when I was a boy my grandma taught me
about Albert Einstein and ever since
ever since when I was a boy my grandma
taught me about Albert Einstein areas
and ever since I’ve been searching for
that singular momentous path that would
unlock my ability to change the world I
wanted to feel that my life influenced
and touched others that it really
mattered I wanted to make a difference I
wanted to leave a legacy my quest for
this personal path to a fulfilling life
consumed my thoughts I thought about it
after school and mr. Mahoney’s physics
lab with names like Stephen Hawking
and Marie Curie drifting through my mind
I thought about it before soccer
practice practicing coach Browns cutback
move with the names of legends like Pele
Ronaldo and Messi drifting through my
mind I thought about rosalind Franklin
and Hippocrates my grandma got sick I
thought about Charlie Parker and John
Coltrane when I practice my saxophone
and even Sherlock Holmes as I lay awake
all night thinking surely that next
mystery would be the one that I’d
finally solved I was consumed and
stressed at the panoply of options I’ve
always had many interests but down which
particular path lay my greatest
potential for impact has anyone else
thought about this anyone else want to
use their life to make a difference in
the world who wants to leave a legacy
how many of us would say we’ve already
succeeded in doing that well okay good
news today right now I’m gonna tell you
the secret the secret to influencing
others to impacting the world to leaving
your legacy is to find something you
already love to do and become a
cheerleader become a cheerleader yes I’m
serious
being passionate about an activity or
interest is an underutilized way to
invest in humanity and too often the
role of cheerleader is dismissed as mere
sideshow as a
opposed to the vital lifeblood of
achievement that it is less obviously
impactful than the work of an emergency
room doctor or Rescue Diver we routinely
overlook the rich ways that cheering
others not only improves our own
happiness but unlocks the ability to
give others happiness when I think about
my own life who’s impacted it the most
who has left an indelible impact on me
for me it’s not the magnificently
accomplished and admirable Stephen
Hawking it’s Jim Mahoney who stayed
after school and his physics lab showing
me how to launch little balls from our
plastic cannons all the way across the
classroom towards our targets carefully
calculated precisely placed positions
while I marveled at how a few
measurements and a bunch of equations
were all that were needed buoyed by mr.
Mahoney’s cheers physics has become a
central theme in my life narrative and
has taken me many places it was a
subject of my admissions essay to
Harvard it led me to live in Cape Town
South Africa for six months studying
statistical thermodynamics and
computational programming it led to late
nights as an analyst at MIT as I tweaked
our plans for a Europe based missile
shield it led to me sweating in front of
an admiral as I nervously briefed him on
our recommended path to a joint defense
architecture between the United States
and our allies in East Asia it brought
me to lecture naval graduate students in
America and right here to this campus
the American University of Kuwait where
we talked about rocket science
I actually saw Yusef during the break hi
Yusef mr. Mahoney was merely sharing his
passion for Applied Physics with me but
my life would not be the same without
mr. Mahoney or those many after-school
sessions when I literally was launching
projectiles across this classroom mr.
Mahoney is a cheerleader through physics
for me it’s not the insanely talented
and hardworking Leo Messi who’s touched
my life although I’ve probably watched
every compilation of his on YouTube
it’s coach Brown there he is in the back
in blue
coach Browns get
before 5:00 a.m. newspaper delivery job
never stopped him from coaching
practices during the week and running up
and down the sidelines on Sundays
barking at his son barking at me barking
at my teammates barking at some of the
parents do
in fact coach Brown barked on the
sidelines of many soccer teams a number
of which included no children of his own
it was less important to coach Brown his
kids were not on the team but that there
was no one else willing or able to bark
on Sundays well I’ll tell you I never
cared about the tone of his voice only
the tone of his heart throughout my life
and on five continents I have found easy
friends through soccer emboldened by
coach Browns cutback move the circle of
my best friends and the rhythm of my
weeks has been forever altered as I
incorporated coach Browns passion into
my own at times living in Cape Town and
right here in Kuwait my participation as
the only Westerner in pickup games and
tourneys grew beyond amusing novelty
into meaningful friendships that
otherwise might have been difficult to
forge given cultural differences and
language barriers yes coach Brown was
merely teaching me the techniques of a
sport that he loved but my life would
not be the same without Coach Brown or
his exasperated whistle coach Brown is a
cheerleader who barks being passionate
about an interest or an activity is an
underutilized way to contribute to the
world these high-impact people are all
around us when we choose to share our
passion we unlock access to others and
the power to share happiness typically
all that’s needed is a little creativity
