Randy Pausch Quotes

We cannot change the cards we are dealt, just how we play the hand.

The brick walls are there for a reason. The brick walls are not there to keep us out. The brick walls are there to give us a chance to show how badly we want something. Because the brick walls are there to stop the people who don’t want it badly enough. They’re there to stop the other people.

When it comes to men who are romantically interested in you, it’s really simple. Just ignore everything they say and only pay attention to what they do.

Experience is what you get when you didn't get what you wanted. And experience is often the most valuable thing you have to offer.

The key question to keep asking is, Are you spending your time on the right things? Because time is all you have.

No matter how bad things are, you can always make things worse.

It's not about how to achieve your dreams, it's about how to lead your life, ... If you lead your life the right way, the karma will take care of itself, the dreams will come to you.

Look, I'm going to find a way to be happy, and I'd really love to be happy with you, but if I can't be happy with you, then I'll find a way to be happy without you.

Showing gratitude is one of the simplest yet most powerful things humans can do for each other.

Luck is where preparation meets opportunity.

Complaining does not work as a strategy. We all have finite time and energy. Any time we spend whining is unlikely to help us achieve our goals. And it won't make us happier.

Time is all you have and you may find one day that you have less than you think.

It's not how hard you hit. It's how hard you get hit...and keep moving forward.

A lot of people want a shortcut. I find the best shortcut is the long way, which is basically two words: work hard.

If I only had three words of advice, they would be, Tell the Truth. If got three more words, I'd add, all the time.

Find the best in everybody. Just keep waiting no matter how long it takes. No one is all evil. Everybody has a good side, just keep waiting, it will come out.

When we're connected to others, we become better people.

When you're screwing up and nobody says anything to you anymore, that means they've given up on you.

The questions are always more important than the answers.

Too many people go through life complaining about their problems. I've always believed that if you took one tenth the enrgy you put into complaining and applied it to solving the problem, you'd be surprised by how well things can work out.

People are more important than things.

Follow your passions, believe in karma, and you won't have to chase your dreams, they will come to you.

A good apology is like antibiotic, a bad apology is like rubbing salt in the wound.

You may not want to hear it, but your critics are often the ones telling you they still love you and care about you, and want to make you better.

You can always change you plan, but only if you have one.

No job is beneath you. You ought to be thrilled you got a job in the mailroom And when you get there, here's what you do: Be really great at sorting mail.

Wait long enough and people will surprise and impress. When you're pissed off at someone and you're angry at them, you just haven't given them enough time. Just give them a little more time and they almost always will impress you.

Believe nothing a man tells you and everything he shows you"....(Taken from a farewell video from a dying father to his infant daughter on dating)

Its important to have specific dreams. Dream Big. Dream without fear.

Don’t complain; just work harder.

Are you a Tigger or an Eyore?

The person who failed often knows how to avoid future failures. The person who knows only success can be more oblivious to all the pitfalls.

I know you're smart. But everyone here is smart. Smart isn't enough. The kind of people I want on my research team are those who will help everyone feel happy to be here.

All my adult life I've felt drawn to ask long-married couples how they were able to stay together. All of them said the same thing: "We worked hard at it.

Give yourself permission to dream. Fuel your kids' dreams too. Once in a while, that might even mean letting them stay up past their bedtimes.

One thing that makes it possible to be an optimist is if you have a contingency plan for when all hell breaks loose.

When there’s an elephant in the room introduce him.

Find the best in everybody. Wait long enough, and people will surprise and impress you. It might even take years, but people will show you their good side. Just keep waiting.

Go out and do for others what somebody did for you.

I’ve never understood pity and self-pity as an emotion. We have a finite amount of time. Whether short or long, it doesn’t matter. Life is to be lived.

Be good at something. It makes you valuable. Have something to bring to the table, because that will make you more welcome.

Another way to be prepared is to think negatively. Yes, I'm a great optimist. but, when trying to make a decision, I often think of the worst case scenario. I call it 'the eaten by wolves factor.' If I do something, what's the most terrible thing that could happen? Would I be eaten by wolves? One thing that makes it possible to be an optimist, is if you have a contingency plan for when all hell breaks loose. There are a lot of things I don't worry about, because I have a plan in place if they do.

Randy Pausch on time management: Here's what I know: Time must be explicitly managed, like money. You can always change your plan, but only if you have one. Ask yourself: Are you spending your time on the right things? Develop a good filing system. Rethink the telephone. Delegate. Take a time out. Time is all you have. And you may find one day that you have less than you think.

If I work hard enough, there will be things I can do tomorrow that I can't do today.

Want to have a short phone call with someone? Call them at 11:55 a.m., right before lunch. They'll talk fast. You may think you are interesting, but you are not more interesting than lunch.

I'm sorry. It's my fault. How do I make it right?

There's a lot of talk these days about giving children self-esteem. It's not something you can give; it's something they have to build. Coach Graham worked in a no-coddling zone. Self-esteem? He knew there was really only one way to teach kids how to develop it: You give them something they can't do, they work hard until they find they can do it, and you just keep repeating the process.

