WEBVTT - Maya’s Advice to New Grads

0:00:14.956 --> 0:00:15.396
<v Speaker 1>Pushkin.

0:00:29.436 --> 0:00:30.836
<v Speaker 2>Hey everyone, it's Maya.

0:00:31.516 --> 0:00:33.676
<v Speaker 1>A few years ago I was invited to give a

0:00:33.676 --> 0:00:37.196
<v Speaker 1>commencement address to graduates of the Juilliard School of Music's

0:00:37.236 --> 0:00:38.636
<v Speaker 1>pre college program.

0:00:38.916 --> 0:00:39.596
<v Speaker 2>As an alum.

0:00:39.916 --> 0:00:42.116
<v Speaker 1>It was an honor to share with the new grads

0:00:42.396 --> 0:00:47.236
<v Speaker 1>some lessons I've learned about embracing life's unexpected changes. As

0:00:47.236 --> 0:00:50.556
<v Speaker 1>we enter commencement season and students all over the world

0:00:50.676 --> 0:00:53.676
<v Speaker 1>embark on the next chapter of their lives, I wanted

0:00:53.676 --> 0:00:56.036
<v Speaker 1>to share this speech with you. I really hope you

0:00:56.156 --> 0:00:57.516
<v Speaker 1>enjoy it.

0:00:57.756 --> 0:01:00.556
<v Speaker 2>Please join me in welcoming Maya Shunker.

0:01:10.756 --> 0:01:17.836
<v Speaker 1>Good afternoon everyone, President Wetzel, Provost Meyer, Dean and Director sprat, Map,

0:01:17.996 --> 0:01:24.356
<v Speaker 1>Artistic Director McGill, pre College Artistic Advisor Kaplinsky, distinguished teachers

0:01:24.396 --> 0:01:30.156
<v Speaker 1>and staff, my former conductor Adam Glazer, friends and family,

0:01:30.596 --> 0:01:33.556
<v Speaker 1>and of course, the graduating class.

0:01:33.116 --> 0:01:35.036
<v Speaker 2>Of twenty twenty three.

0:01:35.116 --> 0:01:39.396
<v Speaker 1>I want to congratulate you on this momentous occasion. I

0:01:39.436 --> 0:01:42.076
<v Speaker 1>hope you are filled with pride over what you have

0:01:42.116 --> 0:01:46.156
<v Speaker 1>all achieved. It is one of the greatest honors of

0:01:46.196 --> 0:01:49.236
<v Speaker 1>my life to be invited to give the commencement speech

0:01:49.916 --> 0:01:52.756
<v Speaker 1>at a school that played such a formative role in

0:01:52.796 --> 0:01:56.596
<v Speaker 1>my development. I'll admit I was pretty nervous in the

0:01:56.676 --> 0:01:59.276
<v Speaker 1>lead up to this speech, but then I remember that

0:01:59.316 --> 0:02:01.316
<v Speaker 1>the last time I was on this stage, I had

0:02:01.356 --> 0:02:05.676
<v Speaker 1>to perform Chaikovsky, and now I simply need to speak words.

0:02:07.876 --> 0:02:08.836
<v Speaker 2>Today, I'd love to.

0:02:08.836 --> 0:02:11.596
<v Speaker 1>Share there are three lessons with you that I've learned

0:02:11.636 --> 0:02:14.836
<v Speaker 1>over the years. I'm hoping they might be helpful to

0:02:14.916 --> 0:02:17.996
<v Speaker 1>you as you embark on this next and exciting chapter

0:02:18.236 --> 0:02:22.036
<v Speaker 1>of your lives. For the first lesson, let's travel back

0:02:22.076 --> 0:02:24.636
<v Speaker 1>to when I was six years old when I first

0:02:24.636 --> 0:02:27.876
<v Speaker 1>asked my parents if I could play the violin. My

0:02:27.956 --> 0:02:31.276
<v Speaker 1>three older siblings had opted for the clarinet, the trumpet,

0:02:31.276 --> 0:02:33.956
<v Speaker 1>and the flute, but I was drawn to the violin

0:02:34.076 --> 0:02:36.956
<v Speaker 1>because my grandmother had played it in a traditional Indian

0:02:36.996 --> 0:02:40.956
<v Speaker 1>style as a little girl, and I adored my grandmother.

