应届毕业典礼五分钟励志英语演讲稿范文（精选31篇）
And I use the term porn deliberately, because they objectify one group of people for the benefit of another group of people. So in this case, we're objectifying disabled people for the benefit of nondisabled people. The purpose of these images is to inspire you, to motivate you, so that we can look at them and think, "Well, however bad my life is, it could be worse. I could be that person."But what if you are that person? I've lost count of the number of times that I've been approached by strangers wanting to tell me that they think I'm brave or inspirational, and this was long before my work had any kind of public profile. They were just kind of congratulating me for managing to get up in the morning and remember my own name. (Laughter) And it is objectifying. These images,those images objectify disabled people for the benefit of nondisabled people.They are there so that you can look at them and think that things aren't so bad for you, to put your worries into perspective.
first, i want to ask you a question; what does family mean someone told me: it means father and mother, i love you.
today i am very happy to stand here to express my opinion to my dear parents. first, i want to say thank you to my mom and dady .without you, i would not enjoy such a colorful life. you both love me for ever and never leave me alone when i was in trouble. thank you. mom and dady, thank you. when i was in my hard time, you are my tender sunshine which encourages me to hold on and never give up. and now i am too excited .i dont know how to express my true feeling with limited words. what i know is that without you my life will be filled with endless suffering and mistake .
it’s a very intresting topic today.
english is a useful language all over the world. why are we began to learn english when we were little children beacause it is very important for us to learn it.in the world, if you cannot speak english you will lose half a chance to success. i began to learn english when i was 8 years old.at that moment,i do not like english.i connot remember all the words which i have learnt.i think it is very difficult for me to learn it well.so i cannot read english loudly and i never answer the questions in the english classes.
now, i like english very well and i still use the ways he tells me.i know i must learn english even hard.
I saw a chance to go to bat for the women who face the choice of staying home with a sick child or reporting to work at a job that might otherwise fire her.
Our workplaces and our public policies must mirror our values: work and family.
It is time for our societies to find new and innovative ways to make it easier for women to experience the joy of motherhood, without facing career setbacks. This isn’t a women’s issue – it’s a family issue. Yet it disproportionately impacts women who are most likely to leave the workforce or curtail our ambitions because we have no access to affordable care for our children and adult dependents.
Still, in the developed world, we are slowly seeing a movement toward a more equal distribution of responsibilities in our homes.Young fathers [ ]are increasingly contributing to housework and helping raise their children.
We have an incredible opportunity to adapt our workplaces to this modern reality.
Today, we can answer an email in the palm of our hand, take a call almost anywhere around the globe, work flexible hours in the gig economy and finish our work at home once we put our kids to bed.
The last decade has revolutionized the way we work – and now has the potential to deliver more flexibility to working women.
Already we are seeing increasing numbers of women leaving behind outdated work environments to start their own businesses from their kitchen tables. Today, women entrepreneurs are flourishing.
Fortunately, the private sector is recognizing the importance of modernizing the workplace. Businesses are instituting policies such as flex-time and paid leave, in part to attract and retain female talent.
Companies that have women on their boards generate a higher return on equity than those that do not, and outperform in times of crisis or volatility.
Why does this matter? Boy, it matters a lot. Because no one gets to the corner office by sitting on the side, not at the table, and no one gets the promotion if they don't think they deserve their success, or they don't even understand their own success.I wish the answer were easy. I wish I could go tell all the young women I work for, these fabulous women,"Believe in yourself and negotiate for yourself. Own your own success." I wish I could tell that to my daughter. But it's not that simple. Because what the data shows, above all else, is one thing, which is that success and likeability are positively correlated for men and negatively correlated for women. And everyone's nodding, because we all know this to be true.There's a really good study that shows this really well. There's a famous Harvard Business School studyon a woman named Heidi Roizen. And she's an operator in a company in Silicon Valley, and she uses her contacts to become a very successful venture capitalist.
dear audience and judges, my topic is can money buy happiness. as we all know, money can buy all the goods in our life, no matter how huge it
is. a spaceship, for example, if you really feel your bank account can afford it. anyhow, money equal wealthy in life but not happiness in mind. only by changing
our attitude to money and enjoying every day, can we obtain a truely happy future!
