Steve Jobs 2005 Stanford Commencement Speech
Steve Jobs, one of the key figures behind tech giant Apples success, is next up on our list of the best motivational speeches of all time.
In his 2005 Stanford commencement speech, the former Apple CEO dives deep into his own journey as an entrepreneur, and he speaks openly about the issues that hes faced along the way and how he overcame them.
During this classic motivational speech, Jobs talks about how he was actually a college dropout and that this was one of the most important times of his life.
Why?
He mentioned that he dropped out of college to take classes that he was truly interested in, rather than studying topics he wasnt deeply passionate about.
One of those classes that he took up after dropping out was calligraphy. He was so compelled by the high standard of handwriting.
To many, this might seem like a strange choice, but he connects the experience that he gained from that class to the font choices that he installed on Apple computers.
If Jobs had never taken that calligraphy class, he wouldnt have cared so much about a seemingly small detail, like fonts, but Apple was the first company to add different typefaces to their operating systems.
He goes on to say: You cant connect the dots if youre looking forward, you can only do it looking backwards. So, you need to keep moving forward and hope that the dots align somehow.
As Jobs said: Your time is limited, so dont waste it living someone elses life.
Motivational Quotes For Students
Steve Jobs: How To Live Before You Die
Your work is going to fill a large part of your life, and the only way to be truly satisfied is to do what you believe is great work. And the only way to do great work is to love what you do. If you havent found it yet, keep looking. Dont settle. As with all matters of the heart, youll know when you find it.
In this commencement address, the CEO and co-founder of Apple Inc. shared one of the keys to his success: love. His love for the work he did kept him excited about going to work every day and working toward new goals. Often, there is a big difference between what you want versus what other people want for you. Discovering what youre passionate about, and working toward it with achievable goals, will lead you to success and satisfaction. This is why it is our staffs number one pick for motivational speeches that will inspire you to take action today.
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Simon Sinek: Live2lead 2016
Theme of Speech: Leadership
Simon Sinek is an author and public speaker, renowned for his talks about leadership in the context of business. In the talk above, he makes a humbling but ultimately inspiring claim: Today’s organizational leaders don’t know what game they’re in. They tend to take credit, whereas they should be taking responsibility. They tend to obsess over the competing product, whereas they should obsess over their own. But, once you accept this onus as a leader, the possibilities Simon lays out for business growth and employee success are sure to fire you up.
The infinite player isn’t playing to be number one … they’re playing to outlast the competition.
Al Pacino: Inch By Inch
Yes, this speech is from a football movie , but trust me: This isn’t your stereotypical rah-rah-go-get-’em sports speech. It’s deeper than that. It’s about life, and loss, and … gosh darn it just listen to Al Pacino, he’s pouring his soul out!
Either we heal as a team or we’re gonna crumble, inch by inch, play by play, till we’re finished. We’re in hell right now, gentlemen, believe me. And we can stay here and get the $& #@ kicked out of us, or we can fight our way back into the light. We can climb out of hell, one inch at a time.”
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Eric Thomas Motivation Addicts Speech
Eric Thomas aka ET the Hip Hop Preacher is one of the world best motivational speakers of all time! In fact, if you type in motivational videos on Youtube his videos almost always come up first.
He is so passionate its hard to not love his message. His motivational speeches have taken over and this is one of my all-time favorites!
Eric Thomas Speaks To Olympic Athletes I Can I Will I Must
In 2016, Dicks Sporting Goods brought in Eric Thomas to speak to the Olympians they sponsored.
Knowing that his audience was a bunch of high-achievers, he tailored his speech to them. He talks about how important it is to stay hungry when you have already achieved a high level of success.
This point is driven home by saying how an alligator can be killed by a human with their bare hands right after the alligator eats. Why? Because they go into a state similar to paralysis once their hunger is satisfied.
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Enjoy The Best Motivational Speeches To Give You The Momentum To Take The Next Step
Are you ready to make this the year that will change your life forever? Quit waiting and start creating success today!
Never give up, this is your year to create success!
Do you think these are some of the best motivational speeches about life? Which one of them is your favorite?
Did I miss a motivational or commencement speech that you love? Let me know in the comments!
