Graduation Speech: Ill Never Forget :: Graduation Speech, Commencement Address

During the years I've been at Best College, I have learned what it means to be an adult and make choices that determine my future. I began attending this college as when I was a senior at County High School. My graduating class was just over 100 students, and consisted of students predominately like myself. My first class here introduced me to a more diverse group of students and I had the opportunity to study with people of all ages and ethnicities. As I became involved with the college's art and literary magazine and the student newspaper, I had additional opportunities to work with people from around the world. It's difficult to comprehend how much we can learn from each other until we are given that opportunity, and I know that I was given that opportunity here at Best College. Now, after two years of hard work, I am ready to move on. Although I'm excited about the next chapter in my life, I will never forget the tremendous people I've met at Best College. Many of the students I've met and the teachers I've had the privilege to learn from, have made significant impacts on my life. Stanley Kunitz wrote a poem called The Layers, of which I would like to share an excerpt with you: I have walked through many lives, some of them my own, and I am not who I was, though some principle of being abides, from which I struggle not to stray. When I look behind, as I am compelled to look before I can gather strength to proceed on my journey, I see the milestones dwindling toward the horizon and the slow fires trailing from the abandoned camp-sites, over which scavenger angels wheel on heavy wings. In a rising wind the manic dust of my friends, those who fell along the way, bitterly stings my face. Yet I turn, I turn, exulting somewhat, with my will intact to go wherever I need to go, and every stone on the road precious to me. In my darkest night, when the moon was covered and I roamed through wreckage, a nimbus-clouded voice directed me: "Live in the layers, not on the litter." Though I lack the art to decipher it, no doubt the next chapter in my book of transformations

Intersoft Argentina Essay

Intersoft was founded in 1983 and was one of the fastest growing high tech companies in latin America. It holds 30% of the Argentine open systems software market. In 1994 since the market was moving from procedural programming and character based interface design which was Intersoft’s traditional strength toward object oriented and programming and GUIs. So since orgland had extensive experience in Graphic user interfaces (GUI), it was a perfect fit to work vit was a young and dynamic team. Even though Russians and Argentines have similarities in their culture there are some key differences which poses a challenge for them to work together. Russians are more anarchical and hierarchical and more rebellious towards authority. Whereas Argentines don’t rebel against authorities, they simply ignore them. Russians don’t think its right for a peer to share views with a boss if there’s a possibility of agreement at the peer level whereas Argentines donot respect those boundaries. This was one of the main reasons of disagreement between Hernan and Alexey. Also the language interpretation was one of problems that increased the misunderstanding. The resistance by both individuals to discuss the problem face to face and resorting to emails did not help the situation either. To diffuse the situation Emilio should meet with Alexey and Hernan and take into consideration both their view points about the disagreement. All three should work collaboratively and resolve to a common ground where they all agree. Emilio should also discourage communication via emails which increases tension among employees in situations of disagreement. When different cultures are brought to work together, leadership plays a critical role to ensure team work. International businesses are facing new challenges to their internal communication structures due to major reforms brought about through internationalization, downsizing, mergers, acquisitions and joint ventures. Lack of investment in cross cultural training and language tuition often leads to deficient internal cohesion. The internal conflicts, poor working relations, misunderstandings, stress, poor productivity and lack of co-operation are all by products of poor cross cultural communication. Training – Emilio has to adopt various trainings to promote effective communication and teamwork. Individual development – the executives should be trained on different cultures. Their knowledge of different cultures be constantly be upgraded. Encourage strong intercultural relationships. Language training – all employees should be trained on language together. The Russians and Argentines should be trained on English language together so that communication becomes easier among them. Encourage discussions between them and ensure they maintain strong eye contact. Bring in outside experts – Use training content and delivery by specialists with direct experience and indepth knowledge of both Argentine and Russian cultures as well as expertise in the field of cross-cultural communication. Integrate training into new employee orientation – for both Intersoft and Orgland integrate training of Argentine and Russian cultures a part of regular induction processes for new employees. Reinforce the training with mentoring – ensure that training is effective by a continued effort of mentoring by forming teams of argentine and Russian counterparts to work together on projects and office activities like organizing an event or party, etc. Incorporate the best of both cultures: Emilio has the advantage to adopt the best aspects of both cultures into Intersoft. Office environment – The layout of Intersoft did not promote team work as the Argentines were seated together and the Russians sat together.