He quitted from school at grade 10 (16 years old). This super star seems a little bit low self-esteem in front of MBA crowd.
Not owning a "piece of paper" (certificate) + too young affect business. That's true in real world!
I'd found my own business too. At that time, those experienced people just didn't trust a kid like me, although they think my product is great and prudence.
I think he doesn't need to regret his education. It's only different kind of life. And I doubt if a person is fully educated and have a comfortable life, will s/he brave enough to try something new? Or create something that is not exists in the world?
He found Post Production Office Limited (PO) when he's 22. PO is a company to do video post-production business. It captured more than 50% market share. Although it's based on geographical shortage, it is still a crazy figure. In the post-production industry, PO is the first company to enter the mainland market (China).
How can he do that? I truly believe that it's because of his passion, management style and split of never-give-up.。
Graduates of the Class of 20xx, family members, and friends:
Good morning. It’s a privilege to be here with you today. Commencement is a time of beginnings and endings; of looking to the future with hope while saying farewell with both joy and, perhaps, nostalgia. It is a jumble of emotions for all of us – and a field-day for a psychologist! Enjoy all those feelings: it’s hard to imagine you’ll have an experience quite like this again.
So, there is a wonderful Yale tradition that I would like to honor right now:
So, may I ask all of the families and friends here who are today to rise and recognize the outstanding – and graduating – members of the Class of 20xx?
And now, may I ask the Class of 20xx to consider all those who have supported your arrival at this milestone, and to please rise and recognize them?
Thank you!
In September 1974, Kingman Brewster, then president of Yale, spoke to members of the Class of 1978, seated right where you are now. He told them, “Many of us have just been on a ten-year trip of moral outrage: anti-Wallace, anti-War, and anti-Watergate. We have been so sure about what we were against that we have almost forgotten how difficult it is to know what we are for and how to achieve it.”
Does this sound familiar? Today, perhaps more than ever, it is easy to know what you’re against. And it’s far more difficult to say what you’re for.
What we’re against is going to be different for each of us. Maybe you’re against border walls and I’m against guns; your neighbor is against trade wars and your cousin is against abortion. For some, capitalism is the problem, while others fear the specter of socialism. By this point, I bet all of you are against sitting in old buildings with no air conditioning, listening to a long speech! So, I’ll get to the point…
How many of you have ever seen a Marx Brothers movie? [Right, pretty good.] So, although I’m not mistaken for Groucho Marx as often since I shaved my moustache, I…I still do…do have a weakness for his humor.
And one of Groucho’s best performances, of course, is when he plays a college president. (It is a funny role!) So, in the opening scene of the movie Horse Feathers, Groucho, the new president of Huxley College, is told that the trustees have “a few suggestions” for him. Then he breaks into this song:
“I don’t know what they have to say
It makes no difference anyway
Whatever it is, I’m against it
No matter what it is or who commenced it
I’m against it
Your proposition may be good
But let’s have one thing understood:
Whatever it is, I’m against it.”
i am very glad to stand here to give thier a short my topic is that the youth are the future of motherlandso what?s my chinese dream ? finally i will announce.
we had learned a lot of knowledge and understood a lot of truth in the book. we had a basic concept to our country at that time. we know that our country is full of sunshine , and we are the future of our country, and our dreams are to be the hope of our motherland.are we sick, or is our dear motherland sick?i dont want to talk about the construction of our country politics, andalso speak impassioned speech on the diaoyu island event .i just want to appeal young people,showing the side of youth,good and must learn to organize our own thoughts, correct our own concept, and change our direction to the right side in future life. china dream actually lies in our young generation, especially of the intellectuals.i dream to construct our beauty china with millions of young people who have the same dream. we do it without exaggeration but only with persistence.that is my speech,thanks everyone.
