(Commencement speech delivered on 11 April 2018 for Centro Escolar University)
Dr. Ma. Cristina d. Padolina, President and Chief Academic Officer, Members of the Administrative Council, Dr. Julieta Dungca, Dean School of Science and Technology, Prof. Melito Salazar, Jr., Dean, School of Accountancy and Management, CEU Faculty and non-teaching staff, Graduates of School of Science and Technology and School of Accountancy and Management – Good morning!
I would like to thank my friend Dr. Chit Salonga and colleague in the Psychological Association of the Philippines for extending this invitation in behalf of CEU. When I told my mother I would be delivering this commencement speech she was tickled pink and for good reason. You see, my grandmother Catalina Melchor used to teach here and was even the chair of the Home Economics Department and my mother Conchita Melchor graduated from CEU. So I am really happy to be here in the institution that nurtured both my grandmother and mother.
So first, let me congratulate all our graduates today, their teachers and family members. As a parent, I know how much sacrifice families go to through to put kids to school. As a teacher, I also know how much teachers and staff invest in caring for their students. But of course, the credit should also rightly go all of you are waiting to receive that diploma that says you did it!
By now, you would have probably asked and answered many questions - why do people act the way they do? What is the best way to automate a system? How do I make a business grow? And for those in Cosmetic Science program - How do I make my client look beautiful?
And it is with our answers that we go marching out to the world. But I’d like to ask - Have you gotten all the answers to your questions? Have you asked all the questions you have?
I hope the answer to these questions is NO because the minute you begin to think we have all the answers that means you didn’t learn enough. Because the world, as we know, is constantly evolving and as soon as we have an answer to one question, another one comes up.
Thus my key message to you today is simple – KEEP ASKING QUESTIONS. And I want to give you three reasons why questions are so important.
First is – questions allow us to understand ourselves as well continuously evolve as people. Are you the same person you are today as you were when you entered college? I hope not. More importantly, who do you want to be?
Questions like these are sometime hard because we don’t reflect on ourselves a lot. But hopefully your answer to who you are today and tomorrow is better than who you were before. Because our main goal as human beings to grow and evolve – so questions are important for self-understanding and growth.
Now, can I ask you to share the answer to the question who do you want to be with your seatmate? What was it like to hear the responses of your seatmate? Do you feel like you know them a little better?
Our lives are increasingly rules by social media. The problem with digital interactions is that they can be really superficial. We limit ourselves to likes, emoticons, GIFs with little meaningful exchange. No wonder more and more children are growing up lacking basic social skills. It also makes me really sad when I go out and watch families or friends together in a table but on their phones rather than talking to each other. In our family, we have a no phone rule when we sit down to eat. This forces us to talk to each other instead of living in cyberspace. So please, next time you are with your friends or family. Put your phones down and ask them a question instead. So that’s my second reason for questions – because they allow us to connect.
The third reason why questions matter is because they are critical if we are to solve our society’s problems. And there are so many – poverty, peace and order, calamities, and yes, even traffic. How can you use your discipline to address the problem of poverty? Go ahead and try and exchange responses.
I know that was a really hard question. But whether or not your partner gave an answer worthy of winning a Ms Universe contest doesn’t matter. What is important is that we even ask these kinds of questions. More importantly, that we try and find the answers. Because what is knowledge for if it will not benefit others?
In 2000, my husband and I were at a crossroad and were faced with the question, “do we stay in the US where we did our PhDs or do we back to the Philippines?.” By then I was already working with a global company who had offered to sponsor my working visa. Given that choice, we went back and forth trying to answer the question of whether to return or not. We listed the pros and cons of each option but couldn’t really decide. Then we asked the question, “where will our lives be more meaningful?” And suddenly the answer was clear. We packed our bags and went home so we could pay it forward.
I hope you not only remember why questions are important, you also don’t stop asking them. More importantly, I hope you ask the right questions. As you begin to look for jobs, I hope you don’t just ask, “how much will it pay?” Ask yourself, if the job will make you happy, if it will make you grow and if it will give you meaning.
So there – three simple reasons why questions are important. To understand ourselves, to make connections and to help the world. Congratulations everyone and don’t forget - Ask. Answer. Repeat.