Frederick Douglass An Influential Leader Of The...

Frederick Douglass was born into slavery in the Chesapeake Bay in Maryland. He moved around many plantations. He was not raised by his parents and he received no education. From the start, Douglass’ life was destined for him to live and die a slave and have no meaningful impact on society. Despite these horrific conditions, Frederick Douglass became one of the most influential leaders of the abolitionist movement. This was largely because of his commitment to self education, his reliance on nonviolence and his use of the written and spoken word to gain widespread support from both the black and white communities to end slavery in America. Frederick Douglass was born into slavery and through self education gained his freedom and became a†¦show more content†¦He soon learned four letters which were commonly embossed on incoming ships. After learning those letters, he would challenge local children to see who knew more letters. With this, he would write down the letters he knew and the children would write down the letters which they knew, and by this ingenious method of trickery, Douglass learned how to write. Also, when Master Auld was away, Douglass would copy what was written down in Auld’s copy-book. Douglass’ self education ultimately led him to his escape from slavery. His rags to riches story represented the notion of the American dream. He came from nothing, worked hard to completely self educate himself and gained freedom because of this. And as a result of this story, he became an empathetic individual and he ultimately gained widespread respect and following from the elite, wealthy, whi te slave abolitionists, who furthered his cause. Frederick Douglass’ self education caused him to become even more aware of the wretched conditions of slavery. Despite this awareness and anger, Douglass never let his inner anger translate into violence in the abolitionist movement. By being educated, Douglass was able to fully understand the horrors of slavery. Douglass’ knowledge caused him to: At times feel that learning to read had been a curse rather than a blessing. It had given [him] a view of [his] wretched condition, without the remedy. It opened [his] eyes to the horrible pit, but to noShow MoreRelatedEliot s Influences On Literature1013 Words   |  5 PagesFrederick Douglass and T.S. Eliot’s Influences On Literature The nineteenth and twentieth century were pivotal times in the world of literature. Many new elements of writing and style were evolving and authors all over the world were finding ways to present what they felt most passionate about. Some writers opened their readers up to newer ideas by the means of, as Ezra Pound once stated, â€Å"making it new.† Two writers in particular who did a fantastic job of this were Frederick Douglass and T.S.Read MoreHarriet Tubman And Frederick Douglass1749 Words   |  7 PagesAbolitionism is a movement that deals with racial inequalities in early America and slavery. This movement impacted the economy, because people wanted to keep slaves around to use them in the south, which has an agriculturally based economy. Leaders like Harriet Tubman, Frederick Douglass, and William Lloyd Garrison were instrumental in freeing the black slaves and helping draw attention to the grave inequalities between the races in the United States. Through Harriet Tubman’s growth from a slaveRead MoreFrederick Douglass Essay559 Words   |  3 PagesFrederick Douglass Born Frederick Augustus Washington Bailey on Marylands Eastern Shore in 1818, he was the son of a slave woman and, her white master. 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He was born onRead MoreThe Cotton Gin1708 Words   |  7 Pageseconomic backbone of the South, and as it became more widespread after Eli Whitney’s invention of the cotton gin, it became as strong as the political and social foundation of Southern character as well. Although there were times of early abolitionist movements that came from the Southern states, it was primarily a Northern political goal, which was not recognized until after the destruction of the Civil War and the process of the Thirteenth Amendment. Without the ability to practice slavery, itRead MoreRederick Douglass Once Said â€Å"The Thing Worse Than Rebellion1821 Words   |  8 Pagesrederick Douglass once said â€Å"The thing worse than rebellion is the thing that causes rebellion.† This quote was in regards to the slavery and oppression plaguing America in the 18th and 19th century. Rebellion is an act of violent or nonviolent disobedience that typically occurs as a result of being treated unfairly or inhumanly. So, what makes a rebellion effective when protesting against slavery? An effective slave rebellion would be one that improves social equality from previous social situationsRead MoreIndustrialization Of The 19th Century1886 Words   |  8 Pagesslavery. Slave uprisings in the south intensified from the early 1800s until the Civil War, as did the abolitionist movement and efforts of the Underground Railroad (biography.com. 2014). The division between North and South was further amplified by northerners who found it easy to be critical of southern slave owners, since most northern slaves already had been freed. Many northern abolitionists were Christians, and believed it was their God-given duty to protect the slaves. Southern advocates of