Good morning,ladies and gentlemen,today i am so happy to stand here to give you arather, a real story of mine.
Though with time going by,i can still remember what you once toldshould be a brave ,you looked into myin,year out,nearly most of my memories are fading little byonly this simple sentence remained,without being forgotten in my life.
Again and again,i can not stop myself from thinking aboutordinary,but so impressive,so moving,just like the brightest sunshine,it helps me go through the darkestam such a sensitive girl in yoursaid,my sorroful facial expression made feel so ,there is one thing i never tell you,that is ,i am becoming a big girl gradually with your words andnever tell you about it,for i believe oneday,you can see the great changes of mine foris what i want to do ini know,that will be the best gift for you.
I suddenly think of a song named MY HEART WILL GOis a beautiful sentence going likeare safe in mythan once,i was moved to tears byknow ,i am also safe in yourhave already forgotten when i told you i was going to leave for Australia this summerjust smiled as usual,gentlyyou decide to do,i will be in favor of it,but, just onething,remember,when you fell lonely abroad,do not forget we are here ,praying forare all around you,far across the distance and space betweenclosed my eyes,the flashbackmemories we had together,once we played games on the palyground,we played jokes on each other,you always wrote a lot of sentences on my articles to encouragethe most unforgetable thing,you told me,you believed m i could be a bigor later.
At that specific moment,i suddenly understood the meaning of this sentenceon that day,i smiled as you used to,looking atlast words i said were,keep walking in sunshine.
Yes,keep walking insaid to you ,also toknow i am not alone wiht your company,and we can keep walking in sunshine till the last minute of our days.
I promise,i will be a big girl.
I promise,i will be a brave girl.
I promise,i will keep walking in sunshine.
That is my speech,thank you!
Throughout my entire life, I have witnessed his empathy and generosity towards others, especially those who are suffering. It is just his way of being in your corner when you’re down. My father not only has the strength and ability necessary to be our next President, but also the kindness and compassion that will enable him to be the leader that this country needs.
I’ve learned a lot about the world from walking construction jobs by his side. When run properly, construction sites are true meritocracies. Competence in the building trades is easy to spot and incompetence is impossible to hide.These sites are also incredible melting pots, gathering people from all walks of life and uniting them to work towards a single mission. There have always been men of all backgrounds and ethnicities on my father’s job sites. And long before it was commonplace, you also saw women.
I was convinced that the only thing I wanted to do, ever, was to write novels. However, my parents, both of whom came from impoverished backgrounds and neither of whom had been to college, took the view that my overactive imagination was an amusing personal quirk that would never pay a mortgage, or secure a pension. I know that the irony strikes with the force of a cartoon anvil, now.
So they hoped that I would take a vocational degree; I wanted to study English Literature. A compromise was reached that in retrospect satisfied nobody, and I went up to study Modern Languages. Hardly had my parents’ car rounded the corner at the end of the road than I ditched German and scuttled off down the Classics corridor.
I cannot remember telling my parents that I was studying Classics; they might well have found out for the first time on graduation day. Of all the subjects on this planet, I think they would have been hard put to name one less useful than Greek mythology when it came to securing the keys to an executive bathroom.
