Fall Forward (Penn Commencement)
Delivered at the University of Pennsylvania commencement ceremony on May 16, 2011, urging graduates to embrace risk and learn from inevitable setbacks.
Full Transcript
President Gutmann, provost, trustees, faculty, parents, and most especially, the graduating class of 2011:
I’m honored and grateful for this opportunity, but I have to tell you, I’m nervous. Standing out here is a little different than acting in a movie.
Today I want to share three points with you:
First: You will fail at some point in your life, accept it. You will lose. You will embarrass yourself. You will suck at something. There is no doubt about it. But fall forward.
Reggie Jackson struck out 2,600 times in his career—the most in the history of baseball. But you don’t hear about the strikeouts. People remember the home runs.
Second: If you don’t fail, you’re not even trying. Thomas Edison conducted 1,000 failed experiments. Did you know that? I didn’t either, because #1,001 was the light bulb.
Third: Sometimes failure is the best way to figure out where you’re going. Never be discouraged. Never hold back. Give it everything you’ve got. And when you fall, fall forward!
Defining Key Excerpts
"Reggie Jackson struck out 2,600 times in his career—the most in the history of baseball. But you don't hear about the strikeouts. People remember the home runs. Fall forward."
"If you don't fail, you're not even trying."
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