0:02:42.356 --> 0:02:45.116
<v Speaker 1>I began by learning the Suzuki method, and after a

0:02:45.196 --> 0:02:48.316
<v Speaker 1>year or so, my parents noticed that while they had

0:02:48.316 --> 0:02:51.036
<v Speaker 1>to nudge me to do lots of things, they rarely

0:02:51.116 --> 0:02:52.916
<v Speaker 1>had to remind me to practice the violin.

0:02:53.516 --> 0:02:57.796
<v Speaker 2>I was all in to help nurture my growing passion.

0:02:57.876 --> 0:03:00.236
<v Speaker 1>My mom found a local violinist who was willing to

0:03:00.236 --> 0:03:02.756
<v Speaker 1>take me on as his first ever student.

0:03:03.636 --> 0:03:05.116
<v Speaker 2>His approach was unconventional.

0:03:05.636 --> 0:03:08.996
<v Speaker 1>I never played scales or atudes, or learned proper vibrato

0:03:09.196 --> 0:03:13.076
<v Speaker 1>technique or the right way to shift across the fingerboard. Instead,

0:03:13.276 --> 0:03:16.716
<v Speaker 1>we skipped straight to the joy of playing pieces. I

0:03:16.796 --> 0:03:20.836
<v Speaker 1>simply watched and mimicked, letting my instincts guide me through

0:03:20.836 --> 0:03:25.796
<v Speaker 1>the music. This was my experience until one spring afternoon

0:03:25.916 --> 0:03:28.916
<v Speaker 1>when I was nine years old. My mom and I

0:03:28.956 --> 0:03:30.956
<v Speaker 1>were in New York City for the weekend, and I

0:03:30.996 --> 0:03:34.076
<v Speaker 1>had my violin with me. We walked over to Lincoln

0:03:34.156 --> 0:03:37.956
<v Speaker 1>Center so that I could see Juilliard up close. By

0:03:37.956 --> 0:03:40.716
<v Speaker 1>that point, I knew of Juilliard and the all time

0:03:40.796 --> 0:03:44.316
<v Speaker 1>greats it had helped nurture. Yo Yo Ma and Medori

0:03:44.556 --> 0:03:48.756
<v Speaker 1>had been my favorites. I'd watched a recording of Medori's

0:03:48.796 --> 0:03:52.836
<v Speaker 1>Carnegie Hall recital dozens of times on my living room TV,

0:03:53.956 --> 0:03:56.556
<v Speaker 1>and so as I stood by the entrance of Juilliard

0:03:56.596 --> 0:04:01.716
<v Speaker 1>that day, I felt goosebumps imagining all the remarkable musicians

0:04:01.756 --> 0:04:04.916
<v Speaker 1>who had walked in and out of this building. I

0:04:04.996 --> 0:04:10.276
<v Speaker 1>resolved to practice harder that next day. Suddenly, my mom

0:04:10.316 --> 0:04:13.356
<v Speaker 1>looked at me and said, very matter of factly, Hey,

0:04:14.036 --> 0:04:16.796
<v Speaker 1>why don't we just go in what do you mean

0:04:17.156 --> 0:04:20.796
<v Speaker 1>just go in? I thought she was nuts. What's the

0:04:20.836 --> 0:04:22.516
<v Speaker 1>worst thing that can happen? Maya?

0:04:22.676 --> 0:04:23.236
<v Speaker 2>She asked me.

0:04:24.076 --> 0:04:27.996
<v Speaker 1>I could think of many worst case scenarios that I agreed,

0:04:28.316 --> 0:04:30.636
<v Speaker 1>and within minutes we were in the lobby with my

0:04:30.756 --> 0:04:34.916
<v Speaker 1>mom asking the staff if we could take a look around. There,

0:04:34.916 --> 0:04:37.516
<v Speaker 1>we stuck up a conversation with a young student named

0:04:37.596 --> 0:04:40.676
<v Speaker 1>Nicole and her mom. They were rushing off to the

0:04:40.676 --> 0:04:43.916
<v Speaker 1>fourth floor for a violin lesson with Nicole's teacher, but

0:04:44.076 --> 0:04:46.516
<v Speaker 1>invited us to join them for the elevator rides so

0:04:46.516 --> 0:04:50.836
<v Speaker 1>that we could keep our conversation going. Nicole was studying

0:04:50.916 --> 0:04:55.116
<v Speaker 1>under one of Juilliard's all star professors, doctor Juan bin Im.