I would like to make it clear, in parenthesis, that I do not blame my parents for their point of view. There is an expiry date on blaming your parents for steering you in the wrong direction; the moment you are old enough to take the wheel, responsibility lies with you. What is more, I cannot criticise my parents for hoping that I would never experience poverty. They had been poor themselves, and I have since been poor, and I quite agree with them that it is not an ennobling experience. Poverty entails fear, and stress, and sometimes depression; it means a thousand petty humiliations and hardships. Climbing out of poverty by your own efforts, that is indeed something on which to pride yourself, but poverty itself is romanticised only by fools.
you will no longer fear making new sounds, showing new facial expressions, using your body in new ways,approaching new people, and asking new questions. you will live every single day of your life with absolute passion, and you will show your passion through the words you speak and the actions you take. you will focus all your time and effort on the most important goals of your life. you will never succumb to challenges of hardships. you will never waver in your pursuit of excellence. after all,you are the best, and you deserve the best!
as your coach and friend, i can assure you the door to all the best things in the world will open to you, but the key to that door is in your hand. you must do your part, you must faithfully follow the plans you make and take the actions you plan, you must never quit, you must never fear. i know you must do it, you can do it, you will do it, and you will succeed!
W Ar Th World ,W Ar Th Fuur
Somon sid “w r rdin h firs vrs of h firs chpr of book, whos ps r infini”. I don’ know who wro hs words, bu I’v lwys likd hm s rmindr h h fuur cn b nyhin w wn i o b. W r ll in h posiion of h frmrs. If w pln ood sd ,w rp ood hrvs. If w pln nohin ll, w hrvs nohin ll.
W r youn. “How o spnd h youh?” I is mninful qusion. To nswr i, firs I hv o sk “wh do you undrsnd by h word youh?” Youh is no im of lif, i’s s of mind. I’s no mr of rosy chks, rd lips or suppl kns. I’s h mr of h will. I’s h frshnss of h dp sprin of lif.
A po sid “To s world in rin of snd, nd hvn in wild flowr, hold infiniy in h plm of your hnd, nd rniy in n hour. Svrl dys o, I hd chnc o lisn o lcur. I lrn lo hr. I’d lik o shr i wih ll of you. L’s show our rih plms. W cn s hr lins h show how our lov.crr nd lif is. I hv shor lin of lif. Wh bou yours? I wondrd whhr w could s our fuur in his wy. Wll, l’s mk fis. Whr is our fuur? Whr is our lov, crr, nd lif? Tll m.Yh, i is in our hnds. I is hld in ourslvs.
W ll wn h fuur o b br hn h ps. Bu h fuur cn o br islf.
Hello! Dear judges,
Today, I am gonna share my first special memory. I explored Vanuatu last August. Vanuatu is a Pacific island adventure far beyond any notions of cruise-ship ports and flashy resorts. Deserted beaches, ancient culture, remote and rugged islands and world-class diving are just a small part of this magnetism of this scattered 80-plus island archipelago.
The capital is Port Vila. It was used to be a British and French colony, so a lot of people speak English and French. Vanuatu is a natural place, the sky is very blue, the sea water is very clear, the local law does not allow any fishing, you can see fish swimming around the sea. The vegetable market is lots of vegetables and fruits that I have not been seen before.
It takes a little time to afford a healthy sense of adventure to truly explore Vanuatu's islands, but it's worth every bit of it. Thank you!
I should know: In the acting business, you fail all the time.
Early in my career, I auditioned for a part in a Broadway musical. A perfect role for me, I thought—except for the fact that I can’t sing.
So I’m in the wings, about to go on stage but the guy in front of me is singing like Pavarotti and I am just shrinking getting smaller and smaller...
So I come out with my little sheet music and it was “Just My Imagination” by the Temptations, that’s what I came up with.
So I hand it to the accompanist, and she looks at it and looks at me and looks at the director, so I start to sing and they’re not saying anything. I think I must be getting better, so I start getting into it.
But after the first verse, the director cuts me off: “Thank you. Thank you very much, you’ll be hearing from me.”
The next part of the audition is the acting part. I figure, I can’t sing, but I know I can act.
But the guy I was paired with to do the scene couldn’t be more overdramatic and over-the top.
Suffice to say, I didn’t get the part.
But here’s the thing: I didn’t quit. I didn’t fall back.
I walked out of there to prepare for the next audition, and the next audition, and the next one. I prayed and I prayed, but I continued to fail, and I failed, and I failed.
