5 Life Lessons to Take from Conan’s Departure on the Tonight Show

As I’ve watched events unfold over the past weeks around NBC’s late night shakeup and Conan O’ Brien’s departure, I’ve seen some opportunities for great teachable moments. Here are some lessons that today’s college students can draw from Conan’s experience.

1. Sometimes, your life and career directions are set off course by the decisions of other people. When this happens, you need to accept that you can’t stop the waves, but you can learn to surf.
2. When faced with these difficult situations, you can go along for someone else’s ride, or choose to do what you believe is best for you. This may mean walking away from attractive opportunities. It may hurt, but doing things you don’t believe in can wear down your spirit as well.
3. Just like they say at the end of It’s a Wonderful Life, “No man is a failure who has friends.” The legions of fans and the awesome celebrity guests who helped him close out his run are a great testimonial to Conan’s likeability and the loyalty of his fans and friends.
4. It’s more important to be grateful for the opportunities you’ve had in life than bitter about the ones you didn’t get. Conan’s words of thanks to NBC for giving him the opportunities he had in his career were hearfelt and genuine. Both his fans and his detractors will remember that, and it goes a long way toward showing his character.
5. And finally, in Conan’s own words: “Nobody in life gets exactly what they thought they were going to get. But if you work really hard and you’re kind, amazing things will happen.”

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Tagged as: career coaching, college, Conan O' Brien, issues, life, life coaching, life lessons, Tonight Show

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