0:04:56.476 --> 0:04:59.316
<v Speaker 1>Doctor Im had studied under Dorothy Delay, who, as you

0:04:59.396 --> 0:05:04.076
<v Speaker 1>might know, taught legends like Itsack Pearlman. Just when I

0:05:04.116 --> 0:05:07.356
<v Speaker 1>thought my mom couldn't pull out any more surprises, she

0:05:07.476 --> 0:05:11.196
<v Speaker 1>turned to Nicole's mom with a question, could they kindly

0:05:11.236 --> 0:05:16.756
<v Speaker 1>introduce us to doctor M after their lesson? Amazingly, one

0:05:16.876 --> 0:05:19.876
<v Speaker 1>hour later, I found myself playing the first movement of

0:05:19.916 --> 0:05:24.316
<v Speaker 1>the Bach Violin Concerto for Doctor M. After I finished playing,

0:05:24.396 --> 0:05:29.796
<v Speaker 1>Doctor M expressed what can charitably be described as muted enthusiasm.

0:05:30.476 --> 0:05:33.356
<v Speaker 1>It was clear that while I had strong musical instincts,

0:05:33.476 --> 0:05:36.356
<v Speaker 1>I did not have the technical skills needed to get

0:05:36.356 --> 0:05:39.556
<v Speaker 1>into a place like Juilliard. But he told me that

0:05:39.596 --> 0:05:42.196
<v Speaker 1>he was taking residence at the Aspen Music Festival that

0:05:42.276 --> 0:05:44.716
<v Speaker 1>summer and would be willing to take me on as

0:05:44.716 --> 0:05:47.436
<v Speaker 1>a temporary student to see if we could level up

0:05:47.476 --> 0:05:51.116
<v Speaker 1>my skills in advance of the Juilliard audition in late August.

0:05:51.676 --> 0:05:56.476
<v Speaker 1>I was giddy with excitement. That summer was a total

0:05:56.756 --> 0:06:00.596
<v Speaker 1>game changer for me. Doctor Im was a fantastic teacher.

0:06:01.236 --> 0:06:03.996
<v Speaker 1>He put me through a rigorous boot camp, and after

0:06:04.156 --> 0:06:08.276
<v Speaker 1>hours of intense practice every day for months, I finally

0:06:08.316 --> 0:06:13.476
<v Speaker 1>completed my Juilliard audition. A few weeks later, we got

0:06:13.476 --> 0:06:17.196
<v Speaker 1>a call from doctor Im. Hello, missus Shunker. He said

0:06:17.196 --> 0:06:20.676
<v Speaker 1>to my mom, is there any chance Maya's name is

0:06:20.716 --> 0:06:25.796
<v Speaker 1>actually Anna? My mom politely answered that no, Anna was

0:06:25.836 --> 0:06:28.956
<v Speaker 1>not my name. Doctor In then explained that he had

0:06:28.996 --> 0:06:32.236
<v Speaker 1>received the list of accepted students at Juilliard and a

0:06:32.276 --> 0:06:36.796
<v Speaker 1>certain Anna Shunker had been on the list. I remember

0:06:36.836 --> 0:06:38.876
<v Speaker 1>thinking I'd be happy to go to a court right

0:06:38.916 --> 0:06:42.636
<v Speaker 1>there and then to register a name change. I had

0:06:42.716 --> 0:06:46.036
<v Speaker 1>only lived nine years on this planet as a Maya,

0:06:46.516 --> 0:06:48.196
<v Speaker 1>I could become an Ana if that's.

0:06:47.996 --> 0:06:49.436
<v Speaker 2>What the situation required of me.

0:06:50.916 --> 0:06:54.356
<v Speaker 1>But thankfully Anna turned out to be me, or I

0:06:54.476 --> 0:06:57.036
<v Speaker 1>turned out to be Anna, or whatever the point is,

0:06:57.396 --> 0:07:00.676
<v Speaker 1>someone somewhere had made a typo, and I was able

0:07:00.716 --> 0:07:04.156
<v Speaker 1>to both keep my real name and enroll at Juilliard

0:07:04.196 --> 0:07:08.276
<v Speaker 1>in the fall. This brings us to the first lesson

0:07:08.316 --> 0:07:11.116
<v Speaker 1>I want to share with all of you. It's about

0:07:11.116 --> 0:07:16.516
<v Speaker 1>the power of what you might call imaginative courage. Imaginative

0:07:16.516 --> 0:07:19.356
<v Speaker 1>courage is what my mom modeled for me by envisioning

0:07:19.396 --> 0:07:22.756
<v Speaker 1>a path to Juilliard in the first place. She was

0:07:22.836 --> 0:07:26.316
<v Speaker 1>unafraid to ask the questions that opened up opportunities I

0:07:26.476 --> 0:07:29.956
<v Speaker 1>hadn't imagined for myself. Why don't we just go in?

