He may be a college dropout, but he is also one of the richest people in the world. Mark Zuckerberg left his Harvard studies in order to launch and work on a social network that has soon become an online empire.
Indeed, younger generations cannot imagine the world without Facebook and the social network is not going away soon. Instead, it even changes marketing, PR and journalism.
Mark Zuckerberg, Facebook CEO and Harvard dropout, addressed the Harvard graduates of class ’17 earlier this year. The Commencement address attracted the attention of the media and Marks’ inspiring statements are still quoted by many.
“I’m an unlikely speaker, not just because I dropped out, but because we’re technically in the same generation,” he said to the graduates at the beginning.
During his speech, he shared what he’s learned about the world. But he also shared some memories of the time when he received the email telling him he was accepted into Harvard.
He recalled the first lecture at the university, which he still remembers and the way he arrived with his T-shirt inside out because he was late. The only person who talked to him on that day now runs a great part of Facebook, Zuckerberg revealed.
And that, Class of 2017, is why you should be nice to people, he said.
College is a dear part of his life to him also because he met his wife Priscilla at Harvard, who gave him two children.
When speaking about finding the purpose, he said that just finding your purpose is not enough, but we should rather create a world where everyone has a sense of purpose, which is what creates true happiness. The new generations have the challenge to create a renewed sense of purpose, not only to create new jobs because the old ones are not coming back.
Back in his college days, he couldn’t imagine that he would be one of the people who will connect the whole world, but he wanted someone to do that when he launched the first version of Facebook, which had the aim to connect Harvard community.
He just kept moving forward and didn’t quit and thus he was the change that he was sure someone else will be. His advice to the graduates was to follow his steps and be the change they want to see in the world instead of waiting for someone to do it, because no one will.
Even when he got offers from big companies and everyone was telling him to sell, he was determined to continue to develop his idea because he believed it could change the way people learn about the world.
Zuckerberg also talked about the future of technology, which will inevitably replace tens of millions of jobs. He also motivated graduates to do great new things that will influence the world. It’s important to start, even if you don’t have everything clear in your head yet, he said. And in order to succeed, be prepared to be called crazy and even to fail. Even he failed several times before he created Facebook.
Zuckerberg and his wife, Priscilla have started the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative, which is committed to promoting equal opportunities. Wanting to see many more people doing this, Mark motivated Harvard graduates to donate and help others.
Millennials are one of the most charitable generations in history, but Mark was right when he spoke about giving their time, not only money. An hour or two a week is nothing for a student, but it might mean a lot to someone who needs a helping hand.
Zuckerberg also added building community as an important step towards creating a sense of purpose for everyone. Today, it’s most popular to be considered “citizen of the world” rather than citizen of a country or group. However, global community also comes against other forces, such as nationalism and authoritarianism, but Mark believes that change will happen at a local level.
Taking into consideration that he started with a local network which he developed into this global network that connects the world, it’s safe to say we can trust him, don’t you think?
Zuckerberg continues to be an inspiration for youngsters everywhere thanks to his honesty and humbleness, but also his intelligence and ambitions. With his 33 years of age, he is the fifth wealthiest man in the world.
In 2015, he and his wife gave 99% of their Facebook shares to the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative. He launched Facebook when he was 20.
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A professional writer with over a decade of incessant writing skills. Her topics of interest and expertise range from health, nutrition and psychology.