One Man Who Gives Thanks Daily

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Believing in Karma

Pausch urged his audience to take great enjoyment and amusement doing whatever they pursue in life. "Have fun," he shouted. "For me, it's kind of like a fish talking about the importance of water. I don't know how to not have fun. I'm dying, and I'm having fun. And I am going to keep having fun every day I have left, because there is no other way of life. You just have to decide whether you are a Tigger or an Eeyore." Clearly, Pausch chose Tigger.

He advised us on how to get people to help us achieve our dream. "You can't get there alone," he said. "People have to help you, and I do believe in karma. I believe in paybacks. You get people to help you by telling the truth, by being earnest. I will take an earnest person over a hip person every day, because hip is short-term, earnest is long-term."

From the frenetic man in the black knit shirt and khakis, there was more, much more. Some of it you've heard before, from countless self-help books, management development courses, your mentor, or your mother or father. But coming from a dying man, it all seemed more real, more relevant, more gripping.

• "Never give up."

• "Apologize when you screw up."

• "Focus on other people, not yourself."

• "Don't bail. The best gold is at the bottom of barrels of crap."

• "Show gratitude."

• "Work hard. I got tenure a year early. Junior faculty members used to say to me: 'Wow, what's your secret?' I said: 'It's pretty simple. Call me any Friday night in my office at 10 o'clock, and I'll tell you.'"

• "Be prepared. Luck is where preparation meets opportunity."

• "Find the best in everybody. You might have to wait a long time, sometimes years, but people will show you their good side. Just keep waiting. No matter how long it takes. No one is all evil. Everyone has a good side. Just keep waiting. It will come out."

• "Get a feedback loop and listen to it…it can be one great man who tells you what you need to hear. The hard part is to listen to it. Anybody can get chewed out. It's the real person who says: 'Oh my God, you were right.' When people give you feedback, cherish it and use it."

For His Children

His incredible wit was much in evidence. The "best piece of advice, pound for pound, I ever heard," he said, involved a bit of counsel on romance. "When it comes to men who are romantically interested in you, it's really simple. Just ignore everything they say and pay total attention to what they do. It's that simple. It's that easy. I thought back to my bachelor days and said 'damn'."

With his lecture over, Pausch then threw his audience a couple of curves. He told them that his lecture wasn't about how to achieve one's dream. It was about how you lead your life. "If you lead your life the right way, the karma will take care of itself," he said, his voice softening. "The dreams will come to you."

And he said the presentation wasn't really for anyone in the audience. It was for his three children: Dylan, 5, Logan, 2, Chloe, 1. Their fondest memory of their dad will be an Internet video, one that everyone should watch during this holiday when we give thanks for all we have and all we sacrifice.

Let this be the Thanksgiving holiday when you turn off the TV football game and gather your family around a computer to witness a courageous man and his powerful words.

Byrne is executive editor of BusinessWeek .