0:07:30.556 --> 0:07:33.796
<v Speaker 1>What's the worst that can happen? Might it be possible

0:07:33.836 --> 0:07:37.756
<v Speaker 1>to meet doctor M. By the way, I should note

0:07:37.756 --> 0:07:40.076
<v Speaker 1>that my mom is here in the audience today. Hi.

0:07:40.196 --> 0:07:48.676
<v Speaker 2>Mom.

0:07:48.996 --> 0:07:51.596
<v Speaker 1>Feels good to have gotten an actual invite to enter

0:07:51.636 --> 0:07:52.396
<v Speaker 1>the building this day.

0:07:52.476 --> 0:07:56.636
<v Speaker 2>Right when I said earlier.

0:07:56.196 --> 0:07:58.356
<v Speaker 1>That I didn't have a chance of getting into Juilliard

0:07:58.356 --> 0:08:00.796
<v Speaker 1>when I first played for Doctor M that spring day,

0:08:01.236 --> 0:08:05.116
<v Speaker 1>I was not being falsely modest doctor m later confessed

0:08:05.156 --> 0:08:07.356
<v Speaker 1>to my mom that when he first heard me play,

0:08:07.556 --> 0:08:10.516
<v Speaker 1>he also felt my chances or slim, but that he

0:08:10.636 --> 0:08:16.396
<v Speaker 1>quote appreciated Maya's enthusiasm. My mom had created a critical

0:08:16.436 --> 0:08:19.596
<v Speaker 1>opening for me. If she had not taken that bold step,

0:08:19.876 --> 0:08:22.916
<v Speaker 1>I would never have experienced the joy and growth that

0:08:22.956 --> 0:08:26.836
<v Speaker 1>I had here at Juilliard. Some of you here will

0:08:26.876 --> 0:08:30.116
<v Speaker 1>go on to become professional musicians. Others of you may

0:08:30.116 --> 0:08:32.596
<v Speaker 1>become teachers, or doctors or activists.

0:08:33.596 --> 0:08:35.436
<v Speaker 2>Your paths will develop.

0:08:34.996 --> 0:08:38.516
<v Speaker 1>And change, and there will be times when it seems

0:08:38.516 --> 0:08:41.596
<v Speaker 1>like what you want and hope for does not exist

0:08:41.876 --> 0:08:45.756
<v Speaker 1>or isn't possible. But this is when you can call

0:08:45.876 --> 0:08:49.836
<v Speaker 1>on your Juilliard training. A good musician knows that there

0:08:49.916 --> 0:08:53.596
<v Speaker 1>is more to a great performance than simply playing the

0:08:53.636 --> 0:08:56.676
<v Speaker 1>notes on the page. They know how to bring forth

0:08:56.796 --> 0:09:01.036
<v Speaker 1>beauty and create feeling based not on what's there yet,

0:09:01.116 --> 0:09:04.916
<v Speaker 1>but what they have imagined in their minds. As musicians,

0:09:04.956 --> 0:09:08.116
<v Speaker 1>you all know how to look beyond the page, and

0:09:08.236 --> 0:09:14.196
<v Speaker 1>life will requireire more of this same imagination. Years after

0:09:14.236 --> 0:09:16.716
<v Speaker 1>my time at Juilliard, I ended up getting my PhD

0:09:16.836 --> 0:09:19.476
<v Speaker 1>in cognitive science, where I study the science of human

0:09:19.516 --> 0:09:23.316
<v Speaker 1>behavior and decision making. I realized that rather than work

0:09:23.356 --> 0:09:26.436
<v Speaker 1>in a lab, which was the expected path, I wanted

0:09:26.476 --> 0:09:29.236
<v Speaker 1>to use my knowledge to improve how we designed government

0:09:29.276 --> 0:09:32.436
<v Speaker 1>programs and policies so that they could better serve people.