Put on your own oxygen mask before assisting others.

If you took one-tenth the energy you put into complaining and applied it to solving the problem, you'd be surprised by how well things can work out... Complaining does not work as a strategy. We all have finite time and energy. Any time we spend whining is unlikely to help us achieve our goals. And it won't make us happier.

When you’re screwing up and nobody says anything to you anymore that means they’ve given up on you…you may not want to hear it but your critics are often the ones telling you they still love you and care about you and want to make you better.

We've placed a lot of emphasis in this country on the idea of people's rights. That's how it should be, but it makes no sense to talk about rights without also talking about responsibilities.

Never make a decision until you have to.

Never lose the child like wonder. It’s just too important. It’s what drives us. Help others.

I've always admired people who are over-prepared.

Engineering isn't about perfect solutions; it's about doing the best you can with limited resources.

Not everything needs to be fixed.

Fundamentals, fundamentals, fundamentals. You’ve got to get the fundamentals down because otherwise the fancy stuff isn’t going to work.

Have something to bring to the table, because that will make you more welcome.

Never make a decesion until you have to". He'd also warn me that even if I was in a position of strenght, whether at work or in a relationship, I had to play fair. "Just because you're in the driver's seat, doesn't mean you have to run people over.

Proper apologies have three parts: 1) What I did was wrong. 2) I feel badly that I hurt you. 3) How do I make this better?

Throughout my academic career, I'd given some pretty good talks. But being considered the best speaker in the computer science department is like being known as the tallest of the Seven Dwarfs.

I was hugely impressed... was the ultimate example of a man who knew what he didn't know, was perfectly willing to admit it, and didn't want to leave until he understood. That's heroic to me. I wish every grad student had that attitude.

Experience is what you get when you didn't get what you wanted .

It's not about the cards you're dealt, but how you play the hand.

We cannot change the cards we are dealt, just how we play the hand. If I don’t seem as depressed or morose as I should be, sorry to disappoint you.

Just because you're in the driver's seat, doesn't mean you have to run people over.

Complaining does not work as a strategy.

No job should, be beneath us. And if you can't(or won't) sort mail, Where is the proof that you can do anything?

No matter how bad things are, you can always make things worse. At the same time, it is often within your power to make them better

If you’re going to have childhood dreams you should have great parents who let you pursue them and express your creativity

Kids need to know their parents love them. Their parents don’t need to be alive for that to happen.

My coach knew there was only one way to develop (self esteem): You give children something they can't do, they work hard until they find they can do it, and you just keep repeating the process.

You've got to get the fundamentals down, because otherwise the fancy stuff is not going to work.

there should be some lessons learned and how you can use the stuff you hear today to achieve your dreams or enable the dreams of others. And as you get older, you may find that “enabling the dreams of others” thing is even more fun.

What is the most appropriate thing to say to a friend who was about to die. He answered:”tell your friend that in his death, a part of you dies and goes with him. Whenever he goes, you also g. He will not be alone".

Focus on other people, not on yourself.

Do not tell people how to live their lives. Just tell them stories and they will figure out how those stories apply to them.

Coach Graham rode you pretty hard, didn't he?" he said. I could barely muster a "yeah." That's a good thing," the assistant told me. When you're screwing up and nobody says anything to you anymore, it means they've given up on you.

There are more ways than one to measure profits and losses.

An injured lion wants to know if he can still roar.

But I want her to grow up knowing that I was the first man ever to fall in love with her. I'd always thought the father/daughter thing was overstated. But I can tell you, sometimes, she looks at me and I just become a puddle.

Anybody out there who is a parent, if your kids want to paint their bedrooms,as a favor to me, let them do it. It'll be OK.

Sometimes all you have to do is ask, and it can lead to all your dreams coming true.

It's a thrill to fulfill your own childhood dreams, but as you get older, you may find that enabling the dreams of others is even more fun.

People lie for lots of reasons, often because it seems like a way to get what they want with less effort.

If nobody ever worried about what was in other people's heads, we’d all be 33 percent more effective in our lives and our jobs.

You don't beat the grim reaper by living longer; you beat the grim reaper by living better.

If you can find an opening, you can probably find a way to float through it.

If you can find your footing between two cultures, sometimes you can have the best of both worlds.

It's not helpful if we spend every day dreading tomorrow ~Jai

He had high hopes for society, and though his hopes were too often dashed, he remained a raging optimist.

if you offer wisdom from a third party, it seems less arrogant and more acceptable.

Look for the best in everybody

Most people who have told a lie think they got away with it … when in fact, they didn’t

We have a finite amount of time. Whether short or long, it doesn’t matter. Life is to be lived

Your patience will be both appreciated and rewarded

I'll take an earnest person over a hip person every time, because hip is short term. Earnest is long term.

And even though I did not reach the NFL, I sometimes think I got more from persuing that dream, and not accomplishing it, then I did from many of the ones I did accomplish.

Apologies are not pass/fail.

When you see yourself doing something badly and nobody's bothering to tell you anymore, that's a bad place to be. You may not want to hear it, but your critics are often the ones telling you they still love you and care about you, and want to make you better.