I had the privilege of delivering this year’s commencement speech for the IB class of 2025 at EUC Syd, Sønderborg. Here it is:
“Good afternoon, graduates, families, and friends. Congratulations to the IB Class of 2025. The day you’ve eagerly awaited and dreamed about is finally here. I am grateful and excited to be a part of your special moment, which marks the end of one chapter and the beginning of another.
Being your teacher and listening to your thoughtful perspectives and ideas has genuinely been a privilege. In Theory of Knowledge, we discussed complex questions such as, “What is knowledge, and what information can we trust?”; “Do animals have language?”; and “Can historians ever produce objective knowledge?”. In psychology, we tackled difficult yet crucial themes like globalization, addiction, stereotypes, and discrimination. All in all, you learned that there are no black and white answers to complicated issues, and that solutions require careful reflection and critical thinking.
But beyond witnessing your thoughtful exploration of complex questions, I also saw how academic pressure sometimes left you frustrated, anxious, and overwhelmed. To help you unwind at the beginning of a few psych lessons, I tried playing mindfulness music for five minutes, asking you to close your eyes and rest your heads on the table. I joined in, too, only to find one of you lying on the floor five minutes later in a rather unusual position. And then there was the time during an evolutionary psychology lesson when I excitedly showed a fascinating video of a bird carefully building its nest – well, at least I thought it was fascinating until I noticed one of you falling asleep…
But humor aside, I genuinely relate to the stress and anxiety you might have felt when facing deadlines and something important. But know that we teachers have been there, too. Let me illustrate with a brief personal example.
On a Sunday afternoon in September 2019, I was racing to finish a daunting 60-page philosophy paper due the next morning; the culmination of five intense years at university. At the same time, I was preparing to teach my first-ever university class the next day. Overwhelmed, I went for a walk to clear my mind, only to find myself gripped by anxiety and doubt. “Will I finish my paper in time?” “Am I even qualified to teach?” “Will everyone think that I’m a fraud?” My mind became cluttered with negativity, including the sarcastic words of a high school physics teacher after a failed exam: “Good luck in the future!”, he said.
That Sunday I felt the world was ending. But morning arrived, my paper was submitted, and I taught my class. Life moved on, I graduated and eventually found myself in an exciting and meaningful role teaching IB students. Everything, despite my fears, turned out just fine. As philosopher Alan Watts once said, “Don’t be afraid. You’re going to make it, but it’s always going to feel as if you’re not.” Somehow, things always work themselves out, one way or the other.
Dear graduates, you are a talented group of people, full of potential, with your whole life ahead of you. You stand before a future rich with possibility and adventure, but at the same time, a future that is increasingly difficult to predict. The world faces unprecedented environmental and technological challenges and is also haunted by anti-democratic ghosts of the past. The world calls upon you to confront these and other issues with intelligence, determination, collaboration, and not least with humility. By engaging actively with these and other societal problems, you’ll find growth, meaning, and purpose.
Before you leave these classrooms and corridors and embark on your next journey, allow me to share three short lessons – insights I wish someone had shared with me when I was your age. At the senior age of 35, I’d like to imagine I’ve acquired a modest amount of hard-earned wisdom—at least enough to share a few insights with you today.
Lesson one: you will make mistakes and wrong decisions – but that’s okay. The Danish philosopher Søren Kierkegaard humorously captures this human truth: “Marry, and you will regret it; don’t marry, you will also regret it; marry or don’t marry, you will regret it either way.” Choices, imperfect as they may be, shape who you become. Embrace uncertainty; see fear not as a giant red stop sign, but as an invitation to curiosity and exploration. The psychiatrist Thomas Szasz once said, “A child becomes an adult when she realizes that she has a right not only to be right but also to be wrong.”
Lesson two: you will encounter setbacks and misfortune. Not every plan or goal will unfold as expected. But remember, failure can sometimes exactly be what you need to become something greater; misfortune can carry the seeds of emotional and spiritual growth. Eckhart Tolle once wrote that, “Life will give you whatever experience is most helpful for the evolution of your consciousness.“
And lesson three: you cannot do it alone. Carrying all your thoughts and emotions by yourself can be incredibly difficult – and it’s more than okay to be vulnerable and ask for support. Being vulnerable while owning it is an act of true strength and bravery. I wouldn’t be sitting here today without the support and consolation of my family and friends in times of need, nor without the inspiring teachers, professors, and employers who believed in me and paved the way for me.
So, offer your support to others, too. Never underestimate the power you have to make the world just a little better for the people around you. Be a light in the darkness.
Once again, congratulations IB Class of 2025. Go confidently and courageously into your bright futures.”
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