But it didn’t matter. Because you know what? You hang around a barbershop long enough—sooner or later you will get a haircut.
You will catch a break.
Last year I did a play called Fences on Broadway and I won a Tony Award. And I didn’t have to sing for it, by the way.
And here’s the kicker—it was at the Court Theater, the same theater where I failed that first audition 30 years prior.
The point is, every graduate here today has the training and the talent to succeed.
But do you have guts to fail?
Here’s my second point about failure:
If you don’t fail… you’re not even trying.
My wife told me this expression: “To get something you never had, you have to do something you never did.”
Les Brown, a motivational speaker, made an analogy about this.
Imagine you’re on your deathbed—and standing around your bed are the ghosts representing your unfilled potential.
The ghosts of the ideas you never acted on. The ghosts of the talents you didn’t use.
And they’re standing around your bed. Angry. Disappointed. Upset.
“We came to you because you could have brought us to life,” they say. “And now we go to the grave together.”
So I ask you today: How many ghosts are going to be around your bed when your time comes?
You invested a lot in your education. And people invested in you.
And let me tell you, the world needs your talents.
Man, does it ever.
I just got back from four months of filming in South Africa—beautiful country, but there are places with terrible poverty that need help.
And Africa is just the tip of the iceberg.
Well, that is huge different with what I knew. Of course, I didn't think there is any prefection, but get things done in "better" way. However, I now get a clear concept to get things done in a better way, and complete jobs with a learning curve. I believe I will think of Practice Makes Permanence and re-charge myself when I get tired.
In the way of creating business or no matter what you do, did you train up yourself?
In 20xx — not so long ago — a professor who was then at Columbia University took that case and made it [Howard] Roizen. And he gave the case out, both of them, to two groups of students. He changed exactly one word: "Heidi" to "Howard." But that one word made a really big difference. He then surveyed the students, and the good news was the students, both men and women, thought Heidi and Howard were equally competent, and that's good.The bad news was that everyone liked Howard. He's a great guy. You want to work for him. You want to spend the day fishing with him. But Heidi? Not so sure. She's a little out for herself. She's a little political.You're not sure you'd want to work for her. This is the complication. We have to tell our daughters and our colleagues, we have to tell ourselves to believe we got the A, to reach for the promotion, to sit at the table, and we have to do it in a world where, for them, there are sacrifices they will make for that, even though for their brothers, there are not. The saddest thing about all of this is that it's really hard to remember this. And I'm about to tell a story which is truly embarrassing for me, but I think important.
On Monday, tomorrow, during your commencement ceremonies, I will confer on you all the “rights and responsibilities” of a Yale degree. Yours is a great responsibility. You will have to know what you are for.
What are you for?
“Surely in the light of history,” Eleanor Roosevelt said, “it is more intelligent to hope rather than to fear, to try rather than not to try.”
Yale has prepared you, as a scholar and a human being, to try; to face challenges with courage and determination. And I trust you are leaving Yale with a sense of your own responsibilities to one another, to the planet, and to our shared future.
By serving others and our communities with the many gifts you have been given, you will live a life that is for something, a life of meaning and purpose.
There is no time to waste; there are no words to waste: As a young Bob Dylan sang in 1965, “He not busy being born is busy dying.” We must give life to new ideas, imagine new ways of being in the world, new answers to the problems that vex us and our neighbors.
Now is the time.
Members of the Class of 20xx, please rise:
We are delighted to salute your accomplishments, and we are proud of your achievements. Remember to give thanks for all that has brought you to this day. And go forth from this place with grateful hearts, paying back the gifts you have received here by using your minds, your voices, and your hands to imagine and create the new worlds you wish to see.
What are you for?
Congratulations, Class of 20xx!
Thank you. Thank you.
Ivanka Trump Delivers Speech at Japan's World Assembly for Women
Thank you very much Prime Minister Abe, for that kind introduction. And thank you for your gracious hospitality to my family.
