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Get up in the morning, put on your best dress and get out the door to make the best impression on the potential employer — I still dress up every morning in a suit, tie and pocket square to come to work.
Opiyo Oloya.
By: Admin ., Journalist @New Vision
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OPINION
By Opiyo Oloya
Dear Class of 2026, congratulations on your achievements after many years of hard work in the classroom…” Over the past two weeks, this was the most used phrase from the many speakers celebrating the conclusion of academic pursuits for the graduating class.
Here at Western University, where as many as 8,900 students graduated from various disciplines, including law, education, health sciences, science, medicine, social science, arts and humanities and music, the words were part congratulatory and part encouragement — an appreciation for the work well done, and anticipation for the journey about to begin for most graduates. I heard the same words on Friday at the graduation of my son, Ogaba Loyola, from Toronto Metropolitan University.
The speakers mostly chosen because they have connections with the institutions and have gone on to be successful in whatever field they chose, either in business, academia or in professional careers as lawyers, doctors, teachers, scientists, engineers, nurses and more, brought a sense of what they became after leaving the institution decades earlier, how they navigated an increasingly complex world and still came out on top. Many offered personal stories, often speaking about overcoming setbacks through resilience and community support.
When she received an honorary doctor of laws from Western University, Indigenous elder Elizabeth Akiwenzie, Nistangekwe (“Understanding Woman”), Day ya^yut Do LA Doe (“She Who Sees Both Sides”) spoke passionately about growing up in Canada without knowing her roots. She challenged the graduates to find out who they are, to honour their relationships with their communities and to never stop learning.
At my own son’s graduation on Friday from the Faculty of Engineering, inventor, software developer and motivational speaker Ashraf Habibullah, president and chief executive officer of Computers and Structures Inc, based in California, brought a bit of showbiz by wearing a jacket festooned with hundreds of flickering lights while speaking about what makes a person most successful. For him, it was important for the graduate to build a personality that makes people want to hang around them; a positive, warm and sunny personality is the winning formula.
In the end, the advice the speakers offered amounted to this: There is no road map to a successful and happy life after graduation. What you have are the life experiences accumulated since birth and the skills learned at school to help navigate the road ahead.
You, my friends, in other words, already have many things going for you, the tools you need for success. You have been successful in being where you are, which is very important. So, rather than thinking that you are starting from scratch with an empty vessel for a mind, know that your cup is already half full. All you need to do is fill the cup to the fullest by employing those skills that have been most useful in leading you to this point.
The speakers mostly chosen because they have connections with the institutions and have gone on to be successful in whatever field they chose, either in business, academia or in professional careers as lawyers, doctors, teachers, scientists, engineers, nurses and more, brought a sense of what they became after leaving the institution decades earlier, how they navigated an increasingly complex world and still came out on top. Many offered personal stories, often speaking about overcoming setbacks through resilience and community support.
When she received an honorary doctor of laws from Western University, Indigenous elder Elizabeth Akiwenzie, Nistangekwe (“Understanding Woman”), Day ya^yut Do LA Doe (“She Who Sees Both Sides”) spoke passionately about growing up in Canada without knowing her roots. She challenged the graduates to find out who they are, to honour their relationships with their communities and to never stop learning.
At my own son’s graduation on Friday from the Faculty of Engineering, inventor, software developer and motivational speaker Ashraf Habibullah, president and chief executive officer of Computers and Structures Inc, based in California, brought a bit of showbiz by wearing a jacket festooned with hundreds of flickering lights while speaking about what makes a person most successful. For him, it was important for the graduate to build a personality that makes people want to hang around them; a positive, warm and sunny personality is the winning formula.
In the end, the advice the speakers offered amounted to this: There is no road map to a successful and happy life after graduation. What you have are the life experiences accumulated since birth and the skills learned at school to help navigate the road ahead.
You, my friends, in other words, already have many things going for you, the tools you need for success. You have been successful in being where you are, which is very important. So, rather than thinking that you are starting from scratch with an empty vessel for a mind, know that your cup is already half full. All you need to do is fill the cup to the fullest by employing those skills that have been most useful in leading you to this point.
Among the many skills you already have is the ability to question, analyse, generate options and choose the path that moves you further along your goals. That is to say, when at the so-called fork in the road, however difficult the choice, you have the wherewithal to consider the choices in front of you, whether to go right or left, whether to accept a starting job with hopes of moving up the ladder or take a high-paying job with a dead end for promotion.