0:09:33.356 --> 0:09:36.036
<v Speaker 1>But there was no such position available to apply for,

0:09:36.916 --> 0:09:40.396
<v Speaker 1>and so I did for myself what my mom had

0:09:40.436 --> 0:09:44.076
<v Speaker 1>once done for me. I asked questions and took a

0:09:44.116 --> 0:09:47.916
<v Speaker 1>bold step. Why don't I just go in? What's the

0:09:47.916 --> 0:09:51.916
<v Speaker 1>worst that can happen? I sent a cold email to

0:09:51.996 --> 0:09:54.956
<v Speaker 1>an advisor in the Obama White House asking if they'd

0:09:54.956 --> 0:09:57.236
<v Speaker 1>be willing to create a new position for someone with

0:09:57.316 --> 0:09:59.556
<v Speaker 1>my training and ideally.

0:09:59.276 --> 0:10:00.636
<v Speaker 2>Hire me for the role.

0:10:02.076 --> 0:10:05.116
<v Speaker 1>Days later, I was interviewing with the White House and

0:10:05.156 --> 0:10:08.796
<v Speaker 1>they ended up hiring me. My years working in public

0:10:08.796 --> 0:10:11.636
<v Speaker 1>policy ended up being some of the most rewarding and

0:10:11.716 --> 0:10:15.196
<v Speaker 1>impactful of my life, and they wouldn't have happened if

0:10:15.196 --> 0:10:18.476
<v Speaker 1>I hadn't been inspired by my mom to imagine something

0:10:18.836 --> 0:10:21.796
<v Speaker 1>beyond the existing page.

0:10:22.076 --> 0:10:24.276
<v Speaker 2>Okay, now back to my story with the violin.

0:10:25.556 --> 0:10:28.476
<v Speaker 1>After I was accepted at Juilliard, my life assumed a

0:10:28.516 --> 0:10:31.756
<v Speaker 1>new rhythm. Every Saturday, my mom and I would wake

0:10:31.796 --> 0:10:33.756
<v Speaker 1>up at four thirty in the morning to catch a

0:10:33.796 --> 0:10:36.516
<v Speaker 1>train from Connecticut to New York so I could take

0:10:36.556 --> 0:10:39.036
<v Speaker 1>part in a full day of classes. You all know

0:10:39.116 --> 0:10:45.276
<v Speaker 1>the drill, private lessons, orchestra music theory, ear training, scale class, masterclasses,

0:10:45.356 --> 0:10:48.596
<v Speaker 1>chamber music, and of course gossiping about who got what

0:10:48.716 --> 0:10:53.116
<v Speaker 1>part and who we had crushes on. By the way, Shunseegesato,

0:10:53.276 --> 0:10:56.996
<v Speaker 1>if you ever hear this, I recently discovered diary entries

0:10:57.036 --> 0:11:00.276
<v Speaker 1>about you, in which I wrote things like, oh my god,

0:11:00.356 --> 0:11:01.796
<v Speaker 1>he is so good.

0:11:01.636 --> 0:11:02.316
<v Speaker 2>At the violin.

0:11:03.036 --> 0:11:05.876
<v Speaker 1>We could play a duet at our wedding, but he'd

0:11:05.996 --> 0:11:13.796
<v Speaker 1>definitely be the first violin part. All my Juilliard training

0:11:13.916 --> 0:11:17.836
<v Speaker 1>began to pay off. I started winning concerto competitions and

0:11:17.876 --> 0:11:21.996
<v Speaker 1>soloing with orchestras in the Juilliard Pre College Orchestra. The

0:11:22.076 --> 0:11:26.476
<v Speaker 1>distance between Shunseke's concert master chair and my chair began

0:11:26.516 --> 0:11:30.716
<v Speaker 1>to decrease. When I was thirteen, it saw Pearlman invited

0:11:30.756 --> 0:11:34.356
<v Speaker 1>me to be his private violin student. Mister p as

0:11:34.356 --> 0:11:37.436
<v Speaker 1>we affectionately called him, gave me the vote of confidence

0:11:37.436 --> 0:11:39.916
<v Speaker 1>I needed to start believing I might be able to

0:11:39.956 --> 0:11:44.316
<v Speaker 1>go pro one day. But then one summer morning, when

0:11:44.316 --> 0:11:47.516
<v Speaker 1>I was fifteen, I was at the Pearlman Music Program

0:11:47.556 --> 0:11:50.156
<v Speaker 1>practicing Paganini's challenging.

