Yogi Bear Quotes

Baseball Hall of Fame Yogi Berra's second claim to fame is for being one of the most quoted figures in the sports world. He is credited with coining the deceptively simplistic observation, "It ain't over till it's over." But he's also known for his flubs. "This is like deja vu all over again."  "When you come to a fork in the road, take it.”

I had the pleasure of speaking to a group of MIS and IT students at a major University this month.  And, I was able to “observe a lot by watching”.

By default, those who attended this student organized event are predisposed to success. Simply by attending the lecture, these young men and women demonstrated a proactive, energetic “make your own luck” attitude that (in my humble opinion) will guarantee their success in the world of business. They could have spent their lunch hour anywhere on campus, hanging out with their friends.  But they put my presentation on their calendar; they made the time to listen to someone from the world of business, to gleam any nuggets of wisdom, to pick up any possible advice, and to add that knowledge to their already diverse (and very expensive) education.

We certainly live in amazing times. Students have access to more knowledge, and can tap into more real-time information online, than ever before.  Just how much information are we trying to absorb? At the 2010 Techonomy conference in Lake Tahoe, California, Google's CEO Eric Schmidt stated that every two days people create as much information as they did from the dawn of civilization to 2003, about five exabytes of data.


We are living in the age of Google, YouTube, Distance Learning, and the iPad.  In 2010 The University of Phoenix invested over $1B (that's billion) in perfecting online education.  This year, it shall be $2B.  Students can view lectures and riveting talks by remarkable people for free on www.TED.com in High Definition from anywhere in the world. 

There are some things in this world that you cannot teach.  Passion is one. Creativity is another. I am blessed to have found a career path that allows me to live my passion for technology every single day. And I learn something new every day. I see more opportunity in the world of business today, than when I was in college. 


Oh, how I wish I could trade places with these students, and have access to the tools and distance learning technologies that they have at their fingertips.

Yogi said "Baseball is 90% mental -- the other half is physical." I think we can say the same thing about education.  Those who want to learn will learn.  Those who hope to get an education and pursue a career in their dedicated fields of study – they will find a way.  The future is brighter than ever, but only for those who are serious and honest with themselves. Passion cannot be found online or in the campus library – a successful career will always be found from within.

By the way, for those of you who caught the “Yogi Bear” error in the title of this blog: “I made a wrong mistake” but "I didn't really say everything I said."