Randy Pausch's Last Lecture

Randy Pausch's Last Lecture was definitely worth watching. While I was taking notes for myself and my life, I found myself getting frustrated because I thought I was missing out on the next thing he was saying. I have never seen someone face death the same way he seemed too. Even though he knew that he had at the most, four months to live, he planned to make them productive and worth living. He did not sit and pity himself, nor did he handle it with anger. He realized that there was nothing that could be done and if he did pass away from the tumors in his liver, then it was his time to go.

The main focus of Mr. Pausch's speech is challenging people to go after their childhood dreams. Mr. Pausch walks through his life explaining his different childhood dreams, and his experience with trying to achieve all of them. I was encouraged to see the way that he handled success and defeat in each of the areas. You cannot even really say that he considered any of them defeats, but rather lessons to be learned. He says, "Experience is what you get when you don't get what you want." To express this thought, he uses his experience with football. Even though he dreamed of playing in the NFL and never made it, he learned the most through that process.

One thing that stood out to me the most was his attitude towards his football experience. He talked about one practice in particular where the coach had been extremely hard on him and corrected everything he did. After practice was over, another person came over and questioned him about the practiced and how hard the coach was on him. This particular outsider encouraged Randy in this way, he told him that the way the coach was handling him was a good sign. He went on to say that when the coach is not staying on your back and correcting you, it is because he has given up on you. I knew the statement was true immediately, but I had never thought about it that way.

Not only does Randy Pausch encourage people to pursue the deepest desire of their hearts, but he encourages people to enable others to pursue their dreams. There is much to be said about people that are able to inspire and encourage people to be all that they can be. Randy quoted one of his co-workers saying, "wait long enough and people will surprise and impress you." This is a good mindset to have when you are investing in people and encouraging them to pursue their dreams. People do not normally respond the exact way we expect them too. Therefore, it takes time and patience on the investors part to walk through the challenges with them. I was encouraged and challenged by Randy's last lecture and enjoyed listening to it.