Book Review: The Last Lecture

It's been a crazy week for me and I have been really stressed. On a promising note I read an excellent book titled "The Last Lecture" by Randy Pausch. You may have heard Mr. Pausch's story, he presented a lecture at Carnegie Mellon after being diagnosed with terminal cancer. The book is excellent and it provides a point of view that makes you consider your priorities, what matters most and how to live your life.

I really enjoyed reading about Randy's life and his childhood. As a mater of fact, I plan on incorporating his use of his "dictionary to get through dinner" as part of our family dinner discussion. As stated in the book, Randy Pausch's parents drove his thirst for knowledge. To quote Randy's parents from the book, "if you have a question, then find the answer."

I pulled several additional Paushisms from the book including:

• Luck is what happens when preparation meets opportunity.
• Whether you think you can or can't, you're right.
• Experience is what you get when you didn't get what you wanted....... and experience is often the most valuable thing you have to offer.
• In preparation to do something consider what's the most terrible thing that could happen?
• One thing that makes it possible to be an optimist is if you have a contingency plan for when all hell breaks loose.

If you would like to see the last lecture by Randy Pausch please click on the following link http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ji5_MqicxSo.

I highly recommend this book to improve your outlook on life and to boost your Solid Planning.

Pausch, Randy. New York: Hyperion, (2008)

This is the seventh book review of our planned fifty two book reviews.