Today marked the end of our eight mandatory class meetings and no person could have ended it better than one of the “Ten Outstanding People in the World” – our own Garrett Gravesen. Most of us know Garrett for his completely over-the-top, loud, go-getter personality, but today he showed us all a different side. Garrett opened with the statement, “You can be anything you want to be.” I have heard this statement thousands of times in my life, but for some reason this time it really hit me. Over the past three weeks, we have all had the opportunity to hear from speakers such as Dr. Betty Seigel, Mr. and Mrs. Dooley, and Kevin Chaplin. All of these people throughout their lives have become something great by reaching out and making themselves vulnerable, just as Garrett did six years ago when he came up with the crazy idea of creating HERO. Being great is a choice, and all of these people chose to find their passion and motivation in life to be what they wanted to be.
Garrett told us the story of his visit to Harvard University his freshmen year. While speaking with his girlfriend and some of her classmates, he asked them what it took to get into Harvard. After answering with, “I got a perfect score on the SAT” and “I am the number one flute player in the United States” they asked him “what are you good at?” At that moment, he stepped back and realized that he was not actually great at anything.
The message Garrett delivered to us today is a message that everyone can learn from. There is a difference between being great and being great at something. True greatness is to use great skills and help other people. Do not worry about expectations and boundaries. Follow a passion and be what you want to be. If you do this, you will be great no matter what.
Before ending, he posed the question, “What does it mean to be great on a day-to-day basis?” I thought for a while and realized that the answer to me was pretty simple. Being great on a day to day basis is staying true to yourself. I know that many of us get caught up in being involved with something great without actually being great. I challenge myself and the rest of the Global L.E.A.D members to go home after this trip and find out what makes you “great”.
--Jenny Harvey
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