Dr. Ma. Cristina d. Padolina, President and Chief Academic Officer, Members of the Administrative Council, Dr. Julieta Dungca, Dean School of Science and Technology, Prof. Melito Salazar, Jr., Dean, School of Accountancy and Management, CEU Faculty and non-teaching staff, Graduates of School of Science and Technology and School of Accountancy and Management – Good morning!
I would like to thank my friend Dr. Chit Salonga and colleague in the Psychological Association of the Philippines for extending this invitation in behalf of CEU. When I told my mother I would be delivering this commencement speech she was tickled pink and for good reason. You see, my grandmother Catalina Melchor used to teach here and was even the chair of the Home Economics Department and my mother Conchita Melchor graduated from CEU. So I am really happy to be here in the institution that nurtured both my grandmother and mother.
So first, let me congratulate all our graduates today, their teachers and family members. As a parent, I know how much sacrifice families go to through to put kids to school. As a teacher, I also know how much teachers and staff invest in caring for their students. But of course, the credit should also rightly go all of you are waiting to receive that diploma that says you did it!
By now, you would have probably asked and answered many questions - why do people act the way they do? What is the best way to automate a system? How do I make a business grow? And for those in Cosmetic Science program - How do I make my client look beautiful?
And it is with our answers that we go marching out to the world. But I’d like to ask - Have you gotten all the answers to your questions? Have you asked all the questions you have?
I hope the answer to these questions is NO because the minute you begin to think we have all the answers that means you didn’t learn enough. Because the world, as we know, is constantly evolving and as soon as we have an answer to one question, another one comes up.
Thus my key message to you today is simple – KEEP ASKING QUESTIONS. And I want to give you three reasons why questions are so important.
First is – questions allow us to understand ourselves as well continuously evolve as people. Are you the same person you are today as you were when you entered college? I hope not. More importantly, who do you want to be?
Questions like these are sometime hard because we don’t reflect on ourselves a lot. But hopefully your answer to who you are today and tomorrow is better than who you were before. Because our main goal as human beings to grow and evolve – so questions are important for self-understanding and growth.
Now, can I ask you to share the answer to the question who do you want to be with your seatmate? What was it like to hear the responses of your seatmate? Do you feel like you know them a little better?
Our lives are increasingly rules by social media. The problem with digital interactions is that they can be really superficial. We limit ourselves to likes, emoticons, GIFs with little meaningful exchange. No wonder more and more children are growing up lacking basic social skills. It also makes me really sad when I go out and watch families or friends together in a table but on their phones rather than talking to each other. In our family, we have a no phone rule when we sit down to eat. This forces us to talk to each other instead of living in cyberspace. So please, next time you are with your friends or family. Put your phones down and ask them a question instead. So that’s my second reason for questions – because they allow us to connect.
The third reason why questions matter is because they are critical if we are to solve our society’s problems. And there are so many – poverty, peace and order, calamities, and yes, even traffic. How can you use your discipline to address the problem of poverty? Go ahead and try and exchange responses.
I know that was a really hard question. But whether or not your partner gave an answer worthy of winning a Ms Universe contest doesn’t matter. What is important is that we even ask these kinds of questions. More importantly, that we try and find the answers. Because what is knowledge for if it will not benefit others?
In 2000, my husband and I were at a crossroad and were faced with the question, “do we stay in the US where we did our PhDs or do we back to the Philippines?.” By then I was already working with a global company who had offered to sponsor my working visa. Given that choice, we went back and forth trying to answer the question of whether to return or not. We listed the pros and cons of each option but couldn’t really decide. Then we asked the question, “where will our lives be more meaningful?” And suddenly the answer was clear. We packed our bags and went home so we could pay it forward.
I hope you not only remember why questions are important, you also don’t stop asking them. More importantly, I hope you ask the right questions. As you begin to look for jobs, I hope you don’t just ask, “how much will it pay?” Ask yourself, if the job will make you happy, if it will make you grow and if it will give you meaning.
So there – three simple reasons why questions are important. To understand ourselves, to make connections and to help the world. Congratulations everyone and don’t forget - Ask. Answer. Repeat.