0:11:49.876 --> 0:11:51.276
<v Speaker 2>Caprice number thirteen.

0:11:52.356 --> 0:11:55.196
<v Speaker 1>I was struggling to get this one passage right and

0:11:55.276 --> 0:11:57.876
<v Speaker 1>I overstretched my finger on a single note.

0:11:58.236 --> 0:11:59.036
<v Speaker 2>I heard a pop.

0:12:01.356 --> 0:12:03.636
<v Speaker 1>It was not a string that had popped, but a

0:12:03.716 --> 0:12:07.716
<v Speaker 1>tendon in my hand. For months, I remained in denial

0:12:07.796 --> 0:12:11.716
<v Speaker 1>about my injury. I continued to play through pain until

0:12:11.756 --> 0:12:16.196
<v Speaker 1>the pain got so severe I needed surgery, and when

0:12:16.236 --> 0:12:19.516
<v Speaker 1>that wasn't successful, doctors finally told me I had to

0:12:19.556 --> 0:12:25.316
<v Speaker 1>stop playing altogether. I found myself grieving not just the

0:12:25.356 --> 0:12:28.556
<v Speaker 1>loss of the instrument, but also the loss of myself.

0:12:29.956 --> 0:12:32.676
<v Speaker 1>If I was in an airport without a violent strap

0:12:32.716 --> 0:12:35.596
<v Speaker 1>around my shoulder, it felt like I was missing a limb.

0:12:37.236 --> 0:12:40.996
<v Speaker 1>The violin had defined me for so long, and without it,

0:12:41.076 --> 0:12:45.436
<v Speaker 1>I felt stuck. I would later learn that this experience

0:12:45.516 --> 0:12:48.796
<v Speaker 1>is known as identity paralysis, and it happens to a

0:12:48.796 --> 0:12:53.756
<v Speaker 1>lot of us when we experience unexpected, unwanted change, who

0:12:53.756 --> 0:12:56.556
<v Speaker 1>we think we are and what we're about is suddenly

0:12:56.596 --> 0:13:01.316
<v Speaker 1>called into question. Ultimately, I found my way again as

0:13:01.356 --> 0:13:05.796
<v Speaker 1>a cognitive scientist, but this formative experience with change seated

0:13:05.836 --> 0:13:09.396
<v Speaker 1>a curiosity in me about how we as humans navigate

0:13:09.476 --> 0:13:12.756
<v Speaker 1>the big changes in our lives and reckon with the

0:13:12.836 --> 0:13:17.316
<v Speaker 1>shifts and self identity that often accompany them. It's a

0:13:17.356 --> 0:13:20.236
<v Speaker 1>topic I've been exploring over the past few years on

0:13:20.276 --> 0:13:23.836
<v Speaker 1>my podcast, A Slight Change of Plans, where I marry

0:13:23.916 --> 0:13:27.676
<v Speaker 1>science and storytelling to help give us better tools for

0:13:27.796 --> 0:13:34.156
<v Speaker 1>handling life's twists and turns. Making this show inspired me

0:13:34.276 --> 0:13:38.436
<v Speaker 1>to revisit my own relationship with the violin. I realized

0:13:38.436 --> 0:13:41.156
<v Speaker 1>that what I missed most about playing the violin was

0:13:41.156 --> 0:13:43.916
<v Speaker 1>that it had given me a vehicle for connecting emotionally

0:13:43.996 --> 0:13:46.956
<v Speaker 1>with others. It turned out that this was at the

0:13:47.036 --> 0:13:50.676
<v Speaker 1>root of my passion for music, and a hopeful message

0:13:50.756 --> 0:13:54.556
<v Speaker 1>emerged from this insight. While I had lost the ability

0:13:54.556 --> 0:13:58.076
<v Speaker 1>to play the violin, I could still find this underlying

0:13:58.156 --> 0:14:02.916
<v Speaker 1>love of human connection in other pursuits. This brings us

0:14:02.956 --> 0:14:06.196
<v Speaker 1>to the second lesson I've learned. We can anchor our

0:14:06.196 --> 0:14:08.436
<v Speaker 1>identities not to what we do.

0:14:08.756 --> 0:14:10.116
<v Speaker 2>But why we do it.

