In commencement speech President Obama tells college grads that financial success should not be their goal in life

 

n commencement speech President Obama tells college grads that financial success should not be their goal in life

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Hoping to start a small business that some day turns into a big business and rakes in lots of profits so you can buy a multimillion dollar home and take the vacations you always dreamed of? Well, President Barack Obama has a message for you: that’s selfish.
Fresh off the heels of a Time magazine cover story which dubbed today’s young people as the “The Me Me Me Generation,” President Obama told the graduates of Morehouse College in Atlanta, Ga. today that their goal in life should not be to make money – it should be to help people. Making money should be an added bonus, the President announced.
“I know that some of you came to Morehouse from communities where life was about keeping your head down and looking out for yourself.  Maybe you feel like you escaped, and now you can take your degree and get that fancy job and the nice house and the nice car — and never look back,” President Obama told graduates of the historically black, all-male college on Sunday afternoon, later adding, “No one expects you to take a vow of poverty. But I will say it betrays a poverty of ambition if all you think about is what goods you can buy instead of what good you can do.”
During his speech, President Obama broadly touched on the societal issues that plague the African-American community, including the lack of strong male role models. The President also encouraged the male graduates not to forget their humble upbringings and urged them to become “Morehouse Men” who do not shy away from taking responsibility for their actions.
“That’s what we’ve come to expect from you, Morehouse — a legacy of leaders — not just in our black community, but for the entire American community,” Obama told the men. “To be successful, but also to understand that each of us has responsibilities not just to ourselves, but to one another and to future generations.”
Ironically, the President’s speech was devoid of any examples of himself taking responsibility for how his actions have affected current and “future generations” of African-Americans.
The President encouraged the new grads to pursue their dreams, but he argued that financial success isn’t admirable on its own. Financial success is only praiseworthy if one does their fair share in society by using their position to aid the less fortunate.
“Sure, go get your MBA, or start that business. We need black businesses out there. But ask yourselves what broader purpose your business might serve, in putting people to work, or transforming a neighborhood,” Obama said.
With no business experience of his own to draw from, President Obama relied solely on advice from “successful” CEOs he knows — but did not name — to guide his counsel for wannabe business owners.
“The most successful CEOs I know didn’t start out intent just on making money — rather, they had a vision of how their product or service would change things, and the money followed,” President Obama claimed.
The key to success, the President said, is ‘hard work’ and ‘doing what’s right.”
“Success may not come quickly or easily. But if you strive to do what’s right, if you work harder and dream bigger, if you set an example in your own lives and do your part to help meet the challenges of our time, then I’m confident that, together, we will continue the never-ending task of perfecting our union,” he said.
Likewise, President Obama discouraged graduates headed to law school from only defending “the rich and powerful,” encouraging them to “also find some time to defend the powerless.”
Kelsey Osterman contributed to this article.