
Meaning of the mantra
Brick walls are there for a reason. The brick walls are there to give us a chance to show how badly we want something. Because the brick walls are there to stop the people who don’t want it badly enough.
The book builds on the last lecture professor Randy actually gave to the students at Carnegie Melon University. This full video is available on youtube. To watch the video Click Here
Top 3 lessons of The Last Lecture
1) Blinding Optimism
It is insane how the author is optimistic throughout the book. This does not mean that he was in denial. He was fairly aware of the fact that he is going to die.
He says:
While I could feel sorry for myself, that would not do them ( his family) or me any good
This will only lead to making it worse. Therefore one must embrace the situation. We can feel optimistic even after some things go bad in our life. This is the trick. Be optimistic or positive and boom you are satisfied with your life.
We need to learn the value of being optimistic even in the darkest times so that we could inspire others.
2) Specificity of dreams
He had specific goals that he wanted to achieve. The dream was to become a Disney Imagineer.
Randy Pausch lived his life inspiring his students, colleagues, and co-workers. Pausch fulfilled his lifelong dream of becoming a Walt Disney Imagineer in 1995 when he joined the Imagineering Virtual Reality Studio during a sabbatical from his university teaching position.
He wanted to float in zero gravity and he did. His goals were specific and realistic. A goal like “I want to change the world” is not realistic. Do not make something a goal that you cannot measure.
It would be more resourceful if you have a goal like “I want to make a movie that changes lives” or “I want to fees 1000 people in 2 years”. This is more specific and can be achieved.
3) When you do not achieve your goals, it is probably for a reason
The author had a dream in the National Football team. But he could not which is not at all a bad thing. It is probably for a reason. Sometimes it is better to fail. Take it as a lesson. Simply go in another direction.
I got more from pursuing that dream and not accomplishing it than I did from many of the ones that I did accomplish
Main Lesson
We are all going to die one day, there is no denying that.
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