Google CEO Sundar Pichai Addresses 2020 Graduates on Overcoming Challenges Post Covid-19
While addressing the 2020 graduates, Pichai cited the examples of the graduates during the 9/11 crisis, the Vietnam War period and 1920 Spanish Flu pandemic and what qualities they had which helped them overcome those challenges.
The Chief Executive Officer of Google Sundar Pichai sent a special message for the 2020 graduates in which he asked them to be hopeful, open and “impatient”. Pichai believes that those who will be graduating in the year 2020 will have an opportunity to change everything.
Usual on-ground graduation ceremonies have been replaced with virtual graduation ceremonies due to the ongoing Coronavirus pandemic. Youtube, which is a video platform of Google, conducted an event virtually to give a farewell to the students.
This ceremony was attended by eminent personalities like the former POTUS Barack Obama, former FLOTUS Michelle Obama, activist Malala Yousafzai, former Secretary of the State Condoleeza Rice, Lady Gaga, Beyonce and many more.
Pichai said that in the current scenario, the students might lose all hope considering the fact that whatever they had planned for themselves in terms of their education received, career prospects and experiences earned and the current scenario forcing them to put all those things on the shelf. But, he feels, that the students must be hopeful, impatient and ready as they will have a chance to change everything and when people look back at 2020, the students will be remembered not for what they had lost but what how they changed everything.
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Pichai cited the examples of those who were graduating during the 9/11 period, the Vietnam War and during those times in 1920 when the Spanish Flu pandemic was showing its monstrosity. He asked the graduating batches of 2020 to remain hopeful.
While emphasising on the impatient aspect, Pichai said that it is impatience that will fuel the progress the world needs right now.
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He also urged the students to remain open-minded and do only that thing which they love. He pointed out that when someone chooses to do things to satisfy their parents or due to societal or peer pressure, those things will be never going to excite them. He himself had an open mind and had a deep passion for technology which enabled him to board the flight to the US where he studied at Stanford. His father had to spend his entire year’s salary on the plane ticket so that Pichai could attend Stanford.