by Karen Turnquist
As I write this, I’m waiting for my son and my 8 year-old grandson Blake to arrive at my house.
Earlier in the week, I had slated this time to do some of the things on my massive to-do list, including an important proposal that I’ve promised to a prospective client.
But I’m on my front step in a pair of sweatpants and a sweatshirt, waiting for Blake.
And I owe the change in plans to Barbara Bush.
“Cherish your human connections”
As I’m sure you know, the former First Lady passed away at age 92 on April 17.
In reading the many tributes to her, I was reminded of her 1990 commencement address to the graduates of Wellesley University.
As part of what was likely her most well-known address, Barbara offering the following:
- “Find the joy in life because, as Ferris Bueller said on his day off — ‘Life moves pretty fast and if you don’t stop and look around once in a while you are going to miss it.’”
- “Cherish your human connections; your relationships with family and friends. For several years you’ve had impressed upon you the importance to your career of dedication and hard work, and of course that’s true. But as important as your obligations as a doctor, a lawyer, a business leader will be, you are a human being first and those human connections with spouses, with children, with friends are the most important investment you will ever make. At the end of your life, you will never regret not having passed one more test, winning one more verdict, or not closing one more deal. You will regret time not spent with a husband, a child, a friend or a parent.”
I’m envious of the graduates from that 1990 class because those words surely have remained with them and were likely woven into the fabric of their lives from a young age.
While I’m sure I heard snippets of her speech on the news in 1990, they didn’t stick with me. That is, not until I heard them again upon Barbara’s passing.
A lesson learned
The life of an entrepreneur is always about what has to get done now. Everything is urgent.
Everything is on your shoulders.
And everything except work can wait.
Frankly, that’s a lie. And it’s a lie we will all regret if we don’t take Barbara’s advice.
No regrets
I get it. We all want to be successful. But trust me, you’ll get there soon enough—and probably faster than you think.
The important thing is, when you arrive at “success” whenever that is, you don’t want any regrets about what you missed along the way.
So today I’m taking Barbara’s—and Ferris’ advice—and stopping to look around a bit with my son and grandson by my side.
It’s Karen Turnquist’s day off.
And for that I owe a special gratitude to Barbara Bush.
Thank you, Mrs. Bush, for your dignity, your no-nonsense demeanor, your civility and your all-around largesse.
Most of all, thank you for reminding us to make choices we will not regret about how we spend our time, and when possible (which is most of the time), choose the people you love, I’m willing to bet you won’t regret it.
What about you? If reading Barbara Bush’s wise words inspires you to take a day off to spend time with kids, grandkids or someone else who’s special to you, take a few seconds to snap a photo and send it to us. We’d like nothing better than to honor the First Lady by continuing to inspire others to find the joy in life.
As the CEO and founder of Sage Business Credit, Karen Turnquist helps entrepreneurs build value in their businesses. She’s facilitated more than $2 billion in accounts-receivable financing for emerging businesses and believes there’s no greater reward than seeing fellow entrepreneurs succeed.