Maria Popova - 2016 Graduation Speaker at the Annenberg School for Communication

Writer Maria Popova (C’07) spoke to graduating Communication majors and their friends and families on Sunday, May 15, 2016, at the Zellerbach Theater at the Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts. Popova is the writer and creator of BrainPickings.org, a literary-minded blog whose incisive reviews of books old and new, and celebration of diverse thinkers and ideas aims to answer to a fundamental question: “What does it mean to live a good life?”

[@melkanabrakalova-trevithic4158]

I am a fan of Maria Popova's amazing blogs and speeches (at the age of 32), I like her way of seeing and connecting different parts of the world and our own psyche, her incredible command of English, as a second language, her lyricism, idealism, her way of being a philosopher and a poet, a writer and a connector. And when I have more time I enjoy her Brain Pickings blogs.

[@sattarabus]

Maria Popova is a prodigious confluence of brains, beauty and bravura. She deprecates calcification of the soul and its sewage---cynicism. Instead, she recommends the vitalizing elixir of trust, toil, and tenacity. I am going to smile at a stranger first thing tomorrow morning, and pedal slower to decode the message of tireless Spring.

[@HardyJap]

yeah, this could have been phrased a bit simpler

[@georgiabification]

Japjit Singh N. Do you realise the irony of your cynicism here? Try commenting on something good!

[@trentynbotello1028]

@@HardyJap Breathe in that spring air!

[@anasshaikh6855]

Every line spoken by Maria is profound. I am super impressed with her.

[@tanvidalvi5470]

Maria is love. Maria is life.

[@centuriesofblood]

The greatest living philosopher on the planet.

[@jaqueline5846]

Honestly. Forget Alain de Bottom...haha.

[@SanjeevBinaykia]

Maria, thank you for putting these ideas into words, and for being the catalyst to find our inspiration within ourselves.

[@erickaparicio6118]

She's my role model. Her words always bring me to awe.

[@naveenkatti]

This is the best advise to students and to the whole world. Would love to revisit this as often as I can to push myself to live the way Maria articulated in this speech

[@mihikanepal4939]

maria, you are a lovely human being. thank you for this message, which i keep coming back to over and over again.

[@phixit101]

Thank you Maria. I needed to hear your wisdom. I'm feeling much better!

[@patrickmccormack4318]

Maria Popova is speaking of love and its application. Good to hear.

[@linzhang6618]

Beautifully said

[@brahmveerkaur2723]

❤️ you speak like poetry!

[@susanchast5836]

Thank you, thank you, thank you!

[@PoetlaureateNFDL]

Bright person.

[@teeI0ck]

Manjistha Seeburn

[@lefteris1976]

great content. but perhaps the delivery was not extemporaneous enough for the graduates. but speaking is an art and a skill that is VERY difficult. Anyway great job Maria, i enjoyed it.