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Apple CEO Tim Cook on Sunday, April 3, delivered a virtual graduation speech at Ohio State University’s 2020 graduation class, challenging them to look beyond how the coronavirus may have interfered with their plans.
(Photo: Ohio State via YouTube)
Apple CEO Tim Cook delivers a virtual graduation speech to the Ohio State class of 2020 graduates.
The Apple CEO confirmed last month that he would be the speaker for the state university graduation speech. Cook gives graduation speeches every spring, including at Tulane University last year, and kept the habit this year.
However, due to the coronavirus outbreak, Ohio state officials announced plans on April 3 to virtually begin complying with regulations on large gatherings.
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‘Be optimistic, grateful amid the coronavirus outbreak’
In a recorded speech posted on YouTube, Cook apologized that the graduate students couldn’t all be together for the special event. He said graduates could look back on this moment and remember inconvenience and even boredom, and they can consider themselves lucky.
“And while we are not [physically present] shoulder to shoulder at the Horseshoe, filling it to the rafters, I know that your parents, your loved ones, your friends and teachers are no less overwhelmed with the pride you have and what you have accomplished, “he said.
The Apple CEO told graduates to remember those whose impact on your life is more distant, “but not less significant.”
And beyond all that, he said, “think about how you, blessed with a world-class education, could act and work and be different when [everything] it is said and done. “
Share the credit for success in the midst of an epidemic
Cook’s speech pointed to the challenges of the previous century. The Apple CEO discussed the accomplishments of President Franklin D. Roosevelt, pioneering aviator Amelia Earhart, and the poet T.S. Eliot as they faced the challenges of the 1918 flu epidemic.
According to Cook, those who face times of historic challenge with open eyes and hearts are also the ones that leave the most significant impact on the lives of others.
“We must share the credit, whether we like it or not, with a difficult and selfish collaborator called our circumstances,” he said.
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There’s a sun shining behind every dark cloud
Cook also said he couldn’t believe his fortune when he joined Apple in 1998. But the journey has not been easy.
“The loneliness I felt when we lost Steve was proof that there is nothing more eternal or more powerful than the impact we have on others,” he said.
Cook also acknowledged that the post-college dreams of most graduates will be delayed, but most have not seen the worst of COVID-19.
However, the Apple CEO expressed optimism that graduates would overcome the demanding situations they will face in the real world. And when bright plans and hopes stir, as they often will, Cook said that people will always be left with a choice.
He said graduates are the pride of their loved ones, teachers, and the communities that shaped them in visible and invisible ways.
“Build a better future than you thought safe. And at a terrible time, call us once again for hope.”
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