Own the power

As I near my final days at Duke and observe my fellow seniors grasping for footing in a world of occupational unknowns, one crucial and often disregarded consideration keeps entering my thoughts. I do not wonder how we will all make money, find friends in new cities or maintain old friends in different cities. I have faith that these unknowns will work themselves out. The consideration I feel most crucial, however, is often the one least attended to. How will we use our power? Yes, power. I realize as entry-level worker bees in a tumultuous economy, we rarely conceive of ourselves as especially powerful, yet simple fact: We are. Like it or not, four years of elite education, job opportunities and connections actually make us some of the most powerful people in the world. Whether born into Sperrys and cashmere or on full scholarship, come May, we are all likely to be in the top 5 percent of the economy. Think of the overwhelming majority of nations, family backgrounds and even colleges that afford individual access to a negligible amount of power when compared to each and every student graduating in May.

So I ask us, Duke seniors, to start by recognizing and owning that, like it or not, we have power. This power can be used to find jobs and then bury our heads in the ground until we earn enough money that we’re finally willing to admit to our power. This power can be used to fill us with false beliefs of our own inherent superiority to others struggling below us. Or this power can be used in the way all truly noble leaders before us have used their power: to empower those around them. It can be used to choose a path that finds the intersections between our truest passions and the deepest needs of the world.

Power often feels like a limited resource we must hoard to use in our own best interest. In competitive professions, it may feel to many of us that we do not have enough power to be successful. For those who slave away to finally gain power, it may feel earned and deserved. Though these feelings are real, they do not have to control us. We undoubtedly have more ability to leave bad jobs, find our true passions and live our lives freely than just about anyone on this planet! Wherever we go, one simple truth remains: Power used for good is power used to lift up and empower others. So please soon-to-be powerful members of society, own your power, enjoy it and use it for good of others.

Phoebe Noe

Trinity ’13