Steve Jobs Stanford University
This is one of the greatest inspirational speeches! In his commencement speech, Jobs discussed how he dropped out of college after six months, then took another 18 months to figure out what his life’s work would be.
He quit college because his parents were struggling financially, and he couldn’t see the value in an education that was draining his parents life savings.
His speech talked of the setbacks in life, including death, and how being aware of death can help you make better choices in life. At the time, Jobs was dying of pancreatic cancer, and his inspirational words on the importance of acquiring knowledge and following your dreams was the best life lesson he could bestow upon the graduates.
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How Motivational Speeches Move People
People are propelled ahead by motivation. It rouses individuals from their complacency and opens their eyes to the thrilling possibilities that lie ahead. It is where motivational speeches help people to rise beyond the shackles of their ordinary existences.
Although motivation has a profound and even mystical effect on individuals, it is not as elusive as it first seems. Best motivational speeches are those that provoke thinking and meaning.
Jim Carrey Commencement Speech Passion Is Worth The Risk
Jim Carreys 2014 commencement speech at the Maharishi University of Management is one of the most highly viewed motivational speeches on YouTube.
He starts his speech with classical Jim Carrey humor, but by the middle of the speech, he shares profound wisdom on pursuing a career in what you love.
Jim Carrey shares his own personal story of resilience, but perhaps more powerful is the story of his dad, who settled for the safe career and still ended up failing.
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Jim Carrey: Commencement Address At The 2014 Mum Graduation
With his typical humour, Jim Carrey delivers a fun, yet inspiring speech about life and belief. The speech has a strong focus on the part that fear plays in our success and living the life you truly want.
Just some of the great quotes from the speech:
Life doesnt happen to you, it happens for you.
There is a huge difference between a dog that is going to eat you in your mind and an actual dog thats going to eat you.
You can fail at what you dont want, so you might as well take a chance on doing what you love.
Randy Pausch: Last Lecture Achieving Your Childhood Dreams Speech
A truly touching speech from Randy Pausch, who knew at the time of this speech that he had limited time left on earth .
Rather than a sad speech, Pausch motivates by speaking about his childhood dreams those that he has and hasnt achieved and what he has learnt along the way.
Along with speaking about the importance of people over things, karma and gratitude, Pausch motivates by speaking about obstacles, failure, not quitting and making the most of how you spend your time:
Just some of the great quotes from the speech:
The brick walls are there for a reason. The brick walls are not there to keep us out. 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 dont want it badly enough. Theyre there to stop the other people.
The key question to keep asking is, Are you spending your time on the right things?
Time is all you have, and you may find one day that you have less than you think.
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Jim Carrey: Commencement Motivational Speech At Maharishi University Of Management
When I was about 28, after a decade as a professional comedian, I realized one night in LA that the purpose of my life had always been to free people from concern, just like my dad. And when I realized this, I dubbed my new devotion the Church of Freedom From Concern, the Church of FFC. And I dedicated myself to that ministry. Whats yours? How will you serve the world? What did they need that your talent can provide? Thats all you have to figure out.
The comedians advice for a successful and rewarding life is simple: find how you want to serve the world, and pursue it. While it may take years of exploring to find your talent, sometimes it can be as simple as stepping back and reflecting on those moments when you felt yourself excelling and having an impact on others. Finding your calling might seem overwhelming, but asking yourself what the world needs that you can provide will surely set things in motion.
John Keatings Motivational Speech About Seizing The Day From Dead Poets Society
Because you see gentlemen, these boys are now fertilizing daffodils. But if you listen real close, you can hear them whisper their legacy to you. Go on, lean in. Listen, you hear it? Carpe hear it? Carpe, carpe diem, seize the day boys, make your lives extraordinary.
John Keating motivates his students with a simple sentiment seize the day. It might seem like a cliché, but its a useful sentiment for those stuck in careers they dont like or struggling to achieve their next milestone. Most working people will spend around 8 hours a day at the office thats a lot of time to spend on something you dislike. So, if youre feeling uninspired or sick of your career, take Mr. Keatings advice and dont waste any more time. What are your strengths and weaknesses and how can your harness them into a fulfilling career?