and we’ve been fortunate to get some
lessons in that this morning in my life
some of the best most creative examples
of cheerleading have come from my own
family people of whom you’ve never heard
but who have made all the difference in
my life and the lives of many others
perhaps the single biggest hurdle that
people perceive to being an effective
cheerleader is the need for a soothing
voice paused equanimity and gentle
reassuring compliments
nice job well my younger sister Melissa
has the absolutely biggest mouth of
anyone I have ever met honestly I’m 34
years old and I’m still mildly afraid of
Melissa she excels at speaking loudly
telling me what to do and fixing my
mistakes throughout our childhood she
also found occasion to embarrass me on
the front lawn with our family 17 soccer
balls you’re probably getting the idea
that soccer is pretty big in my family a
few years ago she exited the soon-to-be
closed public school in New York City
where she taught and she happened upon
three students none of them her own that
were passing a deflated soccer ball on
the sidewalk often having to pause as
pedestrians walk through their area no
this is no proper way to play soccer six
months later the school had its first
ever soccer team sporting a roster of
children from immigrant families who had
few friends no community of peers lack
of self-identity no money for equipment
and dangerously for kids in that
neighborhood nowhere to be after-school
well turns out having a big mouth a plan
of attack in 17 soccer balls are
actually all that’s needed to be an
effective soccer coach the neighborhood
was so dangerous that the students had
to walk my sister to her car after
practice there was no money for buses to
games nor for uniforms until the end of
the season but those kids were happy
what mattered wasn’t their skill level
though my sister would point out there’s
a trophy in the picture what mattered
was their happiness their friendships
their self-actualization and the sense
of belonging that Melissa was able to
elicit simply by sharing her passion
melissa is a cheerleader who coaches my
littlest sister amy has always perturbed
me with her persnickety precision her
propensity to command group gatherings
and her ability to get other people
almost invariably me to clean up her
messes any idea what she does with that
skill set no no she’s not a hitman for
the mob
she bakes amy loves to bake she will
scour sources online and in person to
create customized menus that are truly
edible works of art
well let me let you in on a little
secret just like it took a listen many
attempts to pull off a new move on the
front lawn with her soccer ball it takes
many batches to make a perfect chocolate
biscuit cake or a divine cheesecake or a
scrumptious passion fruit mousse as
delicious and decadent as these pastries
are there’s only so much room in one
family’s refrigerator so Amy started
filling other people’s refrigerators she
found birthday wishes it’s an
organization that those birthday parties
for kids and homeless shelters so that
they – just like their peers in school
can feel cheered and celebrated on their
special day
Amy’s pastries transform a day on the
calendar into a true birthday
celebration centered on those who might
otherwise miss out on a foundational
aspect of being a kid how do they do
this what was Melissa’s playbook what
was Amy’s recipe what was mr. Mahoney’s
formula they decided to rise up first
and foremost they reached out to affect
others to affect others you must summon
the courage to look outside yourself
that’s where everyone else is when they
looked out they saw an opportunity to
improve a situation to improve a
situation means to make a positive
difference
they focused the spotlight on others to
properly cheer you must make him the
hero and her the heroine in the end
their success lay in energizing others
if you can generate enthusiasm you will
have succeeded they and you will unlock
access to others with your passion you
will also unlock unlock access to a part
of your heart that you cannot enjoy by
yourself and it requires surprisingly
few resources to rise up Melissa saw
three students passing a deflated soccer
ball she reached out by going home
printing flyers and Scotch taping them
to the hallways of her school that’s it
Amy excuse me Amy pulled out her phone
and googled additional possible
destinations for her pastries for her
surplus pastry
she stumbled upon a way to transform and
to improve a monthly gathering and to a
true birthday celebration
my dad reads the paper he has worked 60
plus hour weeks for three decades as a
dry cleaner in New York and he noticed
something as he read about the downturn
of the economy at various points over
the last thirty years his business
declined a little as as times got tough
and families lost jobs my dad saw an
opportunity to focus the spotlight on
his customers in fact a regular customer
or not anyone who walks into Concord
cleaners in East Islip New York on the
precipice of a job interview gets his or
her dry-cleaning done for free there are
few activities in one’s life that
dominate the weekly focus of one’s life
or are as cumulative ly impactful over
the course of entire lifetime as one’s
job my dad found a way to turn a niche
passion for chemistry into servings of
confidence comfort and professionalism
that he happily doles out to those
preparing to change their lives my dad
is a cheerleader who dry-cleans now mr.
