Advice from 2026 Commencement Speeches

Today’s Tuesday Reading is from Jim Bruce, Senior Fellow and Executive Coach at MOR Associates, and Professor of Electrical Engineering, Emeritus, and CIO, Emeritus, at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA. Jim may be reached at [email protected] or via LinkedIn.

Along with spring coming to an end and summer months beginning, May and June bring a wave of commencement exercises at the 5,760 or so colleges and universities across the United States.  This year, as in the recent past, some 3.4 million undergraduates plus a 1.1 million graduate students have earned degrees. Graduation ceremonies also feature one or more speakers who share their wisdom, hoping that the graduates may find their remarks helpful as they go forward in their respective careers.  What follows are a few nuggets of advice from commencement speeches that caught my attention, which I hope may be of value to you.

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Speaking at Harvard’s 375^th Commencement, he told graduates “your real education starts now, with friends you’ve made and friends you get to meet, with stunning successes and miserable defeats, and with a humble acceptance that your greatness comes from the mess around you, not despite it…” O’Brien continued, “Many people are happy to mistake the lucky poker hand for their own brilliance, and fighting that human instinct has kept me sane. I honestly believe that community, spontaneity, and a real commitment to humility have helped me build a rich life.”

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Speaking at Carnegie Mellon University, he began by reflecting on his journey as a first-generation immigrant, working hard and at age 30 starting NVIDIA with two colleagues. He spoke of the difficulties the company faced, learning from its failures and reinventing itself over and over and over again.   “It was through these experiences that we learned to never view failure as the opposite of success. Every failure is just a learning moment, a moment to remain humble, a moment to refine character.”  

Huang noted that the resilience forged through the setbacks was what gave him the strength to try again.   He believes that computing is now at the point of a complete reset –– artificial intelligence has reinvented computing. It has created uncertainty, leading to questions about job disappearance,  who is responsible, etc. Huang argues that, as with every major technological revolution in history, alongside that revolution is new opportunity.  It is the responsibility of scientists and engineers to advance AI capabilities and AI safety together.  Huang argued that policymakers have a responsibility to create thoughtful guardrails that protect society while still allowing innovation, discovery, and progress to move forward.

He postulated that AI will change every job, but not replace human purpose.  It will amplify human capability.  As he closed his remarks, he called the audience’s attention to CMU’s motto,  “My heart is in the work,” and urged the new graduates to build something worthy of their education, their potential, and the people who believed in them before the world did.

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Delivering the commencement address at Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science, Dr. Woodruff focused her remarks on three fundamental themes that are key not only to medicine but also to most other fields:

1. Opportunities exist. Take initiative, identify the need, and explore the opportunity that it creates.
2. Teams accelerate the pace of the work.  Identify the team that can work with you to accelerate your endeavor.
3. Maintain your direction as you work to solve what can sometimes seem intractable problems.

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In his remarks at the University of Texas commencement this spring, McCoy offered three pieces of advice to the graduating class:

1. Build your life on something that lasts, even if it takes longer.
2. Start with small things and stack wins each day.
3. Make the right choices, even when they are hard.

He observed that “What actually carried me forward in life wasn’t my gifts. It was my choices. We celebrate talent, and we should. But character is built in the decisions that nobody claps for.”

“You’re graduating… That is no small thing. What you’ve built here: your knowledge, your habits, your toughness, your fortitude, that’s your foundation and your playbook. What starts here doesn’t just stay here. It goes with you. Into every room, every relationship, every opportunity…Your gifts might open the door, but your choices will determine how far you go.”

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At MIT’s Commencement Su noted how “little by little, I went from a new grad student learning about the field…to someone doing original research and actually contributing something new to the field. And along the way, I started believing in myself. Not the confidence that I would always know the answer. But the confidence that even when I didn’t know the answer yet…I could figure it out.” Her advice to the graduates: “Run toward the hardest problems…Because the world does not just need people who know how to use powerful tools. It needs people who know what to use them for. People with a sense of purpose. Judgment. Courage. People who look at a hard problem and say: I know this is important, and we can figure this out.”

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At Vanderbilt University, Brooks spoke about what he has found in his search for the key to a happy life: a sense of meaning.  “In college, you’re largely concerned with how to do things and what you want to do after you finish college…but the truth of the matter is, there’s a more important question lurking, which is the ‘why’ of your life. Your mission, your purpose, your calling.”

Brooks offered this homework assignment for life: “Stop being managed. Be disciplined, stand up to the machine, and put your phones down for meaningful segments of your day…Ask the big questions that don’t have answers. Those are the human questions. That means conversations, without devices, about God, death and love. Give your heart away. Fall in love, the biggest risk of all. And seek transcendence in life through faith and service to others, especially those with whom you have nothing in common or who can’t give you anything in return.”

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In his speech at the University of North Carolina, strumming the “six strings of life”, he said: “When all six are in tune, the chords they make can stop a conversation cold, carry a broken person through the worst night of their life, or make a room full of strangers feel for three minutes like they’ve known each other forever. But if even one is off, the whole chord unravels. Not gradually, not politely.” He continued talking about the role of each string:

1. The Low E string. Faith, belief, centering. “The thickest string of all of them…people who tend to their faith in ordinary seasons do not come undone in extraordinary ones.”
2. The A String. Family. “Makes you feel like you’re not alone in a room.” If those close to you don’t call, you call, particularly when things are hard.
3. The D String. Partner or spouse. Find the heart of your life, the body and soul.
4. The G String: Balance your ambition and resilience, have resilience after failure.
5. The B String: Choosing your local community over digital life. Avoid “the temptation to perform for everyone and belong to no one.”
6. The High E: Retain what makes you unique. “There’s a sound only you can make. A voice that has never existed before you and will never exist again…The world does not need another cover song. It needs an original.”

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Taking Advice From Commencement Speeches

There are lots of lessons in the advice from commencement speeches. I’ve picked one that I am personally going to work on in the coming weeks. I would encourage you to do so as well.

I trust that you will have a wonderful summer. . . . . . . . . jim

Here are previous years’ reflections from Jim on commencement speeches.

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