all right and in fact i’ll be talking to
you about defaulting TS to change the
world now since you guys have all been
in this room and you go to this fabulous
school these signs here are probably not
a surprise to you they’re probably not
new right we can change the world you’re
never too young to change the world be
the change they want to see in the world
how many of you believe it I want to see
a show of hands who here wants to change
the world yeah powerful who here
believes you can change the world yeah
who here knows how to do it there we go
hey now talk to this one i’m going to
show you we don’t have all the answers
but there are some things that I’ve
learned in my experiences that give us
that can give you some insights into
where to start and to how to try and
truthfully how to start tomorrow because
you have to because the world needs you
too I’m going to do this through three
stories personal ones that I want to
share with you the first happened three
weeks ago I was on a flight between San
Diego and Atlanta and I am walking over
to the kiosk and I see a young man sadly
walking back up the on-ramp he’s got a
giant poster beautiful painting actually
framed and he’s walking back up and
there’s two men at the kiosks are sort
of looking at him like why did you think
that you could bring this on this plane
and he’s walking over sort of defeated
saying my mother i bought this for my
mother i spent two hundred dollars on
this for my mother and they say there’s
nothing we can do for you and they talk
and I just sort of i’m walking by but
kind of you feel that energy sort of
feel this is something going on here I
don’t like it I don’t like
these people are treating this man is it
really that big of a deal to help him
and so I’m walking down the on ramp and
I see a woman kind of at the end right
for the plane and she scoffs and so I
look over my shoulder and I see that
she’s scoffing at this young man coming
back down the on ramp with a poster and
I think to myself what can I do these
people are mistreating this boy this man
who just wants to bring a poster home to
his mother what can I do in this
situation that FDA rules will allow and
I I think to myself I don’t know but I’m
gonna try something so I paused to the
woman i grazed her arm and I smile at
her and I say I’m gonna stand here and
watch how you treat this child and I’m
not going to buy another ticket to delta
depending on how you interact with this
kid I’m gonna watch she was kind of mad
actually she stood there saying this has
nothing to do with you why are you
standing here it says me this is about
me in this child and I say this is
everything to do with me this is
everything to do with all of us because
this is how you treat people in the
world and is it really that big of a
deal to do something extra to help this
child so I bring up this story because I
think it’s important as a step one to
changing the world you need to hear the
needs of others you need to listen
deeply and even when you don’t know what
to do you need to offer what you can I
wasn’t sure what to do in the moment but
I tried something and you know what as I
walked off the plane that child waited
for me after a six-hour flight three or
four in the morning we’re getting off
the flight and he’s standing there at
the end of the on ramp and he said thank
you he said that meant a lot to me to
know that there was an ally I wasn’t
alone so even though we didn’t win the
battle that day he didn’t feel alone in
a moment I did something and I think
it’s really important to do something to
help
to make them feel less alone my second
story is about Kenya when I was 18 I I
went to Kenya I went to again yet to do
a job I wanted to work for a non-profit
they’re called the mati Babu foundation
and when I went there I was supposed to
work in a youth center and what ended up
happening was very interesting i sat
down i had a 10 hour conversation with
the executive director and we talked
about change we talked about social
change what drives it what is it what’s
happened in history in America and
Africa and in that dialogue we up ended
all of the rules I was supposed to come
to do this job and now we had an even
better idea with my skill sets I could
help them launch a Youth Soccer League a
coed Youth Soccer League because that
was what was needed in that moment and I
didn’t know how to do it like I just I
don’t know I don’t know how to do that I
don’t know how to raise money I don’t
know how to align youth leaders from
rural Kenya to get them to align to in a
youth soccer league for kids I didn’t
know how to do it but we decided that I
could try and that’s what I would do
with my time this was the important rule
that came from this when you act with
passion people will stand up to help you
they will say yes to you and I think
that this is the most important thing
that you can take from this talk is that
the world wants to help you I know that
sounds crazy but let me tell you a story
I’m sitting in a restaurant in nairobi
in the middle of the world cup and there
are soccer balls all around this
restaurant because it’s sort of
celebratory of the world cup and I have
that heart rate comes up again comes up
again oh my god I have to do something
this feels uncomfortable and so I ask
someone if I can talk to the owner of
the restaurant and they say yes and they
found him and he sat down with me and I