0:14:11.476 --> 0:14:13.636
<v Speaker 1>Thinking of our identities in this way can make us

0:14:13.676 --> 0:14:18.036
<v Speaker 1>more resilient in the face of change. As you imagine

0:14:18.036 --> 0:14:21.236
<v Speaker 1>your future, ask yourself what drives you to do the

0:14:21.236 --> 0:14:25.236
<v Speaker 1>things you love, what really lights you up about them?

0:14:25.796 --> 0:14:29.636
<v Speaker 1>Connecting emotionally with people is what makes me tick. For you,

0:14:29.756 --> 0:14:32.956
<v Speaker 1>it might be a love of storytelling, or learning new things,

0:14:33.076 --> 0:14:37.916
<v Speaker 1>or challenging yourselves or helping others. Whatever it is, remember

0:14:37.956 --> 0:14:41.236
<v Speaker 1>this can help you feel grounded during periods of uncertainty,

0:14:41.676 --> 0:14:45.156
<v Speaker 1>guiding you towards your next steps while still retaining the

0:14:45.196 --> 0:14:49.996
<v Speaker 1>core of who you are. The third and final lesson

0:14:50.036 --> 0:14:53.836
<v Speaker 1>that I've learned is to make space for awe. I

0:14:53.916 --> 0:14:56.356
<v Speaker 1>remember one night when I was twelve and at the

0:14:56.356 --> 0:15:00.316
<v Speaker 1>Aspen Music Festival. I was lying in bed in the dark,

0:15:00.516 --> 0:15:04.596
<v Speaker 1>listening to recording of Ams Sophie Mutter playing the Beethoven

0:15:04.676 --> 0:15:08.316
<v Speaker 1>Violin Concerto on my Discman, you see, there are these

0:15:08.356 --> 0:15:11.916
<v Speaker 1>things called sa that we once listened to Class of

0:15:11.956 --> 0:15:16.716
<v Speaker 1>twenty twenty three. My heart raced along with the melody,

0:15:17.116 --> 0:15:20.316
<v Speaker 1>and I felt shivers down my spine during certain phrases.

0:15:21.396 --> 0:15:25.076
<v Speaker 1>I was simply awestruck by how beautiful the music was

0:15:25.716 --> 0:15:30.156
<v Speaker 1>and how it made me feel. But as I got older,

0:15:30.396 --> 0:15:32.836
<v Speaker 1>there were many moments when I lost sight of how

0:15:32.836 --> 0:15:37.676
<v Speaker 1>extraordinary music is. Especially in my teens, I became a

0:15:37.796 --> 0:15:41.676
<v Speaker 1>far more self conscious musician, fearful of how my peers

0:15:41.716 --> 0:15:44.996
<v Speaker 1>would judge my playing, envious of those who seemed to

0:15:44.996 --> 0:15:49.916
<v Speaker 1>play effortlessly and burdened by the competitive nature of performance.

0:15:50.956 --> 0:15:54.836
<v Speaker 1>My constant mental chatter focused on all the wrong stuff,

0:15:55.636 --> 0:16:00.276
<v Speaker 1>muted the awe and then, as you know, I.

0:16:00.236 --> 0:16:03.876
<v Speaker 2>Stopped being able to play. A few years after my.

0:16:03.876 --> 0:16:08.556
<v Speaker 1>Injury, I was diagnosed with juvenile rheumatoid arthritis. This fully

0:16:08.636 --> 0:16:11.396
<v Speaker 1>ended any hope that the violin might still be a

0:16:11.396 --> 0:16:12.396
<v Speaker 1>part of my future.

0:16:14.116 --> 0:16:15.756
<v Speaker 2>But then something else happened.

0:16:16.996 --> 0:16:19.796
<v Speaker 1>One day in graduate school, I learned that I had

0:16:19.836 --> 0:16:24.436
<v Speaker 1>been misdiagnosed. I could stop taking the immunosuppressant drugs and

0:16:24.436 --> 0:16:27.516
<v Speaker 1>anti inflammatories that had been a staple of my day

0:16:27.556 --> 0:16:29.316
<v Speaker 1>to day life for six years up.

0:16:29.316 --> 0:16:31.076
<v Speaker 2>Until that point.