This is my first visit to Japan, and the warmth you have shown us, the beauty of your landscape, and the vibrancy of your culture are truly incredible gifts to all who come to this country. Yesterday evening, as I arrived in Tokyo, I was struck by the magnificence of the skyline – and this morning I was awed by the ancient beauty of the Imperial Palace. The wonders of this land are a testament to the creativity and resilience of the Japanese people.
It is an honor to join you today at the World Assembly for Women. I am grateful to be with this exceptional and passionate group of leaders to discuss the economic empowerment of women, to celebrate the progress our societies have made, and to chart a bold course for the future.
The economic empowerment of women has been a focus of mine for many years – ensuring that 50% of our population can fully participate in the workforce is critical to strengthening our communities and growing our prosperity.
That is why after my father’s election, I decided to leave my businesses and work in government to advance policies and initiatives that empower women to fully participate in the economy, if they so choose. Policies that enable women to pursue their careers and care for their families, policies that focus on workforce development and skills training, and policies that fuel entrepreneurship so that Americans can turn their aspirations into their incredible legacy.
Good evening. Thank you. One year ago, I introduced my father when he declared his candidacy. In his own way, and through his own sheer force of will, he sacrificed greatly to enter the political arena as an outsider.
And he prevailed against afield of 16 very talented competitors. For more than a year, Donald Trump has been the people’s champion, and tonight he’s the people’s nominee. Like many of my fellow millenials, I do not consider myself categorically Republican or Democrat. More than party affiliation, I vote on based on what I believe is right, for my family and for my country. Sometimes it’s a tough choice. That is not the case this time. As the proud daughter of your nominee, I am here to tell you that this is the moment and Donald Trump is the person to make America great again.
Leaders with the academic preparation to solve mind-bending technological challenges. With the moral character to help society navigate times of blurringly fast change, in ways that are ethical, equitable, and humanistic. Most of all, with the inner strength to take on the burdens of high responsibility, and the heat, envy, and hostility that comes with them, and deliver the positive change that human progress requires.
You showed the quality of grit before you arrived here. That’s why we admitted you. I hope that your days here, with a faculty that pushed and stretched you, and classmates like Jordan and Seon to inspire you, built your reserves of resilience.
we should learn to stick to our life no matter how difficult the life is and we should learn to love others .it is the flim tellsx me .
it is a story talks about a black girl named precious .precious isx fat and not beautiful. her bad temped mother never workx, always cheated others to relieve her ,and atex while watching tv all day.what is worse ,precious was only 16,but she had pregnant for twice .out of assumption ,her child is her farther
a poet said “to see a world in a grain of sand, and a heaven in a wild flower, hold infinity in the palm of your hand, and eternity in an hour. several days ago, i had a chance to listen to a lecture. i learnt a lot there. id like to share it with all of you. lets show our right palms. we can see three lines that show how our love.career and life is. i have a short line of life. what about yours i wondered whether we could see our future in this way. well, lets make a fist. where is our future where is our love, career, and life tell me.yeah, it is in our hands. it is held in ourselves.
last year,, this year, during national small -- smallbusiness week there was a company just outside of austin, texas.their company was all about electronics and small circuit boards. you have a warehouse of all of these intricate circuit boards and electronic equipment. the river flooded and came in and just flooded their entire operation. water was deep. med. ithink it destroyed a third of their inventory. everybody they hadnot processed. the gentleman who was the proprietor of thiscompany said what was so amazing, sba was able to come in with a $2 million disaster relief loan. he talked about how his employees would come and work all hours. they had to take cloths andwhite down all of the wires and cables and clean the circuitboards that were salvageable. they spent hours doing this. in six weeks they were back up and running. many couldn't come in and work during that time. he continued to pay his employees andtheir benefits through that entire time and helped with donations in the community as well. it lets you know the heart ofentrepreneurs. they are risk takers but they are on 24/7. that is why they will always have a special place in my heart . i know what that is like. we all started small.
