Carnegie Mellon professor Randy Pausch, who became famous for his "Last Lecture" in which he spoke as if he were giving his final lecture before dying, passed away today of complications from pancreatic cancer. He was 47. Above is the video footage of the famous lecture, and although it runs over an hour long it's worth every minute. Randy wrote that he knew was he was doing that day: "Under the ruse of giving an academic lecture, I was trying to put myself in a bottle that would one day wash up on the beach for my children." We picked out three of our favorite nuggets of wisdom, but he says so much more that is worth a listen.
• "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. The brick walls are there to stop the people who don't want it badly enough. They are there to stop the other people."
• "This advice is good for the ladies: When it comes to men that are romantically interested in you, it's really simple. Just don't listen to anything they have to say; pay attention to what they do."
• "It's not about how to achieve your dreams, it's all about leading your life. If you lead your life in a right way, karma will take care of itself. And dreams will come to you."
Editor
Wow. A non-ironic, uplifting entry on Mollygood. Whoda thunk.
He has given us all a gift with his words.
I watched the entire original lecture.. and it was incredible… He was such a genuine, good, goofy guy - I was honestly moved when I watched it. I'm so sorry for his family..
I'm impressed that MG posted about this man. I found him to be truly inspirational, especially as a dear friend of mine was recently diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. I was devastated to hear of his passing, but at least he has left a wonderful legacy for his children.
Very sad loss for our family. Randy is my nephew Joe's uncle. Such a terrible thing for anyone to have to go through. RIP Randy Pausch.
He was very inspirational. My condolonces to his family.
Thanks for the post whitney
Steve Jobs has went through much of the same. I hope he fares better.
I am very sorry for your loss, Deanna. Your family can at least rejoice in the fact that he has made a positive impression on all that he has touched.
Wow, what an amazing man. Thank you for posting this video Whitney. At first I was only going to watch a little of it just to what it was about, but after a few minutes I knew I had to watch it all. I can only hope his students absorbed a fractions of his kind spirit and generous soul to carry on in their own lives and pass on to others. There truly are some people in life who rise above the rest. The best are the one's who inspire others and never seek the spotlight for themselves. It's a sad situation and my condolences go out to his family. The world would be a lot better if we had more people like him in it.
It really hurts my heart when these brilliant people pass on so young.
"We can not change the cards that we are dealt, just how we play the hand."
Randy Paush
I am glad that his children have this. I am glad that his wife has this. I bet she replays this on her next birthday.
Thank you so much "bedbugsandballyhoo" We really appreciate your words.
Wow! This was amazing. Every famous person that ends up on this site should be forced to watch this. Maybe they could learn something from such a good person.
Well, I think his speech sucked. He didn't emphasize that the greatest joys in life are slicing avocados (what a silly veggie!) and blowing bubbles between your teeth. Pop!!!
Awwww…bbb, out there healing people's hurts :) One more reason we heart you so.
I'm really a softy. I cry like a little baby every time I watch "Akeelah and the Bee," "Watership Down," and "The Pianist."