Mahoney may have taught me about
projectiles and explosions but my mom
has always been a firework show in case
it’s unclear she’s she’s in the middle
in this picture she’d be happy I said
that she throws and innovates creative
events that are truly blockbusters
learned to salsa night senior citizen
prom a day at the carnival built by
students and the list goes on and on and
on a few years ago the local food pantry
was running dangerously low on supplies
for the needed for the needy they didn’t
call the town supervisor they didn’t
call the town board and they didn’t call
the high school they called my mom and
that’s because they just like everyone
else
can recognize and appreciate the awesome
power of people that can positively
energize others impressively almost all
the events that she run
are are put on and run almost
exclusively by teenagers but the real
magic isn’t taking a step back and
realizing that for all these events
there is one segment of the community
that is serving and featuring another
segment of the community my mom’s job
title is teacher but her true calling is
Community Builder
she is a cheer coach whose passion is
teaching other people how to be
effective cheerleaders in every
conceivable way I have lived a charmed
life I come from a loving supportive
family in which my sisters and my
parents are my role models and I was
blessed to marry another one along the
way I’ve had fantastic cheerleaders mr.
Mahoney
coach Brown and dozens of others that I
wish I had the proper amount of time to
acknowledge here the truth I found is
that the opportunity to leave your
impact lies down every Road it could be
physics it could be baking it could be
event planning
it could be coaching it could be barking
the potential to impact the world lies
down any path you have access to that
path we are fortunate to be in the same
room today with speakers and
administrators who can help us on our
quest to leave our imprint on the world
superstars like Duncan wardo who teach
us about the ingredients of creativity
inspirations like ng Ibrahim who fanned
the flames of our passion her talks
coming up next not a good time to go to
the bathroom don’t miss it
one-woman cheer squads like Danna ELISA
who challenged me to get up on stage
today and reinforced my confidence when
I’d added my message
armed with creativity some inspiration
and a little bit of cheering you have
the power to change the world
everyone is uniquely qualified for a
specialty cheerleading role the trick is
just finding out and deciding where to
focus your energies I invite you all
rise up now is your chance to make a
difference
go leave your legacy on the world and
when it gets hard
remember a
right here cheering you on thank you so much for listening
about Albert Einstein and ever since
ever since when I was a boy my grandma
taught me about Albert Einstein areas
and ever since I’ve been searching for
that singular momentous path that would
unlock my ability to change the world I
wanted to feel that my life influenced
and touched others that it really
mattered I wanted to make a difference I
wanted to leave a legacy my quest for
this personal path to a fulfilling life
consumed my thoughts I thought about it
after school and mr. Mahoney’s physics
lab with names like Stephen Hawking
and Marie Curie drifting through my mind
I thought about it before soccer
practice practicing coach Browns cutback
move with the names of legends like Pele
Ronaldo and Messi drifting through my
mind I thought about rosalind Franklin
and Hippocrates my grandma got sick I
thought about Charlie Parker and John
Coltrane when I practice my saxophone
and even Sherlock Holmes as I lay awake
all night thinking surely that next
mystery would be the one that I’d
finally solved I was consumed and
stressed at the panoply of options I’ve
always had many interests but down which
particular path lay my greatest
potential for impact has anyone else
thought about this anyone else want to
use their life to make a difference in
the world who wants to leave a legacy
how many of us would say we’ve already
succeeded in doing that well okay good
news today right now I’m gonna tell you
the secret the secret to influencing
others to impacting the world to leaving
your legacy is to find something you
already love to do and become a
cheerleader become a cheerleader yes I’m
serious
being passionate about an activity or
interest is an underutilized way to
invest in humanity and too often the
role of cheerleader is dismissed as mere
sideshow as a
opposed to the vital lifeblood of
achievement that it is less obviously
impactful than the work of an emergency
room doctor or Rescue Diver we routinely
overlook the rich ways that cheering
others not only improves our own
happiness but unlocks the ability to
give others happiness when I think about
my own life who’s impacted it the most
who has left an indelible impact on me
for me it’s not the magnificently
accomplished and admirable Stephen
Hawking it’s Jim Mahoney who stayed
after school and his physics lab showing
me how to launch little balls from our
plastic cannons all the way across the
classroom towards our targets carefully
calculated precisely placed positions
while I marveled at how a few
measurements and a bunch of equations
were all that were needed buoyed by mr.
