Early Career Advice

Obama's career advice for young people -- Just learn how to get stuff done. What I mean by that is I've seen at every level people who are very good at describing problems, people who are very sophisticated at explaining why something went wrong or why something can't get fixed. But, what I’m always looking for is,... See more

When you select a profession, you are choosing the scenes that will compose your life. You should think pretty hard about those scenes. If you start a plumbing company with more than one employee, you will be telling plumbers what to do. You’d better enjoy hanging out with plumbers, and telling them what to do. And when you ask yourself whether... See more

Maintain a diversity of pursuits — you want to ensure that, no matter how engrossed you become in one, you never forget that the others exist.

Advice for those in their 20s: “ten years from now, you need to be able to say that this is the life you chose, not one you settled for.” A future that is created intentionally is more pleasant than one that is scrapped together by avoidance-driven choices.