"Life and How to Survive It"

Woah, why didn't we have a speech like that when I graduated?
Just read a speech by Adrian Tan (Teenage Textbook) that he gave at the NTU Convocation 2008 ceremony. And it was inspiring. His message? Don’t work. Avoid telling the truth. Be hated. Love someone. You can read it here or here.

There are so many things I want to quote, but I shall just highlight some.

"And so I want to start by giving one piece of advice to the men: when you’ve already won her heart, you don’t need to win every argument."

"I’m here to tell you this. Forget about your life expectancy.
After all, it’s calculated based on an average. And you never, ever want to expect being average.
Revisit those expectations. You might be looking forward to working, falling in love, marrying, raising a family. You are told that, as graduates, you should expect to find a job paying so much, where your hours are so much, where your responsibilities are so much.
That is what is expected of you. And if you live up to it, it will be an awful waste."

"Don’t expect anything. Erase all life expectancies. Just live. Your life is over as of today . . . What does this mean for you? It is good that your life is over. Since your life is over, you are free."

"The most important is this: do not work. Work is anything that you are compelled to do. By its very nature, it is undesirable . . . Do not waste the vast majority of your life doing something you hate so that you can spend the small remainder sliver of your life in modest comfort. You may never reach that end anyway.
Resist the temptation to get a job. Instead, play. Find something you enjoy doing. Do it. Over and over again. You will become good at it for two reasons: you like it, and you do it often. Soon, that will have value in itself."

"Any child can blurt out the truth, without thought to the consequences. It takes great maturity to appreciate the value of silence."

". . . be hated . . . every great figure who has contributed to the human race has been hated, not just by one person, but often by a great many. That hatred is so strong it has caused those great figures to be shunned, abused, murdered and in one famous instance, nailed to a cross."

"One does not have to be evil to be hated. In fact, it’s often the case that one is hated precisely because one is trying to do right by one’s own convictions."

"There are a great many bad people in the world, and if you are not offending them, you must be bad yourself. Popularity is a sure sign that you are doing something wrong."

"I didn’t say “be loved”. That requires too much compromise. If one changes one’s looks, personality and values, one can be loved by anyone. Rather, I exhort you to love another human being."

"Love requires complete acceptance. It is hard work – the only kind of work that I find palatable."

"Despite popular culture, love doesn’t happen by chance, at first sight, across a crowded dance floor. It grows slowly, sinking roots first before branching and blossoming. It is not a silly weed, but a mighty tree that weathers every storm."

"You will find, that when you have someone to love, that the face is less important than the brain, and the body is less important than the heart."

"You will also find that it is no great tragedy if your love is not reciprocated. You are not doing it to be loved back. Its value is to inspire you."

". . . you will find that there is no half-measure when it comes to loving someone. You either don’t, or you do with every cell in your body, completely and utterly, without reservation or apology. "

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Ok, I think I overdid it.