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Tom Brady Best Motivational Video To Prove Haters Wrong
Tom Brady is the greatest player of all time. He was doubted from the moment he walked into the NFL combine. Yet, he is still playing the game 20+ years later and is arguably the best quarterback of all time.
Hes proven the haters wrong with his relentless work ethic, consistent performance, and longevity in a physically challenging sport. I love this motivational video!
Remember what Tom Brady said, To me what separates good players from great players is to execute under pressure.
Dan Pink: The Puzzle Of Motivation
There is a mismatch between what science knows and what business does. Here is what science knows. One: Those 20th century rewards, those motivators we think are a natural part of business, do work, but only in a surprisingly narrow band of circumstances. Two: Those if-then rewards often destroy creativity. Three: The secret to high performance isnt rewards and punishments, but that unseen intrinsic drive the drive to do things for their own sake. The drive to do things cause they matter.
There is an outdated belief that rewards and punishments are vital to improving employee performance. Pink argues that intrinsic drive doing things because of internal satisfaction as opposed to external factorsis the real secret to high performance. So, whether youre a manager or a new employee, consider why your work matters. Aside from your salary, what gets you to work every day? If these questions are hard to answer, you might need to incorporate or seek out a more creative approach. Pink gives the example of companies giving employees flexible schedules, where they can use their time as they want to accomplish set tasks. The schedule allows for more creativity and independence, and thus improves employee performance.
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Motivational Quotes About Success
Author David Foster Wallace Teaches Us That Were A Part Of A Greater Existence
David Foster Wallace found fame in 1987 with his book The Broom of the System. Nearly 20 years later in 2005 he game a commencement speech at Kenyon College that is worth listening to at least once. In his speech, he reminds us that was are but a part of a huge, dynamic, ever changing interaction of life forms. In order to truly experience life, we need to leave our personal bubbles and interact with others even if its in an unpleasant way. Wallace states, It will actually be within your power to experience a crowded, hot, slow, consumer-hell type situation as not only meaningful, but sacred, on fire with the same force that made the stars: love, fellowship, the mystical oneness of all things deep down. You can watch the whole speech above.
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Fearless Motivation: It’s Not Easy But It’s Worth It
Theme of Speech: Perseverance
Fearless Motivation is primarily a musical artist, but its library of inspirational messages is hard to ignore lately. The group’s most popular speech is the video above, and it preaches a powerful lesson about staying positive when things all seem to be negative. The final line is as powerful as the quote from the speech below — “Keep going. Your future self is begging you.”
It’s easy to be positive when everything is working out. It’s much harder, much much harder when nothing is working out. But that’s when we need it the most … Everything is worth the prize.”
Ellie Meets An Alien In Contact
Youre an interesting species, an interesting mix. You are capable of such beautiful dreams, and such horrible nightmares. You feel so lost, so cut off, so alone. Only youre not. See, in all our searching, the only thing that weve found that makes the emptiness bearable is each other.
While this Sci-Fi classic might seem removed from reality, it offers uplifting advice for the workplace and beyond. In this scene, Ellie finally makes contact with an alien who offers insight into the human condition and the larger universe. To apply the aliens words to the workplace, think of the power of teamwork.Establishing a diverse and talented team can improve employee happiness and performance. For example, burnout is a common problem at companies. Sharing the workload, and knowing you can rely on team members and managers for support, can re-motivate employees. When the going gets tough, its a comfort to know youre not alone.
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Denzel Washington: Fall Forward
Theme of Speech: Failure
In his 2011 UPenn commencement speech, Denzel Washington highlighted three reasons why we need to embrace failure in order to be successful. First, everybody will fail at something at some point, so you better get used to it. Second, if you never fail, take that as a sign that you’re not really trying. And third, at the end of the day, failure will help you figure out what path you want to be on.
Fall forward. Here’s what I mean: Reggie Jackson struck out twenty-six-hundred times in his career — the most in the history of baseball. But you don’t hear about the strikeouts. People remember the home runs. Fall forward. Thomas Edison conducted 1,000 failed experiments. Did you know that? I didn’t know thatbecause #1,001 was the light bulb. Fall forward. Every failed experiment is one step closer to success.”