wonderful stories just like many in this room. we have time for one more.
i'm the owner of the newtown athletic club in pennsylvania. i'malso cochair of the largest trade organization for fitnessindustry, and an advocate through my business of the right to try bill. i would like to ask both of you, what are the experiences you have had that you would like to share, some of the do's anddon'ts that would be beneficial to us today?
every entrepreneur goes into business knowing they are taking a risk. you have to manage the downside risk. one of the ups and downs, i have been bankrupt. my house was auctioned in my car repossessed. seven months pregnant with our second child. when i talked to entrepreneurs with failing businesses, some referred to it as a bad patch. they are determined to come back. one of the most inspirational things to me is to listen to entrepreneurs, how they get through thetough times. i've often said it is not how you fall, it is how you get back up. mrs.
Years later, I was on my second teaching round in a Melbourne high school, and I was about 20 minutes into a year 11 legal studies class when this boy put up his hand and said, "Hey miss, when are you going to start doing your speech?" And I said, "What speech?" You know, I'd been talking them about defamation law for a good 20 minutes. And he said, "You know, like, your motivational speaking. You know, when people in wheelchairs come to school, they usually say, like, inspirational stuff?" "It's usually in the big hall." And that's when it dawned on me: This kid had only ever experienced disabled
people as objects of inspiration. We are not, to this kid -- and it's not his fault, I mean, that's true for many of us. For lots of us, disabled people are not our teachers or our doctors or our manicurists. We're not real people. We are there to inspire. And in fact, I am sitting on this stage looking like I do in this wheelchair, and you are probably kind of expecting me to inspire you. Right? (Laughter) Yeah.
Now I seriously want to thank you for that. I had to take that picture. My mother always took photos of me at every progress point growing up. She’d show off those photos to everyone who came to our house, and she would be so proud that I am here at my old stomping ground with all of you.
So, now graduates, it’s certainly your day, but President Price already reminded us it’s Mother’s Day – but you know women never get enough love, never. So the one day we have here to offer a deserved salute to those who bore us biologically and those who stood in as surrogates for many of our needs and wants – deserve some more love. I want all the graduates to stand up and give their mothers and their surrogate mothers some love. Thank you.
Now this is my first Mother’s Day without my own mother, who I lost last August.
And while she’s not here physically, I can still hear her voice when I reach a significant milestone or face what appears to be an insurmountable obstacle.
And if she were here today, I know exactly what she would say to you.
In response to your achievement, it would, no doubt, be crisp and compelling a show of support: “You did it!” And she would offer you a huge smile and an even bigger hug.
But she would also keep it real with you like she always did with me. She would tell you that your future, like any of ours, is going to be hard work. I can hear her say: “Lisa, listen to me and hear me clearly. Adversity is like the agitator in the washing machine. It beats the heck out of the clothes, but they’re clean when they come out”.
i started a company called blueblood. this is for you. i created an online marketplace for professional truck drivers when they are in need of work to match with a motor carrier who needs a driver. we are just rolling out. my concern is the regulations. my concern is for all industries, what can we do with the regulationissued to help us through these phases?
you heard the president when he started off. he has rolled back already so many regulations to make it possible to move forward. he was only less than a dozen days in office when the executive order stated for every new regulation you want tocreate you've got to get rid of 2. i think that is bringing down theregulatory environment. i feel -- i hear the same message when i'mtouring the country. i'm visiting every district office. there's 68 of them. i hold business roundtables. the regulatoryenvironment is clearly one that is crippling a lot of small businesses as well as large businesses. i believe that it is a trillion dollars a year a cost for all businesses to comply with regulations. that is a time of money. a little example, just now i was in portland and seattle, and alaska. then i came back tomilwaukee. when i was at a small brewery, the owner said theregulations that bothers him, let me give you one example. he saidi want to launch a new beer. we had the body in the formula. hesent in the label and it was kicked back. the label was wrong. we resubmitted. it kicked back again. i finally found out it was a,missing in the text on the label of the description of the product. we were delayed six months launching our product. you are a small business person trying to reclaim that six months.those regulations we don't need.
