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FEATURED ARTICLE
Expect the unexpected By Gary Acosta
F
irst of all, I’m glad we’re here and not doing this over Zoom . . . Thank you, Dean Ian Williamson, professors, distinguished guests, parents and other loved ones. And most of all thank you Class of 2022! Thank you for allowing me to join in celebration of this very special day. I applaud your perseverance through a once-in-a-century pandemic. You’ve remained positive in the face of unprecedented challenges – and doing the work required to graduate from one of country’s best business schools. Your resilience has provided you with a tremendous foundation for your future. I know many of you have jobs lined up and have very clear plans on where you expect your career to go, and some of you have been working during the entirety of your program. It may be a cliché, but I feel confident saying to you that the sky is the limit for each of you. However, . . . the first thing I can tell you is whatever your plans might be today – for most of you, your actual path, both in career and life, probably will turn out very differently than you 22 | JULY 2022
currently imagine. You’re all high achievers, successful people who often get what you want. Yet, as much as you want to control things, one of the greatest things to understand in life and in business is that you never know where the next door is going to lead. I was a lot like you. I was a hard worker and had BIG plans. Soon after college, I started working at a community bank. I wanted to get some work
