Helping individuals and organiza

Dr. Foster's Speech to the Graduating Class of 2010 - cont.

My remarks will be brief but there is a more extended version, complete with links to relevant sites for further research. You can find this on my website www.fosterlearning.com from the link Grad. Speech 2010. Those of you presently using your 3G or 4G enabled devices may follow along now. [Apparently Jason in IT and a few others did do this and felt good that they could see where I was going next in my speech.]
[I added a little section here on the background of academic gowns. I mentioned that I was wearing my earned (and purchased) doctoral gown from Queen's University in Kingston, Ontario. Some of the tradition derives from medieval times when the novitiates wore simple black (denoting ignorance) and then as they achieved degrees they added splashes of colour denoting some enlightenment. There is also a part of the tradition that goes back to Roman times (perhaps before that to the Etruscans around 1200 BC) where the toga was a symbol of status, office and achievement. Upper class males, for example, received the toga virilis when they came of age. Stripes of colour denoted various magisterial offices. Red, for example, was associated with augurs, who had a religious function. This is probably the background of the red cardinals gowns of the Roman Catholic Church. My Queen's gown may derive somewhat from that but probably more to the notion of enlightenment. For more on togas ... click here

It is a hard assignment to advise a graduating group because we are all excited and anxious to celebrate this occasion and get on to the next adventures in our lives. There is no shortage of good advice available ... the secret is to put this good advice into practice. Now there are various 12 step programs that provide excellent, structured advice.
The best known of these is the Alcoholics Anonymous program that some of you will turn to when you realize drinking bouts are not really boosting your life. Then there are the 10 Commandments - or as they're considered today, The 10 Suggestions from the old days. For those in the Buddhist Tradition there is the Noble 8 Fold Path. Then there is the all-time best selling self-help book by Steven Covey - The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People. But I've reduced it for you - for today only - to Four Points. Dean Judy Sarsons

1. Clear goals
2. Positive attitudes
3. Wise decisions
4. Persistent actions

Helping individuals and organizations learn and grow

Dr. Foster's Speech to the Graduating Class of 2010 - cont.