11 Lessons for Graduates and You

It's that time of the year where high schools are preparing for graduation. Here at UCF, we host numerous graduation practices and ceremonies for high schools around the area. I thought it was only right that I would dedicate a blog post to not only our graduates but to anyone looking to be a better employee/staff member. These 11 Lessons come from The Seed by Jon Gordon.

1. You are here for a reason and the most important thing you can do in life is to find, live and share your purpose. It’s the one thing in life that truly matters and if you don’t pursue it, everything else is meaningless. 2. Follow your passion. It so often leads you to your purpose. You may not know what your passion is right now. That’s ok. The important thing is to make it your life mission to find it, live it and share it. To help find your passion, seek out jobs and experiences that allow you to use your strengths and gifts. Do what energizes you. 3. Beware of hobbies. Just because you love spending time on Facebook doesn't mean you would enjoy working for the company. And just because you love to cook doesn't mean you would enjoy owning a restaurant. For example, I owned restaurants but I realized I didn't love the food business. I loved the service and marketing aspect of the business. 4. Quit for the right reasons. Don't quit because work is hard or you're experiencing challenges. Quit because in your heart you know there is something else for you to do. Quit because you are not benefitting yourself or the organization you work for. Quit because you are absolutely certain you are no longer supposed to be there. 5. Learn from every job and experience. Every job, good or bad, prepares you for the work you were ultimately born to do. 6.Your current job may not be your ultimate purpose but it can serve as a vehicle to live and share your purpose. 7. Whatever job(s) you take after graduation simply decide to serve. When you serve in small ways you'll get more opportunities to serve in bigger ways. 8. Your dream job is likely not the one you dreamed about. So often we end up in amazing careers that have nothing to do with our college degree or childhood dreams. 9. The quest for your purpose is not a straight line. It is filled with mystery, signs, obstacles, victories, dead ends, delays and detours. Your job is to stay optimistic and faithful on your quest. 10. Don't rush the future. There is a process that seeds must go through in order to become all they are destined to become, and you must go through this same process to become the person you are meant to be and do the work you are meant to do. You may want things to happen NOW but more than likely if you got what you wanted NOW you wouldn't be ready for it. The purpose process prepares you, strengthens you, shapes you and grows you to be successful, not in your time, but in the right time. 11. Be the Seed. Seeds surrender themselves to the ground so they can be used for a greater purpose. Wherever you work, decide to plant yourself where you are and allow yourself to be used for a greater purpose. When you plant yourself and make a difference you grow into the person you were born to be and produce a harvest that will benefit others and change the world.

Striving To Be The Best: Roy Williams

When I was in third grade, my teacher, Mrs. Cheek, put up a list of the top 10 students in the first grading period. There were only 25 kids in the class, but my name was not on the list. She put it up on this little chalkboard right beside the regular blackboard and I had to go in there every day for six weeks and stare at it, and that really ticked me off.

After that, for the next five grading periods, my name was the first one on the list. To see my mother's reaction when I brought those report cards home was so important.

Whenever asks me how I came to be so competitive, I trace it directly back to that experience. I kept trying to be a good student for those two reasons: because I wanted my name on that board and because I thought it would make my mom happy. Not because I saw it taking me anywhere.


From "Hard Work: A Life On and Off the Court" by Roy Williams