Postcards

Tom Freston's commencement speech at Emerson College

It's that time of year, so we're sharing one of our favorite commencement speeches with you: Tom Freston's 2007  address at Emerson College.

Pattie Sellers' exclusive profile of Freston, "The Most Wanted Man on the Planet," tells the story of a man who had built MTV and Viacom's (VIAB) vast cable empire, got fired by chairman Sumner Redstone, walked away with $60 million in severance --  and actually knew what MORE

Power Point: Go with the group

"How should you behave? Well, do things in a group. Don't do things by yourself. Groups are stronger, groups are faster. None of us is as smart as all of us."

-- Google (GOOG) CEO Eric Schmidt in his address to Carnegie Mellon 112th graduating class on Sunday. Schmidt's theory about the wisdom of the crowd has been widely shared. What other advice did he have for the grads? Be prepared MORE

Power Point: Find someone to be successful for

"Find someone to be successful for."

-- Barack Obama in his speech to Arizona State University grads on Wednesday in Tempe, Arizona. He borrowed the phrase from an ASU engineering student who said that watching video of the people who would benefit from the medical devices she was designing, "made us want to be successful for them."

The President acknowledged that while many graduates might not know what they are going to MORE

Guest Post: The last newspaper generation

by Esther Wojcicki, journalism teacher and newspaper adviser at Palo Alto High School

Reading the newspaper these days makes me sad about journalism. "The American Press on Suicide Watch" was the headline of Frank Rich's New York Times column this past Sunday. "Legendary brands from the Los Angeles Times to the Philadelphia Inquirer are teetering," Rich said, adding that the New York Times Co. (NYT) might shutter the Boston Globe. Maureen MORE

Power Point: Ignore the critics

"There's always going to be someone out there like that movie critic, who doesn't believe in you or who thinks your head is too big or you're not smart enough or whatever. But those are the people you need to ignore, and those are the times you need to just keep doing what you love doing."

-- Jimmy Fallon, host of NBC's (GE) Late Night and SNL alum, in a commencement MORE

Amex CEO Ken Chenault: Define reality and give hope

by Jessica Shambora

It's a given that when corporations suffer, so do the charitable groups that rely on them for support.

Amidst the financial crisis, many strapped non-profits face funding losses as the need for their services rises. And unlike their counterparts at for-profit corporations, not-for-profit execs haven't had the proper leadership training do what's needed -- restructuring, staff cuts, even mergers with other organizations. A recent study by Bridgespan Group shows MORE

Power Point: See the possibility

"If you can see the possibility of change in your life -- see the possibility of what you can become and not just what you are -- you will be a huge success."

-- Oprah Winfrey in her address to Duke University grads on Sunday. After picking up an honorary doctor of human letters, Oprah began by quipping: "I'm gonna have everyone call me 'doctor' now."

How did Duke score the media MORE

Power Point: Seek the adventure

"I learned that life is an adventure and that the best course through life is to approach all of life as an adventure...Getting lost is an adventure from which we can learn uncommon and uncommonly important life lessons."

-- Carleton College President Robert Oden in a college application essay in the Wall Street Journal. At the Journal's request, the presidents of 10 colleges and universities answered an essay question from their MORE

Power Point: Write it down

"You know what it's like to wake up in the middle of the night with a vivid dream? And you know how, if you don't have a pencil and pad by the bed to write it down, it will be completely gone the next morning? Sometimes it is important to wake up and stop dreaming. When a really great dream shows up, grab it!"

--Google (GOOG) co-founder Larry Page in a MORE

Power Point: Make your own talent

"The key factor separating geniuses from the merely accomplished is not a divine spark. It's not I.Q., a generally bad predictor of success, even in realms like chess. Instead, it's deliberate practice. Top performers spend more hours (many more hours) rigorously practicing their craft."

-- New York Times columnist David Brooks in an Op-Ed today about how genius has more to do with practice than innate gifts. Brooks quotes examples from MORE