other postings by Wayne Dan Lewis Sr.:
http://thecovetedcommandment.blogspot.com/
http://thecovetedcommandment.blogspot.com/
Congratulations to the Graduating Class or 2013. I can’t say enough of how proud I am to be
apart of this tremendous achievement by those of you who have made outstanding
sacrifices and who, having gained this level of achievement, are ready to take
on the world. I’ll be brief as I ask you
to ponder a very important question.
That question is simply this:
What has your education prepared you to do, going forward? Before
you answer, let me be clear about what why I pose this seemingly trite
question.
The national unemployment rate, at last check was about 7.6%
here in the United States
This may not be a good time to bring this up, but, what did
your college career prepare you do? If
your answer is to get a job, I am going to out on a limb here and say that you
are wrong. In my experience, having
attended various colleges, and universities, one of the things that higher
education rarely do is prepare you for to get a job. I understand that that is what is often
discussed, and employers are the ones who often show up at career fairs, but I
believe that colleges and universities do a lot more than prepare us for jobs.
I commend you if today you are graduating and receiving a
Bachelor of Science Degree, but that does not entitle you to a job. I am proud of you if you are receiving a
Master’s Degree in Arts, but that does not entitle you to a job. I want to believe that somewhere there has
been a misinterpretation of what is supposed to happen from this point on in all
of our lives when graduating from an institution of higher education. I believe that on the way to building
empires, employers, entrepreneurs, and visionaries noticed the quality of
education that was going on throughout our various communities. These men and women of vision observed how
colleges and universities turned out successful and well-rounded citizens, as
well as educated graduates.
Where else could these luminaries find the best of what was
available from within many of our communities? They either planted them themselves, or
provided enough enticement for those who were preparing to step up into the
world, that the alternatives were very difficult to overlook. But there was a problem.
The problem in hiring new graduates became apparently worse
when it was determined that a job was easier to get than to build an empire, or
to create an industry. Getting a job,
has become the habit of many, it has become the ultimate intent of more
graduates, and thus, the industries and empires that once were the norm on
American soil, has become rare.
There are fewer Hoover’s that produced vacuum cleaners;
there are fewer GM’s and Chrysler’s, and of course Fords. There are fewer Ma Bell’s, and Oil Producing
companies. We may say that many of these
companies have moved overseas, and we maybe correct, but where are their
replacements? Who are those among you today, who will
say:
“I will build my clothing factory here, in the United States
“I will build my furniture company, right here in the United States ”, or,
“I will build my toy factory, right here in the United States
Wherever those companies can be, you can be too. You can change that, and you can begin
today.
You see, these great visionaries of these current and former
empires don’t need everyone who graduates from colleges or universities, they
only need a few. The number of you here
today are more than most companies need to employ. But you are prepared than just to be an
employee. You are extremely well
prepared for the best job that any employer could ever offer, but all of you
are not going to get employed. So, what
should you do? Should you panic?
Suggestion: You should just sit. You should just wait. You should just sit and wait. You should also send out 100’s and 100’s of
resumes, hoping that someone will hire you.
And, if no one calls you in the 1st six months after you get
your degrees, you can apply for another degree, at another university, or, on
line.
Or what you should do, if you are not among the newly hired
post graduates, is apply for low-paying jobs, until a better job comes
along. And perhaps, after 3 or 4 years
go by, that job that you thought you were the best for, well, it will probably
go towards someone else in next year’s graduating class, of 2014. Or, you can go for something else. Today!
You can go for the golden ring:
become the mogul that every college and university prepares you to
become.
I understand if you think that you are not mentally prepared
to begin a new industry. But I couldn’t disagree with you more. I understand that if you were only ready to
go out and start looking for a job. And
for some of you, you already have a job, so you are set for life, maybe. But there are those of you who are going to
go out literally and look for a job. You
are going go on every job board, internet site; you are going to tap into every
network; attend every job fair there is.
