Carnegie Mellon University holds a lecture series where lecturers address the students as if it was their last lecture they would be delivering. One lecturer, Randy Pausch, did not have to imagine this scenario as he had been diagnosed with terminal pancreatic cancer. Randy gave a lecture called “Really achieving your childhood dreams.” Millions of people have watched this lecture online, where he tells the audience how he has lived his childhood dreams and, what he thinks of as more important, enabling the dreams of others.

The strength of character, powerful attitude and sparkle in the eye of Randy will bring you a smile and a tear to your eye simultaneously. Since delivering this lecture Randy’s book “The Last Lecture” was released and is a bestseller, currently impossible to get a copy of.

Of these gifts given to the world by Pausch, Wired Magazine said, “No matter how long Pausch’s attitude and treatment keeps the cancer at bay, the gift he has given his kids and the world through these works and the dreams and projects they inspire will long out last the lifetime of any man (and probably his article on virtual reality in The World Book Encyclopedia too).”

You can watch the full last lecture from Randy Pausch Here

On a similar note, I heard a radio show last week where they were calling to listeners to write a letter to your 16 year old self. The letters I heard that were written by the show hosts were moving about what advice you would give yourself, learnings, what does matter and what doesn’t. What Randy’s lecture makes you think about is the right now. I know this is quite existential for a Saturday afternoon, but quite frankly you never really know what is around the corner.

Perhaps with the right now world view it would be useful to write a letter to your 85 year old self and in that letter lay out a roadmap of exactly how you can and will achieve your childhood dreams and how you are going to make sure that enabling the dreams of others is a key part of achieving yours.

Or perhaps skip the letter but keep these learnings and values at the forefront of your mind and get out enjoy, experience and enable. I found this lecture, his exuberant attitude and to see the importance and value someone with a very short time to live places on relationships with family and friends very inspiring. We can all live like this, some of us are just lucky enough to have a bit more time to practice this approach to the world and the people within ours.

.