Washington Business Summer 2017 | Washington Business | Page 19

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“Today, Mark Zuckerberg —
who dropped out of Harvard
University after his sophomore
year — gave a commencement
speech to Harvard’s graduating
class. Zuckerberg began the
speech with, ‘Hello, suckers.’”
— Conan O’Brien, “Conan”
Top quotes from 2017 graduation addresses:
“Yes, I was afraid. You’re never not
afraid. I’m still afraid. I was afraid
to write this speech. And now, I’m
just realizing how many people are
watching me right now, and it’s scary.
Can you please look away while I
deliver the rest of the speech? But my
fear of failure never approached in
magnitude my fear of ‘what if.’
What if I never tried at all?”
“The trick is to listen to your instincts,
grab the opportunity when it presents
itself and then give it your all. Like a
hangover, neither triumph nor disaster
lasts forever.”
— Actress Helen Mirren, speaking at Tulane University
on May 20
“When you see something that’s broken
— and there is a lot that is broken out
there — go fix it.” “Don’t just work hard at your job; work
hard at everything. Work hard at being
a friend. Work hard at being a partner,
at being a son or a daughter, at being a
grandchild, at being a steward in your
community, at caring about people who
have never had a day like the one you’re
having today.”
— Sheryl Sandberg, Facebook COO, speaking to
Virginia Tech graduates on May 12 — Journalist and CNN correspondent Jake Tapper, speaking June 11
at Dartmouth, his alma mater
— Actor Will Ferrell, speaking at his alma mater,
the University of Southern California, on May 12
summer 2017
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