You are going to fire off resumes, set appointments, and get your rejection
letters. Not because you are not qualified; not because you aren’t a perfect
fit. But because, you are mogul
material. You are industry-building
material. But, if you are not careful, before
you know it, you’ll move right back into your parent’s homes, or just change
your direction and try to regroup, thinking that there are no jobs for
you. And you know what? You are right! There are no jobs for you, because you are not
meant to be the employee, who only fills the 9-5, office-cube oriented, paper
pushing role that many employers set up for newly graduated professionals. You
are meant to sign the checks, not just receive them weekly, or every two weeks. You are meant to be the big Kahuna, the Big
Cheese, the man/woman in charge. You
have the education, you have the talent, and, you have what it takes.
Many of you, who have jobs, you too will be challenged on
your new jobs. You will be pressed for
your great ideas in order to make sure that your employer becomes
successful. But what about you? What about your success? What about your
ideas, to make you successful? Is that all
that your education has done? Has it
only prepared you for someone else’s job?
Has not your education prepared you to work from sun up to sun down, even
if you have to work harder, for less pay, because that is the risk you are
willing to take, to build your own empire?
Don’t be upset if you find that the offer of money is good,
or even great. It is supposed to be good, it’s supposed to be great. Why do you think that is? It is supposed to keep you from building the
next competitive empire to the very employer who knows a good leader when he or
she sees one.
Don’t be upset with yourself if you find that you feel an
urge to open your own business, to employ your own people, to sell your own
product, to acquire your own customers.
Don’t be upset with yourself when you find out that making less money is
no big deal when it compares to running your own business. Why should you be upset? You shouldn’t. Because that’s what you were
educated to do. I don’t want you to turn
on any employers, but weigh out very strongly, that you may be the next Henry
Ford (Ford Motors), Oprah Winfrey (OWN); Bill Gates, Steve Jobs (Apple
Computers), Conrad Hilton (Hilton Hotels), Harland Sanders (Kentucky Fried
Chicken); or anyone else who has decided that their education was one of the
best things to ever happened to them, and that because of their education, they
were meant to open their own doors, and harvest from the very universities that
has prepared them, to be the great leaders that they are.
You are encouraged however, to seek the proper advice from
your respective consultants, financial advisors, or entrepreneurial advisors, or
CPA’s before investing in any activity, as your results may vary. But, if I am right, as I hardly am, according
to my wife, I believe that your education as of today, makes you mogul
material. If I am right, as I believe I
could be, my wife notwithstanding, I believe that each of you are following a
pattern of behavior that will either hold you back, or delay you, or forever
keep you from achieving your greatest ability-to open your own business, if all
that you do is pursue a job. Your
challenge, should you decide to accept it, is to build your own empire. That is what you have been prepared to do: to
be your own boss, to create jobs, and to ensure that there is another industry
on the horizon that causes stocks to rise on the stock markets; to create an
industry that is shaped by the wisdom of an open-minded Board of Directors, who
don’t tie your hands, but helps you to launch the greatest business plan ever.
So today, as you receive your degrees, know that if you are
only applying for jobs, you maybe short-changing yourselves. Take this coveted document, your degree, and
use it the way it was truly intended, to build your empire, to be the big
cheese, to run your own company, to be the Industry leader that you are very
well capable of being. Whether your dream is to build a technical empire, you
can do it. If your dream is to build an
automotive empire, you can do it. If
your dreams include medical, transportation, defense, or retail, you are just
as capable of being the CEO as you are the employee. Your education, has prepared you. For you not to put this education to its
fullest and best use, will make your education less than valuable. It will always be up to you to decide whether to settle for a job, or to pursue the
greats heights of being tomorrow’s next multi-millionaire mogul. I know you will choose wisely. Congratulations to all of you, the Graduating
Class of 2013. I wish you all the very
best that life has to offer, may you always be the great leaders that you are.
