In a commencement address at Oberlin College, in Ohio, US, First Lady Michelle Obama urged graduates to, "go out there and make it happen."
The First Lady told the Oberlin Class of 2015, "Look at you! You made it!"
Best Commencement Speeches
Sheryl Sandberg(01 of17)
“Dream bigger—both for yourself and the world around you. Your life’s course will not be determined by doing the things that you are certain you can do. Those are the easy things. It will be determined by whether you try the things that are hard.”—Sheryl Sandberg, Facebook Chief Operating Office, 5/3/14, City Colleges of Chicago (credit:John J. Kim/ Chicago Tribune)
Mary Barra(02 of17)
“Be open to opportunities when they occur. Embrace them. Enjoy them. And overcome them. They are the experiences that will make you unique—the milestones that define your life. And keep your friends and family close. They will make your life journey truly rewarding. During the good times, you’ll have someone to celebrate with—like today. And during the tough times, you’ll have someone to turn to for advice, comfort, and love.”—Mary Barra, CEO of General Motors, 5/3/14, University of Michigan (credit:huffingtonpost.com)
Jim Carrey(03 of17)
“I'm here to plant a seed today—a seed that will inspire you to go forward in your life with enthusiastic hearts and a clear sense of wholeness. The question is: will that seed have a chance to take root, or will I be sued by Monsanto?”—Jim Carrey, actor, 5/24/14, Maharishi University of Management (credit:www.hollywoodreporter.com)
Sean P. Diddy Combs(04 of17)
“You will change the world. Let that sink in. You will change the world. I want you to take the craziest dream you ever had—that dream that you were too embarrassed to tell anyone about—and I want you to go after it. I want you to make it a reality. I don’t want you to dream. I want you to do.”—Sean P. Diddy Combs, music impresario, 5/10/14 at Howard University (credit:Getty)
Cecile Richards(05 of17)
“Commencement speeches have to have a message—so this is it: Life as an activist, a trouble-maker and an agitator is a tremendous option, and one that I highly recommend to all of you. Sorry, parents.”—Cecile Richards, President of Planned Parenthood, 5/18/14, Barnard College (credit:www.huffingtonpost.com)
Jay Leno (06 of17)
Following are 3 rules from Jay Leno’s Rules of Show Business:1) “Try not to get a regular job. When you have a regular job, you wind up acting like regular people.”2) “Don’t have a relationship with a partner who doesn’t get it. You need a soulmate, not a cellmate.”3) When you get too comfortable, move on. You should always try to find the toughest audience you can.”—Jay Leno, comedian, 5/11/14, Emerson College (credit:Boston Globe via Getty Images)
Tory Burch(07 of17)
“Even if you’re not yet an entrepreneur, you can be entrepreneurial in everything you do. If you view each stop as an opportunity to learn something, there is always something you will take away from that experience.”—Tory Burch, fashion designer, 5/17/14, Babson College (credit:http://www.babson.edu/)
Terry Gross(08 of17)
“I believe we’re shaped by our failures, by our weaknesses and setbacks, at least as much as we are by our successes. In many cases, those failures make ultimate success possible.”—Terry Gross, NPR producer and host, 5/17/14, Bryn Mawr College (credit:http://news.brynmawr.edu/)
Jennifer Lee(09 of17)
“If I learned one thing, it is that self-doubt is one of the most destructive forces. It makes you defensive instead of open, reactive instead of active. Self-doubt is consuming and cruel—and my hope today is that we can all collectively agree to ban it. Please know, from here on out, you are enough, and dare I say, more than enough.”—Jennifer Lee, writer/director of “Frozen,” 5/17/14, University of New Hampshire (credit:www.unh.edu)
Bill Nye(10 of17)
“Everyone you will ever meet knows something you don’t. Respect their knowledge and learn from them.”—Bill Nye, “The Science Guy,” 5/17/14, University of Massachusetts (credit:photos.lehighvalleylive.com)
Gwen Ifill(11 of17)
“Your job is to be lifted by our expectations for you, but not to be smothered by them.”—Gwen Ifill, PBS anchor, 5/17/14, St. Mary’s College (credit:www.smcm.edu)
Jimmy Page(12 of17)
“Music has so much power across so many avenues. To be in a position where you've done the thing that you're pretty much best at—which is making music, and bringing joy and pleasure to other people—it can't really be much better than that, can it? I pass that on to all of you.”—Jimmy Page, Led Zeppelin guitarist, 5/10/14, Berklee College of Music (credit:www.foxnews.com)
Madeleine Albright(13 of17)
“Our leaders are groping and grasping for ways to secure prosperity, progress, and peace in a world that is spinning so rapidly we are struggling to keep our footing. So we need smart, capable young people such as you to get things back on track, to help us make the most of the new reality we inhabit. Which is another way of saying: Class of 2014, you have important work to do.”—Madeleine Albright, former U.S. Secretary of State, 5/18/14, Dickinson College (credit:http://switchboard.nrdc.org/)
Katie Couric(14 of17)
“Changing the world doesn’t happen all at once. It isn’t a big bang. It’s an evolution, the sum of a billion tiny sparks. And some of those sparks will have to come from you.”—Katie Couric, television journalist, 5/18/14, Trinity College (credit:http://www.trincoll.edu/)
Jeff Bauman(15 of17)
“We are all running a marathon in one way or another. Today you are at the finish line of one race, but life is full of starting lines and heartbreak hills. You just have to keep running forward.”—Jeff Bauman, Boston Marathon bombing survivor, 5/10/14, Fisher College (credit:AP)
John Legend(16 of17)
“Soul is about authenticity. Soul is about finding the things in your life that are real and pure. The things that are at your core. The things you know you were put on this earth to do.”—John Legend, musician, 5/19/14, University of Pennsylvania (credit:huffingtonpost.com)
Michelle Obama(17 of17)
“So, graduates, this is your mission. This is your obligation. I want you to keep reaching higher. I want you all to keep raising your bars. Let the next generation know that there is no greater investment than a good education. And if you do all of this, I am confident that you will uphold that duty and write your own chapter into the legacy of this great university. And let me tell you something: I cannot wait to see the world that your children will be born into.”—Michelle Obama, First Lady of the United States, 5/16/14, Dillard University (credit:AP)