Demystifying Excellence:
Why Do You Do What You Do?
In our nation -- from the cradle of the world's technology center on the west coast, to the center of the world's most impactful democracy on the east coast, to every businessperson, teacher, student, or family musician in the middle -- most of us are children of privilege in comparison to others around the world. Just about everyone this address reaches has a greater wealth of opportunity than most people in this world, simply because we were born here. And there is nothing wrong with being privileged, as long as you understand that this privilege is not just a lucky opportunity, but the gift of responsibility -- the gift to pursue your dreams of excellence and make your world a better place. And there is no greater wasted opportunity than a child of privilege who fails to see this opportunity, and uses it as a chance to be lazy.
It's our good fortune to be in a position to fulfill this responsibility to our internal compasses and our world at large. This applies to both your individual dreams -- for me, it's my dream of bringing sophisticated music and multimedia to kids and families -- and our collective responsibility to leave the world as good or better a place as the one given to us. It is your responsibility to identify what is important to you -- your life goals, your cornerstones -- and to place your feet on the road to excellence. It's not your parents' responsibility, not your teachers', not your boss's, not the blowhard commentators' on TV, not your dog's or your God's. They're here to provide you with options, not choose your direction for you. And don't wuss out on yourself here -- you should be elated that your life and your world is truly in your hands. It is a luxury that many people in the world do not have to the extent that we do, and it's a luxury that future generations may not have.
So I'd like to close by asking all of you the same question my student asked me: Why are you who you are? Why do you do what you do?
Think about that for a few moments.
If you immediately answered those questions in your mind, you're probably headed in the right direction. If you didn't, it's probably time to check your compass and reset your course. This is necessary sometimes; it's no big tragedy unless you become a slave to your own fear and inaction. Those on the road to excellence are who they are because that is who they chose to be. Those on the road to mediocrity or confusion or extinction are who they are because that is what they ended up as. Your direction dictates your destination.
We live in a culture where it's often cooler to succeed on the short-term surface -- but deny your passions or the truth -- than it is to strive for excellence but fail. We live in a culture that questions whether there's any value or point in having a collective purpose that supercedes our individual rights, even in the face of strong evidence that selfish and short-sighted behavior makes people unhappy and could destroy the way of life we claim to want. We have become so enamored of the glory of self-interest that we feel necessary team endeavors like saving our only planet are a burden on our individual freedom more than an opportunity to save that very freedom. It's madness. Don't fall for it.
Read the next Chapter -> A Good Night's Sleep
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