Mahoney’s cheers physics has become a
central theme in my life narrative and
has taken me many places it was a
subject of my admissions essay to
Harvard it led me to live in Cape Town
South Africa for six months studying
statistical thermodynamics and
computational programming it led to late
nights as an analyst at MIT as I tweaked
our plans for a Europe based missile
shield it led to me sweating in front of
an admiral as I nervously briefed him on
our recommended path to a joint defense
architecture between the United States
and our allies in East Asia it brought
me to lecture naval graduate students in
America and right here to this campus
the American University of Kuwait where
we talked about rocket science
I actually saw Yusef during the break hi
Yusef mr. Mahoney was merely sharing his
passion for Applied Physics with me but
my life would not be the same without
mr. Mahoney or those many after-school
sessions when I literally was launching
projectiles across this classroom mr.
Mahoney is a cheerleader through physics
for me it’s not the insanely talented
and hardworking Leo Messi who’s touched
my life although I’ve probably watched
every compilation of his on YouTube
it’s coach Brown there he is in the back
in blue
coach Browns get
before 5:00 a.m. newspaper delivery job
never stopped him from coaching
practices during the week and running up
and down the sidelines on Sundays
barking at his son barking at me barking
at my teammates barking at some of the
parents do
in fact coach Brown barked on the
sidelines of many soccer teams a number
of which included no children of his own
it was less important to coach Brown his
kids were not on the team but that there
was no one else willing or able to bark
on Sundays well I’ll tell you I never
cared about the tone of his voice only
the tone of his heart throughout my life
and on five continents I have found easy
friends through soccer emboldened by
coach Browns cutback move the circle of
my best friends and the rhythm of my
weeks has been forever altered as I
incorporated coach Browns passion into
my own at times living in Cape Town and
right here in Kuwait my participation as
the only Westerner in pickup games and
tourneys grew beyond amusing novelty
into meaningful friendships that
otherwise might have been difficult to
forge given cultural differences and
language barriers yes coach Brown was
merely teaching me the techniques of a
sport that he loved but my life would
not be the same without Coach Brown or
his exasperated whistle coach Brown is a
cheerleader who barks being passionate
about an interest or an activity is an
underutilized way to contribute to the
world these high-impact people are all
around us when we choose to share our
passion we unlock access to others and
the power to share happiness typically
all that’s needed is a little creativity
and we’ve been fortunate to get some
lessons in that this morning in my life
some of the best most creative examples
of cheerleading have come from my own
family people of whom you’ve never heard
but who have made all the difference in
my life and the lives of many others
perhaps the single biggest hurdle that
people perceive to being an effective
cheerleader is the need for a soothing
voice paused equanimity and gentle
reassuring compliments
nice job well my younger sister Melissa
has the absolutely biggest mouth of
anyone I have ever met honestly I’m 34
years old and I’m still mildly afraid of
Melissa she excels at speaking loudly
telling me what to do and fixing my
mistakes throughout our childhood she
also found occasion to embarrass me on
the front lawn with our family 17 soccer
balls you’re probably getting the idea
that soccer is pretty big in my family a
few years ago she exited the soon-to-be
closed public school in New York City
where she taught and she happened upon
three students none of them her own that
were passing a deflated soccer ball on
the sidewalk often having to pause as
pedestrians walk through their area no
this is no proper way to play soccer six
months later the school had its first
ever soccer team sporting a roster of
children from immigrant families who had
few friends no community of peers lack
of self-identity no money for equipment
and dangerously for kids in that
neighborhood nowhere to be after-school
well turns out having a big mouth a plan
of attack in 17 soccer balls are
actually all that’s needed to be an
effective soccer coach the neighborhood
was so dangerous that the students had
to walk my sister to her car after
practice there was no money for buses to
games nor for uniforms until the end of
the season but those kids were happy
what mattered wasn’t their skill level
though my sister would point out there’s
a trophy in the picture what mattered
was their happiness their friendships
their self-actualization and the sense
of belonging that Melissa was able to
elicit simply by sharing her passion
melissa is a cheerleader who coaches my
littlest sister amy has always perturbed
me with her persnickety precision her
propensity to command group gatherings
and her ability to get other people
almost invariably me to clean up her
messes any idea what she does with that
skill set no no she’s not a hitman for
the mob
she bakes amy loves to bake she will
scour sources online and in person to
create customized menus that are truly
edible works of art
well let me let you in on a little
secret just like it took a listen many
attempts to pull off a new move on the
front lawn with her soccer ball it takes
many batches to make a perfect chocolate