President Faust, members of the Harvard Corporation and the Board of Overseers, members of the faculty, proud parents, and, above all, graduates.
The first thing I would like to say is ‘thank you.’ Not only has Harvard given me an extraordinary honour, but the weeks of fear and nausea I have endured at the thought of giving this commencement address have made me lose weight. A win-win situation! Now all I have to do is take deep breaths, squint at the red banners and convince myself that I am at the world’s largest Gryffindor reunion.
Delivering a commencement address is a great responsibility; or so I thought until I cast my mind back to my own graduation. The commencement speaker that day was the distinguished British philosopher Baroness Mary Warnock. Reflecting on her speech has helped me enormously in writing this one, because it turns out that I can’t remember a single word she said. This liberating discovery enables me to proceed without any fear that I might inadvertently influence you to abandon promising careers in business, the law or politics for the giddy delights of becoming a gay wizard.
You see? If all you remember in years to come is the ‘gay wizard’ joke, I’ve come out ahead of Baroness Mary Warnock. Achievable goals: the first step to self improvement.
is this working? ok. great. thank you for sharingthe stage with me today. i must apologize in advance for my voice.my voice keeps going in and out. a little bit of laryngitis on theroad. i'm so delighted to be here this afternoon. as the ministrydo for the small business administration. we will celebrate our65th anniversary next year. we are kicking off this year ofreimagining the sba. we might even cheat a little bit. nationals not -- small business week year. because, i found out about the second week i was in office sba is one of the best-kept secrets in the country. you think sba, what do you think? so much more than loans. it's counseling. access to capital, which businesses need to start. cash is king. then i found out that the counselingand mentoring aspect that comes along is as important oralmost as important as the cash. we have components of access,government contracting, which grows many small as mrs.. then we have disaster relief. what happens when a disaster hits an area? homes are lost. it's one of the few times sba is involved in the home mortgage market as well as business loans. it's our goal to give businesses up and running. they are not only the engine of our economy, but they are the glue for theircommunities. those communities need to come back online. sba isthere working with fema, the first people on the line. we want to get everybody back up, paying taxes. it is an all-encompassingorganization. it's my goal to make sure a year from now, if notsooner, sba is no longer a secret. [applause]
thank you. have great champions of the smallbusiness community along with president trump. we want to hear from the community. if you have a question, please raise yourhand. you can ask a question to the administrator or ivanka.
i'm a firefighter from wisconsin. i have been a firefighter for 20 years. i recently invented a new style of compass to save firefighters lives. what i'm struggling with is the ins and outs to run that business. what advice do you have to get over that hurdle?
Make no mistake: There are plenty of reasons to be outraged. My generation, your generation – we face not only grave moral challenges but existential threats: rising ocean levels globally and rising inequality in America; violence around the world and in our own backyards; the fraying of the social fabric. “The falcon cannot hear the falconer,” and we wonder if the center can hold.
I understand the impulse toward negativity. Like many of you, I sometimes feel overwhelmed by the challenges we face, by the injustices that call out for our condemnation. Yet it is precisely because our challenges are so great that outrage is not enough. Pointing out what is wrong is merely the beginning, not the end, of our work.
The Czech author Ivan Klima wrote, “To destroy is easier than to create, and that is why so many people are ready to demonstrate against what they reject. But what would they say if one asked them what they wanted instead?”
What would you say? What would I say? What are you for?
Klima’s life story is one of both criticism and creation. Born in Prague in 1931, he was sent to a Nazi concentration camp as a child. He survived and became an outspoken voice for democracy in Czechoslovakia.