Randy Pausch's "Last Lecture" talk

[pterodactyl]

Hi everyone,

I've been reading these boards for a long time (~1 year) but haven't contributed yet. I'm currently a graduate student finishing my doctoral thesis, and will defend it and hopefully graduate at the end of this month. I recently found something that was very inspiring for me, which I wanted to share with you because I thought some of you might get a lot out of it. Probably some of you have seen Professor Randy Pausch's "Last Lecture" presentation, but if you have not, do check it out. It's 76 minutes, but it is a worthwhile investment of time. He is an energetic speaker and very entertaining. He also has a good talk on time management on the page which I found valuable as well. Here is the link: Randy Pausch's Home Page

Best,
Amber

[Smarky]

The guy is an inspration, the fact of what he is going through and how he has reacted to it.

However the talk itself is very over rated. There is nothing of value here, it's poorly put together and doesn't really offer anything.

[pterodactyl]

Sorry that it wasn't useful for you, Smarky. I did find it cheering and inspiring for my own life, and see a lot of parallels in terms of what I am going through. I hope it will be inspiring for someone else.

Amber

[Steve Pavlina]

Originally Posted by Smarky

The guy is an inspration, the fact of what he is going through and how he has reacted to it.

However the talk itself is very over rated. There is nothing of value here, it's poorly put together and doesn't really offer anything.

I got the exact same impression. It was a powerful setup for a disappointing presentation. I tried to like it, but it honestly had no bite.

In August 2007 he was given 3-6 months to live, and he gave the first Last Lecture in September 2007. Now 9 months later, he's still alive though, isn't he?

[Dan.Linehan]

I thought it was pretty awesome, it definitely touched and inspired me.

[spesr]

I have absolutely no clue why his lecture is so popular. For me, it was one of the most boring lectures I have ever heard. He could have said whatever he had to say in 5 minutes. I feel sorry for him but I kept waiting for whatever people find moving about it, but it never happened. 76 minutes of complete waste.

[Calculusaurus]

I watched it way back when it hit the Digg home page. I've also read the book.

I found it very inspirational. Unlike most sources of passing inspiration, the lessons have stuck with me in some form or another ever since I watched it.

I don't see how you could say it didn't offer anything. Sure, the ideas of the talk were uncomplicated and somtimes cliche, but it takes a genius to realize and express the beauty of simple ideas.

The Last Lecture is kinda like the Bach of motivational ideas. Now matter how beautiful, subtle, and well-exucted a Bach piece can be, people are always going to complain about how boring it is.

[Angela]

Originally Posted by Steve Pavlina

I tried to like it, but it honestly had no bite.

Steve, I think you missed something big here. This fellow was engaging and fun and full of vitality. His presentation is a gorgeous, timeless expression of that engagement, fun and vitality that will continue to make a difference for people, I believe, long after his death today. I love him and the value he offers, and it seems so clear that many others do, too.

I don't know about "bite", but I think that anyone who makes a presentation of any sort could really learn and be something by making themselves available to the beauty of Randy Pausch.

Rest in peace, Randy.

[Dan.Linehan]

I completely agree with Angela. Very inspirational speech from a very authentic, aware guy.

You know Randy is having a ball in the ether right now.

[Angela]

You know, I have never seen a presentation -- especially an over-hour long one! -- that I want to watch again because there was so much content, so inspiringly presented. Except this one. I want to take notes next time.

One thing I loved: he is describing his "Building Virtual Worlds" class and he is asked the question, "how do you know when you're building a good world?" and Pausch says it's all about bonding, and he could always tell by the body language of the team just before they presented their world to the audience. It brought tears to my eyes:

If they're standing close to each other, the world is good.

Talk about your wise words, huh?

[Calculusaurus]

R.i.p...

[Angela]

Originally Posted by daj

In my eyes he's just another sad statistic on how allopathic medicine has failed us all.

If that's all you see, you are as blind as a bat.

[Angela]

A man died today, a man whose entire life was dedicated to making a difference in the lives of others, to inspiring and helping masses of others to make their most cherished dreams come true. This is a man who was a loving and committed teacher, leader, husband, father, and son; he was a man who in his final days took the time to prepare a message to his children and to the world in the hopes that he would be leaving a legacy of joy, love, and freedom. This man enjoyed his life to the fullest and was all about encouraging others to do the same.

For you to post here, on the day of his death no less, about how wrong this man was and holding him up as a target for your political agenda, is closely akin to showing up at a memorial for Martin Luther King, Jr. and spouting about what a loser King was for not being more active against gun control. I find it incredibly disrespectful and in astonishingly poor taste.

I respect you, Daj, but I do not respect blatant willingness not to see past your own agenda to the contribution that was Randy Pausch's life.

[daj]

I feel bad for saying what I said now that I think about it. So I deleted my posts on this thread.