said I am trying to do something that I
don’t know how to do I’m trying to start
a youth soccer league and I need soccer
balls and you have soccer balls can you
help me get these soccer balls to the
kids that need them and you get ya and
you said I will do you one better I have
a
a factory I have tons of soccer balls in
two weeks I will have them pumped up and
sent out to you in rural again and he
did that he did that when you are
passionate about what you are trying to
do people will stand up to help you it’s
very important to know that that you
don’t have to have all the answers you
do not know how to do that deep that
deep idea that you have in your soul and
your heart that thing you really want to
do that thing you care about you don’t
have to have all the answers but you
can’t ask for help and when you do it’ll
take you a step further down that path
third story some are collaborative so I
came here I moved from Manhattan about
six years ago to help launch a region
for Teach for America as I was doing
that community centers which I know you
guys had a breakout many of you were
talking about community centers
community centers were reaching out and
asking for teachers that’s not what
Teach for America typically does TFA
places teachers and schools not
community centers but we did try
something I couldn’t offer them teachers
in and out of school environment and in
the after school setting but I was able
to get a grant again I didn’t know how
to do this but I asked I ask Barclays
for some funding to be able to pay
teachers to work in community centers
and so what happened five years later is
an entire organization with over 50
teachers working in community centers 30
top high school kids a year a new
curriculum a new data system all across
all community centers what started with
one step out of the ordinary is now an
entire organization and I want to show
you the thing that I learned from that
was this concept of root cause analysis
so one of the things you need to know is
that you will not know the answer to the
problems that you identify you will not
but you can define the problem and
that’s the greatest power you have so
for an example when I started placing
students sorry teachers and community
centers they came to my office and they
were completely baffled they were
baffled by the state of community
centers the the rapid decline of
resources that were there and what they
said was we don’t know how to do this
there’s no behavior systems why is there
not a behavior system well I don’t know
they seem to have one but there’s no
training why
there no training why don’t know maybe
that’s something we could do yeah and
three weeks later I’m walking through
these different community centers and
all of the counselors at the walnut
street ymca were trained on positive
behavior narration all of our kids were
criss-cross applesauce listening to
counselors speaking positively about the
behaviors they needed to demonstrate
change is possible when you identify the
problem you figure out why that problem
exists and then you identify something
you can do about it because I promise
you to each and every person in this
room there is something you can do about
the things you care about today and
right now so in closing what does it all
mean what is three minutes at Delta
three months in Kenya and three years
building the collaborative me mean for
change mean to raise the hands up in
this room about how it is to actually
build towards change in the world find
your passion I know this sounds cliche
but it’s so important there is something
unique inside of you believe it there is
something in you that you are meant to
do that’s your passion listen to
yourself and fight to figure out what it
is because once you do people will say
yes to you once you find your passion
maybe it’s a big big bold problem in the
world maybe you think the education
system is a problem maybe you think your
sports team isn’t running effectively
enough find a problem that you care
about and figure out the root cause
what’s something I can do today and then
do it and ask for help because I promise
you when you ask your teacher for help
or you ask your school leader for help
or you ask your superintendent for help
especially coming from you your voice
your voice says youth it really matters
and people will listen and they will
stand up to help you try learn and try
again as I said in each of these
instances I didn’t know what to do the
folks who you’ve heard from today didn’t
know what to do but they had to try
something some little thing once you
identify the root cause you identify a
solution try start there learn from the
failure try again learn try learn try
that’s how it’s done start now because
you cannot wait until you’re in high
school or college or in your career to
do this you have to start
now because then you’ll have developed
the skill sets to light the world on
fire to really bring your ideas in your
vision into the world and so I challenge
you what headline do you want to make
for today you are here nearly a hundred
of you who care who care about change in
the world what is it that you’re going
to do together what is the change that
you’re going to be here a year from now
speaking about because you can make a
difference I know you can take that
seriously thank you
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