Whatever choice you make is the right one — do not second-guess yourself, trust your judgment and gut. When something feels fake, false or empty, and someone is promising the moon while feeding you mud, avoid it because that will deliver only misery. Exploitation is real, and some traffic in other people’s desperation, who will find that weak point to exploit your potential, while willing to sell you for a buck.
If you have already got a job lined up, fine, you need to get in there with enthusiasm to do the best work possible. If you are still searching, as my son is currently doing, do not think less of yourself; instead, think more of what you can bring to the table.
Get up in the morning, put on your best dress and get out the door to make the best impression on the potential employer — I still dress up every morning in a suit, tie and pocket square to come to work. It is my way of telling myself that what I am doing is important not only to myself but to the students, staff and faculty I serve. First impressions matter.
The other skill you already have, which will come in handy, is that of building community. This is probably the most important part of life ahead, one that builds on family support but expands to include the larger communities in which we live. Maintain old friendships while creating new ones, make connections with professionals near and far, people with whom you can share ideas, who will cheer you on as well as pick you up when you falter and hit the proverbial wall.
And, yes, while building community, also keep an eye on who you are becoming, what your purpose is, and what you feel you want out of your life. You must discover the inner you whom you are willing to share with the larger community, and the inner you that you keep for yourself, the sacred part that self-nourishes, grows, learns and continues to progress.
That inner self is never talked about, likely because nobody wants to sound as if they are recluse, self-absorbed jerks, but you must accept that a part of you will always be for you.
Through all this, the happiness and success you imagine for the future, the one everyone tells you to work hard for, is a mirage.
Instead, the successful life is the one you are experiencing right now, the feeling of disappointment and recalibration to start all over again, the life filled with little and the big things that make you laugh, the shared moments with family celebrating birthdays, anniversaries, helping others while discovering the beauty that surrounds you daily — yes, the chirping of the bird in the tree, the petal of flower you see along the way to work, or that someone gives you, children skipping in the yard, finding joy at every turn of life, those are the successes. You will find that the promised treasure at the end of the rainbow is exactly where you already are, not something far away in Neverland. So, cheers, go out there and conquer the world and feel a lot of joy while doing it!
Opiyo.oloya@gmail.com Twitter: @Opiyooloya Dr Opiyo Oloya is the Inaugural Associate Vice-President, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) at Western University, London, Ontario, Canada
Whatever choice you make is the right one — do not second-guess yourself, trust your judgment and gut. When something feels fake, false or empty, and someone is promising the moon while feeding you mud, avoid it because that will deliver only misery. Exploitation is real, and some traffic in other people’s desperation, who will find that weak point to exploit your potential, while willing to sell you for a buck.
If you have already got a job lined up, fine, you need to get in there with enthusiasm to do the best work possible. If you are still searching, as my son is currently doing, do not think less of yourself; instead, think more of what you can bring to the table.
Get up in the morning, put on your best dress and get out the door to make the best impression on the potential employer — I still dress up every morning in a suit, tie and pocket square to come to work. It is my way of telling myself that what I am doing is important not only to myself but to the students, staff and faculty I serve. First impressions matter.
The other skill you already have, which will come in handy, is that of building community. This is probably the most important part of life ahead, one that builds on family support but expands to include the larger communities in which we live. Maintain old friendships while creating new ones, make connections with professionals near and far, people with whom you can share ideas, who will cheer you on as well as pick you up when you falter and hit the proverbial wall.
And, yes, while building community, also keep an eye on who you are becoming, what your purpose is, and what you feel you want out of your life. You must discover the inner you whom you are willing to share with the larger community, and the inner you that you keep for yourself, the sacred part that self-nourishes, grows, learns and continues to progress.
That inner self is never talked about, likely because nobody wants to sound as if they are recluse, self-absorbed jerks, but you must accept that a part of you will always be for you.
Through all this, the happiness and success you imagine for the future, the one everyone tells you to work hard for, is a mirage.
Instead, the successful life is the one you are experiencing right now, the feeling of disappointment and recalibration to start all over again, the life filled with little and the big things that make you laugh, the shared moments with family celebrating birthdays, anniversaries, helping others while discovering the beauty that surrounds you daily — yes, the chirping of the bird in the tree, the petal of flower you see along the way to work, or that someone gives you, children skipping in the yard, finding joy at every turn of life, those are the successes. You will find that the promised treasure at the end of the rainbow is exactly where you already are, not something far away in Neverland. So, cheers, go out there and conquer the world and feel a lot of joy while doing it!
Opiyo.oloya@gmail.com Twitter: @Opiyooloya Dr Opiyo Oloya is the Inaugural Associate Vice-President, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) at Western University, London, Ontario, Canada