"Why go to the moon?" - John F. Kennedy at Rice University

Rice University · ★ Dr. Daniels Hall of Fame

Why it's in the Hall of Fame: We choose to do hard things. The clearest example of a leader setting a goal and making people believe it.

Why leaders watch it

The model for setting an audacious goal and explaining why it matters.

President John F. Kennedy's September 12, 1962 address at Rice University explaining why the United States chose to go to the Moon.

Takeaways

• Choose goals because they are hard
• Make the why concrete
• A clear goal organizes thousands of people

Topics: Vision & purpose, Public speaking & presenting, Innovation & creativity

Related

• Resilience is a Choice | Jeff Harmon | TEDxHarvard Square · TEDx Talks
• Challenger: President Reagan's Challenger Disaster Speech - 1/28/86 · Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation & Institute
• Climbing Kilimanjaro in a Wheelchair: Jeff Harmon on Leadership, Courage & Kindness · Michael G Neece
• Steve Jobs' 2005 Stanford Commencement Address · Stanford
• Steve Jobs Stanford Commencement Speech 2005 · JoshuaG
• Steve Jobs' 2005 Stanford Commencement Address (with intro by President John Hennessy) · Stanford
• Walt Disney's E.P.C.O.T. Film (1966) · The Original EPCOT
• Teddy Talks - Citizenship in a Republic (includes The Man in the Arena) · MedoraND
• Solitude and Leadership (William Deresiewicz, West Point 2009) | Art of Manliness Podcast #333 · Art of Manliness
• Leadership, Culture, and Ethics in Cybersecurity · Dr. Mansur Hasib - #DrCybersecurity
• AWS re:Invent 2019: Optimizing Aerospace manufacturing operations & supply chain with AWS (MFG201) · AWS Events
• Arnold Schwarzenegger 2018 - The speech that broke the internet - Most Inspiring ever · MulliganBrothers