Book Review – The Last Lecture, by Randy Pausch

This book was written by Randy Pausch, a computer science professor that was asked to deliver a talk titled ‘The Last Lecture.’ While a lot of university professors give this kind of talks where they are asked to consider their demise and to ruminate on what matters most to them, this was a very special ask for professor Pausch since he had recently been diagnosed with terminal cancer.

But his lecture, which he captured in this book, was not about dying. It was about life: about how to live our lives, about our work and our relationships with others.

I read this book for the first time back in 2008, when it was published. These are eight highlights I got out of it and which I have used and shared throughout my career as university administrator and professor:

1. “It is important to have specific dreams.”
   1. Give yourself permission to dream. But, to achieve them, be also specific about your goals so you manage time as the valuable but limited resource that it is.
2. “Tenacity is a virtue, but it is not always crucial for everyone to observe how hard you work at something.”
   1. Work hard as you pursue your dreams and goals and, if you decide to share that process with others, do it so they can provide feedback to help you improve. Surround yourself with people with expertise you may not have.
3. “Brick walls are there for a reason.”
   1. They give you a chance to show how badly you want something. Be persistent and once you get over them, even if someone has practically had to throw you over, it can be helpful to others to tell them how you did it.
4. “It is great to be smart. But smart isn’t enough.”
   1. Being able to work well in a group is vital and necessary: meet people properly; find things you have in common; check egos at the door and let everyone talk; praise each other; have something to bring to the table. Go out and do for others what somebody did for you.
5. “Be an engineer, no matter what your field or expertise is about.”
   1. Engineering is not about perfect solutions; it is about doing the best you can with limited resources. Do that on an ongoing basis to achieve continuous improvement and lean towards great results.
6. “Be an optimist that is always prepared.”
   1. When setting up plans or trying to take a decision, seek for the best but think of the worst-case scenario. Have a contingency plan for when things may break loose.
7. “Be a communitarian.”
   1. It makes no sense to talk about rights without also talking about responsibilities. Rights come to us from the community we are part of so, in return, we all have a responsibility to the community. Be always mindful and thoughtful of both.
8. “It is important (and fun!) to enable the dreams of others.”
   1. I have lectured in person and online courses for more than fifteen years and, after witnessing the positive impact of learning, I have always sought for impactful ways to support individuals at scale. This is something that professor Pausch also seeked in his own way, and which I can relate to.