Randy Pausch Quotes

I also think my dad would be reminding me that kids — more than anything else — need to know their parents love them. Their parents don't have to be alive for that to happen.

When you see yourself doing something badly and nobody's bothering to tell you anymore, that's a very bad place to be. Your critics are the ones telling you they still love you and care.

Be good at something. It makes you valuable.

Give yourself permission to dream. Fuel your kids' dreams too. Once in a while, that might even mean letting them stay up past their bedtimes.

To-Do lists help us break life into small steps.

Sometimes all you have to do is ask, and it can lead to all your dreams coming true.

The person who failed often knows how to avoid future failures. The person who knows only success can be more oblivious to all the pitfalls.

There are more ways than one to measure profits and losses.

Find the best in everybody. Wait long enough, and people will surprise and impress you. It might even take years, but people will show you their good side. Just keep waiting.

educators best serve students by helping them be more self-reflective. The only way any of us can improve—as Coach Graham taught me—is if we develop a real ability to assess ourselves. If we can’t accurately do that, how can we tell if we’re getting better or worse?

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.

The most difficult part of writing a book is not devising a plot which will captivate the reader. It's not developing characters the reader will have strong feelings for or against. It is not finding a setting which will take the reader to a place he or she as never been. It is not the research, whether in fiction or non-fiction. The most difficult task facing a writer is to find the voice in which to tell the story.

It's very important to know when you're in a pissing match. And it's very important to get out of it as quickly as possible.

And even though I did not reach the National Football League, I sometimes think I got more from pursuing that dream, and not accomplishing it, than I did from many of the ones I did accomplish.

Never, ever underestimate the importance of having fun.

When you do the right thing, good stuff has a way of happening.

Time is all you have and you may find one day that you have less than you think.

Let other people finish their sentences when they’re talking.

A coach yells at the kid he thinks can improve but the coach will not yell at the kid who he/she knows won't.

Everyone has to contribute to the common good. To not do so can be described in one word: selfish.

Education best serves students by helping them be more self-reflective.

An injured lion wants to know if he can still roar.

I’d compare college tuition to paying for a personal trainer at an athletic club. We professors play the roles of trainers, giving people access to the equipment (books, labs, our expertise) and after that, it is our job to be demanding.

Better to fail spectacularly than do something mediocre.

until you got ice cream spilled on you, you’re not doing field work

If you can find your footing between two cultures, sometimes you can have the best of both worlds.

Are you a Tigger or an Eeyore?

Take Time Out. It's not a real vacation if you're reading email or calling in for messages.

Often think of the worst-case scenario, the "Eaten By Wolves" factor.

If you can find an opening, you can probably find a way to float through it.

Proper apologies have three parts: 1) What I did was wrong. 2) I feel badly that I hurt you. 3) How do I make this better?

Just because you're in the driver's seat, doesn't mean you have to run people over.

When you're frustrated with people, when they've made you angry, it just may be because you haven't given them enough time.

No job should, be beneath us. And if you can't(or won't) sort mail, Where is the proof that you can do anything?

You can always change you plan, but only if you have one.

There's a limit to how many times you can read how great you are and what an inspiration you are, but I'm not there yet.

Luck is indeed where preparation meets opportunity.

Never make a decision until you have to.

My colleague told me: "It took a long time, but I finally figured it out. When it comes to men who are romantically interested in you, it's really simple. Just ignore everything they say and only pay attention to what they do.

Time must be explicitly managed, like money.

If you want something bad enough, never give up (and take a boost when offered).

Don't bail; the best pieces of gold are at the bottom of the barrel of crap.

The key question to keep asking is, Are you spending your time on the right things? Because time is all you have.

Remember brick walls let us show our dedication. They are there to separate us from the people who don't really want to achieve their childhood dreams.

People are more important than things.

We keep what is valuable to us, what we cherish.

I don't suffer from an abundance of politeness.

When there’s an elephant in the room introduce him.