[ellie]

Oh that's sad that he passed away. I watched the lecture last week. I didn't find it that awe inspiring, but I did take a few things away from it.

I loved his passion for life though and I love how he recalled the story of becoming a lecturer, where one of his friends/colleagues said "your a salesman, don't waste your life in the corporate world, use your sales skills for something really worthwhile - sell education". I thought that was cool.

[pterodactyl]

I'm sorry to hear that he died. He inspired me and I am sad that he is no longer with us.

[brent]

He's one of my motivations to pursue becomming a Computer Science professor. RIP.

[Craig]

Originally Posted by Steve Pavlina

I got the exact same impression. It was a powerful setup for a disappointing presentation. I tried to like it, but it honestly had no bite.

He did say at the end of his talk and in interviews that the lecture (and the book) were a legacy for his children.

PS That doesn't mean I have any less respect for what you're doing, Steve! (I do have great respect for both you and Randy.)

[Craig]

Here's a tribute page if anyone would like to post a message for Randy's friends & family.

Has anyone read the book?

Here are some interviews with Diane Sawyer broadcast in April 2008:
Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Part 4
Part 5

[Angela]

Originally Posted by Craig

Has anyone read the book?

It's curled up patiently waiting for me in my Kindle. Have you read it?

[Craig]

Not yet, but I will.

[Love]

I had watched the lecture a while ago and found it really inspiring as well. There was just a love of life in his actions and words. A determination to impart something wonderful to the world. Definitely worth a watch. He may have passed away, but he definitely a lived a life to be proud of.

[pianoperformer]

Sorry to bring this thread up. I just finally listened to the lecture. I really thought it was great! It was great that he could stil remain fun and light, even in his last talk, and to really just remain positive. I found it very inspiring.

I'm not really sure how some people don't find it inspiring. I think it has a lot of value.

I loved how he said telling people to have fun is like a fish telling how important water is, lol.

[newton]

I found it great too. Too bad some of you didn't like it. But hey! Every one can have his opinion.

[Steve Pavlina]

I think the reason I didn't care for TLL is that I was expecting something more original given the circumstances. The lecture wasn't bad per se, but the key ideas were basically a rehashing of the same ideas many others in this field have been sharing for a long time. I was hoping to see a more unique perspective. Even so, I'm glad so many people found TLL inspiring. One of my childhood dreams was to write computer games, and I'm glad that I made that dream a reality in my 20s.

My new book will likely be snuggling Randy Pausch's on the bookshelves because our names are so close alphabetically. Hopefully our books will find it inspiring to rub spines.

[eruso]

Just bought this book today, excited to read it.

[David365]

I only heard of Randy Pausch after his death (we don't get Oprah here!), but put posted the video on my blog and discussed it, as I felt there were some really insightful points he made. here are my favorite quotes from the talk:-

“if you start screwing up and no-one is saying anything - that means they have given up. If those around you are still giving you a hard time - at least they still care”

"Brick walls are there for a reason - they let us know how badly we want things.”

“Be good at something, it makes you valuable.”

“Experience is what you get when you didn’t get what you wanted”

David

[Daphne Lim]

What I liked about The Last Lecture was that he did it for his kids, so he would continue to be a beacon for their lives even after he died. So what if the content was not original? For his kids it will be, because it was from their father. I wish I had a video of my late dad sharing his wisdom.

I also think that until we ourselves are looking death in the face, we don't know how we will behave. I can only hope that I will approach death with as much dignity, humour, and self-giving.

[tonyo]

Everyone of us must die, the difference is that Randy Pausch was told when he would die. The fact that he died 9 months later than predicted is not relevant.

When I saw him on the internet, he looked a healthy, intelligent man in the prime of life. I found that hard, and I believe he did too, that he was in such good physical condition and yet he was going to die so soon.

Randy Pausch wanted to leave a legacy for his kids, that his message would live on after he did. I really believe he achieved that. To debate on the value of his message takes away from that.

Most of us talk glibly of our lives and ignore our impending deaths.In facing his own death, while he was alive, he reminded us that we too face our own deaths. That I believe was his message to you and me. After all, he was a computer scientist, not a professional in the personal developmkent field.

[eruso]

Originally Posted by tonyo

Everyone of us must die, the difference is that Randy Pausch was told when he would die. The fact that he died 9 months later than predicted is not relevant.

When I saw him on the internet, he looked a healthy, intelligent man in the prime of life. I found that hard, and I believe he did too, that he was in such good physical condition and yet he was going to die so soon.

Randy Pausch wanted to leave a legacy for his kids, that his message would live on after he did. I really believe he achieved that. To debate on the value of his message takes away from that.

Most of us talk glibly of our lives and ignore our impending deaths.In facing his own death, while he was alive, he reminded us that we too face our own deaths. That I believe was his message to you and me. After all, he was a computer scientist, not a professional in the personal developmkent field.

Good points.