Ken’s commencement speech (next year maybe)

Every year about this time, I sit by my phone and wait for the call that never comes. We have three colleges in this community and it seem to me about five decades in the information business, I would get called to be a graduation speaker – – but the call never comes.

So, I’ve decided that you, my dedicated reader, will have the benefit of receiving the advice I would have given to graduating senior students this year.

I have two words of advice – – avoid commitments.

Avoid commitments in all phases of your life.

If you’re going to be truly happy, you can’t be happy working in a job you don’t like. Many of you will have to take a job doing anything, because you have to take care of the financial commitments you already have.

But keep that “nut” low. Don’t buy a car, borrow one from your parents or get a small motor bike. Don’t buy a house – rent one – – better yet move in with friends, or just rent a room. Even better, move back in with your folks and you won’t have to pay a penny.

Don’t buy any expensive equipment. That means, nothing you can’t pay for now. Don’t use your ATM or Debit card. If you can’t afford it, you don”t need it.

Don’t get married. And whatever you do – – don’t have children.

Now mind you, I’m telling you all this to show you the path towards happiness. You can’t be happy if you have commitments, because commitments tie you down, force you to work, force you to do things that make you unhappy just to meet your commitments.

People labor for years, decades even, to pay off their commitments. They’re stuck, they have no flexibility. You have to have flexibility if you’re going to be happy. You can’t be tied down because you have commitments. Flexibility allows you to change jobs in order to find what it is that makes you happy.

And, here’s the payoff. Once you’ve found what you like to do, and once you start making money from it, – that is the time to start making commitments.

It’s only after you’ve become happy in life, that you can begin taking on the commitments. Your future spouse will be happy and your children will be happy and it continues.

Avoid commitments, stay flexible, find something you like to do and make money at it, and you’ll have a happy life.

That’s the commencement speech I’ll make. I’ll wait by my phone for an invitation for next year.