More from Rashida Jones

You are the only one who can create the life you want and you may have to break some rules to do that. You are the only one who can create a system that's going to work for you and that needs to start right now.

RJ

Rashida Jones

Harvard University Class Day 2016, 2016

18:09

Video starts at 18:09 — the moment this quote was spoken

The Story Behind This Quote

After sharing her hard-won lesson about the limits of institutional trust, Jones delivered this empowering message. She acknowledged the pain of watching trusted systems crack — the mentors who can't save you, the employers whose objectives conflict with yours — and reframed it as liberation. She was careful not to romanticize rebellion: 'I'm not suggesting that you drop out of society, liquidate your bar mitzvah money and take up kite surfing in Hawaii.' But the core message was unmistakable — four years at Harvard had trained them to follow rules, and now they needed to learn when to break them.

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