0:16:31.796 --> 0:16:36.116
<v Speaker 1>A week later, I received a phone call the organizers

0:16:36.156 --> 0:16:38.676
<v Speaker 1>of an academic conference I was slated to attend in

0:16:38.716 --> 0:16:41.516
<v Speaker 1>South Africa that summer let me know that they had

0:16:41.516 --> 0:16:46.716
<v Speaker 1>a surprise guest of honor, the violinist Joshua Bell, and

0:16:46.756 --> 0:16:48.716
<v Speaker 1>they wanted to know if I'd like to perform the

0:16:48.756 --> 0:16:50.116
<v Speaker 1>back double with him.

0:16:51.596 --> 0:16:53.396
<v Speaker 2>They had no idea.

0:16:53.156 --> 0:16:56.156
<v Speaker 1>That it had been years since I picked up my violin,

0:16:56.836 --> 0:16:59.356
<v Speaker 1>or that I had so much scar tissue built up

0:16:59.396 --> 0:17:02.676
<v Speaker 1>in my hand. I realistically only had a concert or

0:17:02.676 --> 0:17:03.956
<v Speaker 1>two left in me period.

0:17:04.956 --> 0:17:06.356
<v Speaker 2>I wanted this to be one of them.

0:17:08.596 --> 0:17:12.356
<v Speaker 1>That night, I performed with Josh Bell on an outdoor

0:17:12.436 --> 0:17:17.356
<v Speaker 1>stage under a starry sky in South Africa. In the

0:17:17.396 --> 0:17:20.076
<v Speaker 1>middle of the second movement, when the two violins sing

0:17:20.116 --> 0:17:25.516
<v Speaker 1>in unison, an old familiar feeling returned. My heart raced

0:17:25.716 --> 0:17:30.476
<v Speaker 1>and I was in awe of the music. How lucky

0:17:30.556 --> 0:17:34.996
<v Speaker 1>are we as humans to be moved by music? It

0:17:35.036 --> 0:17:38.876
<v Speaker 1>is remarkable that a collection of musical notes arranged just

0:17:38.996 --> 0:17:43.716
<v Speaker 1>so can bring us to tears. Whether it's the Beethoven

0:17:43.796 --> 0:17:48.316
<v Speaker 1>Emperor Concerto or Taylor Swift's all too well ten minute version,

0:17:48.916 --> 0:17:52.636
<v Speaker 1>I mean, it is really great. Feelings of awe can

0:17:52.676 --> 0:17:55.436
<v Speaker 1>help us tap into better versions of who we are

0:17:55.556 --> 0:17:59.436
<v Speaker 1>as humans. Research shows that in the presence of awe,

0:17:59.476 --> 0:18:03.396
<v Speaker 1>we focus less on ourselves and more on others. We

0:18:03.516 --> 0:18:06.916
<v Speaker 1>become more generous, and we're more inclined to feel that

0:18:06.956 --> 0:18:12.396
<v Speaker 1>we are part of something bigger than ourselves. Today, as

0:18:12.396 --> 0:18:15.996
<v Speaker 1>you celebrate what you have achieved and you begin to

0:18:16.036 --> 0:18:20.356
<v Speaker 1>anticipate the joys and challenges that lie ahead, remember to

0:18:20.436 --> 0:18:25.356
<v Speaker 1>practice imaginative courage. Remember that who you are is far

0:18:25.476 --> 0:18:30.156
<v Speaker 1>richer than you may think, and seek out awe because

0:18:30.156 --> 0:18:32.756
<v Speaker 1>it can inspire you to connect with the best parts

0:18:32.796 --> 0:18:36.716
<v Speaker 1>of yourselves. I cannot wait to see the impact you

0:18:36.796 --> 0:18:38.116
<v Speaker 1>each have on this world.

0:18:39.276 --> 0:18:41.356
<v Speaker 2>Congrats again and thank you so much.

0:19:15.396 --> 0:19:18.556
<v Speaker 1>I really hope that you enjoyed this commencement address. I'd

0:19:18.556 --> 0:19:20.956
<v Speaker 1>love to hear from you about the best life advice

0:19:21.036 --> 0:19:24.116
<v Speaker 1>you've been given. Share your thoughts with us at slight

0:19:24.236 --> 0:19:28.276
<v Speaker 1>Change at Pushkin dot fm. That's Slight Change at Pushkin

0:19:28.436 --> 0:19:31.356
<v Speaker 1>dot fm. And of course we'll be back in a

0:19:31.396 --> 0:19:34.516
<v Speaker 1>week with a fresh episode of a slight Change of Plans.

0:19:34.876 --> 0:19:35.556
<v Speaker 1>I'll see you then,