biscuit cake or a divine cheesecake or a
scrumptious passion fruit mousse as
delicious and decadent as these pastries
are there’s only so much room in one
family’s refrigerator so Amy started
filling other people’s refrigerators she
found birthday wishes it’s an
organization that those birthday parties
for kids and homeless shelters so that
they – just like their peers in school
can feel cheered and celebrated on their
special day
Amy’s pastries transform a day on the
calendar into a true birthday
celebration centered on those who might
otherwise miss out on a foundational
aspect of being a kid how do they do
this what was Melissa’s playbook what
was Amy’s recipe what was mr. Mahoney’s
formula they decided to rise up first
and foremost they reached out to affect
others to affect others you must summon
the courage to look outside yourself
that’s where everyone else is when they
looked out they saw an opportunity to
improve a situation to improve a
situation means to make a positive
difference
they focused the spotlight on others to
properly cheer you must make him the
hero and her the heroine in the end
their success lay in energizing others
if you can generate enthusiasm you will
have succeeded they and you will unlock
access to others with your passion you
will also unlock unlock access to a part
of your heart that you cannot enjoy by
yourself and it requires surprisingly
few resources to rise up Melissa saw
three students passing a deflated soccer
ball she reached out by going home
printing flyers and Scotch taping them
to the hallways of her school that’s it
Amy excuse me Amy pulled out her phone
and googled additional possible
destinations for her pastries for her
surplus pastry
she stumbled upon a way to transform and
to improve a monthly gathering and to a
true birthday celebration
my dad reads the paper he has worked 60
plus hour weeks for three decades as a
dry cleaner in New York and he noticed
something as he read about the downturn
of the economy at various points over
the last thirty years his business
declined a little as as times got tough
and families lost jobs my dad saw an
opportunity to focus the spotlight on
his customers in fact a regular customer
or not anyone who walks into Concord
cleaners in East Islip New York on the
precipice of a job interview gets his or
her dry-cleaning done for free there are
few activities in one’s life that
dominate the weekly focus of one’s life
or are as cumulative ly impactful over
the course of entire lifetime as one’s
job my dad found a way to turn a niche
passion for chemistry into servings of
confidence comfort and professionalism
that he happily doles out to those
preparing to change their lives my dad
is a cheerleader who dry-cleans now mr.
Mahoney may have taught me about
projectiles and explosions but my mom
has always been a firework show in case
it’s unclear she’s she’s in the middle
in this picture she’d be happy I said
that she throws and innovates creative
events that are truly blockbusters
learned to salsa night senior citizen
prom a day at the carnival built by
students and the list goes on and on and
on a few years ago the local food pantry
was running dangerously low on supplies
for the needed for the needy they didn’t
call the town supervisor they didn’t
call the town board and they didn’t call
the high school they called my mom and
that’s because they just like everyone
else
can recognize and appreciate the awesome
power of people that can positively
energize others impressively almost all
the events that she run
are are put on and run almost
exclusively by teenagers but the real
magic isn’t taking a step back and
realizing that for all these events
there is one segment of the community
that is serving and featuring another
segment of the community my mom’s job
title is teacher but her true calling is
Community Builder
she is a cheer coach whose passion is
teaching other people how to be
effective cheerleaders in every
conceivable way I have lived a charmed
life I come from a loving supportive
family in which my sisters and my
parents are my role models and I was
blessed to marry another one along the
way I’ve had fantastic cheerleaders mr.
Mahoney
coach Brown and dozens of others that I
wish I had the proper amount of time to
acknowledge here the truth I found is
that the opportunity to leave your
impact lies down every Road it could be
physics it could be baking it could be
event planning
it could be coaching it could be barking
the potential to impact the world lies
down any path you have access to that
path we are fortunate to be in the same
room today with speakers and
administrators who can help us on our
quest to leave our imprint on the world
superstars like Duncan wardo who teach
us about the ingredients of creativity
inspirations like ng Ibrahim who fanned
the flames of our passion her talks
coming up next not a good time to go to
the bathroom don’t miss it
one-woman cheer squads like Danna ELISA
who challenged me to get up on stage
today and reinforced my confidence when
I’d added my message
armed with creativity some inspiration
and a little bit of cheering you have
the power to change the world
everyone is uniquely qualified for a
specialty cheerleading role the trick is
just finding out and deciding where to
focus your energies I invite you all
rise up now is your chance to make a
difference
go leave your legacy on the world and
when it gets hard
remember a
right here cheering you on thank you so much for listening
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