Graduation

Say yes to opportunity. Sink or swim, it'll change your life.

It just doesn't pay to be a jerk. Kindness, respect, and all that good stuff — it just goes a long way.

All forms of success, from being a great mother to being a great actor, take tenacity and determination. They say for every light on Broadway there is a broken heart, an unrealized dream — and that's the same in every profession.

What's just as important as having a plan is being able to adapt. A lot of the best things I've experienced are things I never knew or never expected or knew to prepare for.

With each new obstacle comes a new opportunity to grow.

For many of you, this may be your proudest achievement. I don't believe that. Class of 2012, your proudest moments are the ones you've yet to come across.

Raise the rest of your life to meet you. Don't search for defining moments because they will never come. The moments that define you have already happened. And they will already happen again. And it passes so quickly.

Don't wait until they tell you you are ready. Get in there. Show it. Do it.

The world is yours. Treat everyone kindly and light up the night.

The best way to make people feel that you're listening to them is to listen to them.

Imagine yourself in 50 years. You're in your early 70s, near the end of your career. You start to reflect on your life and think of all the things you wished you had done differently. And just while that's happening, a genie appears and gives you a second chance. You blink your eyes and find yourself right here, right now. The genie was serious.

The positive revolutions are not going to be caused by generals and politicians. They are going to be caused by innovators like you.