Randy Pausch-isms on his views on life

A string of 61 brief chapters make up this fabulous, inspirational book advising on how life is best lived. It comes from the eyes, words, thoughts, and experiences of a very intelligent man who was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer at a time when, even though he’d lived a full and adventurous life, some would say his life was just beginning. Married less than a decade and with three children, the youngest not even two yet, this book began as a legacy to his kids; an effort to use his last days to impart a lifetime of wisdom that he knew he wouldn’t have the chance to do in person. Randy speaks as a parent but also talks a lot about his childhood and what great and inspiration parents he had. The book is actually a follow-up to a “last lecture” that he gave at Carnegie Mellon University before he retired from his career as a Computer Science college professor with a specialty in Virtual Reality in order to spend more time with his family. Bits of the last lecture and an interview have aired a couple times on Primetime. The entire lecture video is also available on the internet. The book is divided into six sections: The Last Lecture, Really Achieving Your Childhood Dreams, Adventures and Lessons Learned, Enabling the Dreams of Others, It’s About How to Live Your Life, Final Remarks. I saw the original Primetime special and felt like most of this book was a repeat from the clips of lecture highlights I had seen on TV. However, there were a few new gems. And this is the type of book that you want to keep around and re-read from time to time to refresh your memory because, unfortunately, we all don’t have as good a handle as Randy Pausch did at living our lives fully and well. I’ll hit some of the highlights for you and also share the always clever chapter titles: 1 – An Injured Lion Still Wants to Roar – one of the longest chapters talks about his decision to spend time putting together the last lecture instead of helping his family settle into their new home
2 – My Life in a Laptop – the day leading up to the last lecture
3 – The Elephant in the Room – at the lecture 4 – The Parent Lottery – how his parents influenced his childhood by inspiring him to learning. His dad also encouraged him to play fair and explained, “Just because you’re in the driver’s seat doesn’t mean you have to run people over.”
5 – The Elevator in the Ranch House – how Randy was able to decorate his room as a teenager
6 – Getting to Zero G – the events leading up to him getting a Zero G experience with NASA, how he almost missed it, and what he did to overcome the challenge of not missing it
7 – I Never Made It to the NFL – his experiences as a young child with a tough football coach demonstrate how to really give a child self-esteem (I had my teenager read this chapter)
8 – You’ll Find Me Under “V” – fulfilling a dream of writing an article for the World Book Encyclopedia
9 – A Skill Set Called Leadership – how even Capt. Kirk of Star Trek can be a role model for leadership
10 – Winning Big – a family tradition of winning large stuffed animals at theme parks
11 – The Happiest Place on Earth – how he persevered and got to work a Sabbatical at Disney 12 – The Park Is Open Until 8 P.M. – a lesson in looking at the positive side
13 – The Man in the Convertible
14 – The Dutch Uncle – how he was inspired by Andy van Dam who became his mentor
15 – Pouring Soda in the Backseat – tales of his role as an uncle and most importantly a reminder that people are more important than things
16 – Romancing the Brick Wall – the courtship of his wife, Jai, when Randy was already in his late 30s
17 – Not All Fairy Tales End Smoothly – a hair-raising hot air balloon ride
18 – Lucy, I’m Home – Randy’s low key reaction to two wrecked cars due to his parent’s teaching him that cars were utilitarian devices and not status symbols and his belief that you don’t repair things if they still do what they’re supposed to do
19 – A New Year’s Story – the stressful birth of their first child
20 – “In Fifty Years, It Never Came Up” – the humility of his father
21 – Jai – a look at the daily struggles in their relationship
22 – The Truth Can Set You Free 23 – I’m on My Honeymoon, But If You Need Me… - Time must be explicitly managed, like money
24 – A Recovering Jerk – peer to peer feedback
25 – Training a Jedi – a success story of one of his students
26 – They Just Blew Me Away – how he inspired a lot of students to increase their abilities
27 – The Promised Land – a piece of legacy he will leave behind 28 – Dream Big – where he was when man landed on the moon and his view of why it’s important
29 – Earnest Is Better Than Hip – how he respects eagle scouts, he has more respect for the earnest guy who does something that can last for generations and that hip people feel the need to parody
30 – Raising the White Flag – how he gave up fighting about what his mother calls him
31 – Let’s Make a Deal - an agreement he made with his mother and still keeps
32 – Don’t Complain, Just Work Harder
33 – Treat the Disease, Not the Symptom
34 – Don’t Obsess Over What People Think
35 – Start By Sitting Together – group dynamics
36 – Look for the Best in Everybody (the shortest chapter)
37 – Watch What They Do, Not What They Say – another short chapter about his baby daughter
38 – If at First You Don’t Succeed… - old wisdom
39 – Be the First Penguin – experience is what you get when you didn’t get what you wanted
40 – Get People’s Attention – keep it simple
41 – The Lost Art of Thank-You Notes – showing gratitude is a simple but powerful thing
42 – Loyalty Is a Two-Way Street
43 – The Friday Night Solution – don’t take shortcuts
44 – Show Gratitude
45 – Send Out Thin Mints – using Girl Scout cookies
46 – All You Have Is What You Bring With You – being well prepared
47 – A Bad Apology Is Worse Than No Apology
48 – Tell The Truth
49 – Get in Touch with Your Crayon Box
50 – The $100,000 Salt and Pepper Shaker – another look at Disney experience
51 – No Job Is Beneath You – a sense of entitlement is not a good thing
52 – Know Where You Are
53 – Never Give Up
54 – Be a Communitarian – being responsible
55 – All You Have to Do Is Ask
56 – Make a Decision: Tigger or Eeyore
57 – A Way to Understand Optimism
58 – The Input of Others 59 – Dreams for My Children
60 – Jai and Me – advice for a caregiver and his hopes for Jai’s future
61 – The Dreams Will Come to You