Commencement Addresses

Working with students is bittersweet.  Each year, a group of familiar faces departs for their bright futures, while a new gang of independence-hungry freshman set foot on campus.  One of the rights-of-passage for every graduating class is the commencement ceremonies.

I've listed some links to a few of (what I consider to be) some of the better commencement addresses to the Class of 2005 (with a highlight from the speech):

Steve Jobs speaking at Stanford University
"Your time is limited, so don't waste it living someone else's life. Don't be trapped by dogma - which is living with the results of other people's thinking. Don't let the noise of other's opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary."

Allen Greenspan speaking at Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania
"Rules exist to govern behavior, but rules cannot substitute for character. In the years going forward, it will be your reputation--for integrity, judgment, and other qualities of character--that will determine your success in life and in business. A generation from now, as you watch your children graduate, you will want to be able to say that whatever success you achieved was the result of honest and productive work, and that you dealt with people the way you would want them to deal with you."

President George W. Bush speaking at Calvin College
"First, we must understand that the character of our citizens is essential to society. In a free and compassionate society, the public good depends on private character. That character is formed and shaped in institutions like family, faith, and the many civil and -- social and civic organizations, from the Boy Scouts to the  Rotary Clubs. The future success of our nation depends on our ability to understand the difference between right and wrong and to have the strength of character to make the right choices. Government cannot create character, but it can and should respect and support the institutions that do."

John Lithgow speaking at Harvard
"Be creative. Be useful. Be practical. Be generous. Simple as that."

Have you heard a good commencement speech (the best ones are the short ones)?  Actually, the best commencement speech I've heard (or read) is John Stewart's address at William & Mary last year.  You can get to it here.