Ari Weinzweig and Paul Saginaw
Field: business
Save the visual map
Download or open the generated poster as a standalone PNG.
Ari Weinzweig and Paul Saginaw at Michigan, 2015
A two-voice commencement address about generosity, joy, belief, kindness, learning, choice, good work, and self-defined greatness.
Speech arc
- 01Local founders
Opening move
- 02Beliefs matter
Speech beat
- 03Must-have list
Speech beat
- 04Generosity
Speech beat
- 05Joy
Speech beat
- 06Learning
Speech beat
- 07Choice
Speech beat
- 08Make a difference
Final charge
Setup: A deli becomes a theory of life
The speakers use Zingermans not as a business case alone, but as proof that beliefs shape organizations, work, and daily conduct.
Values
Vision, service, quality, and money matter, but underlying beliefs steer the system.
Partnership
Two founders turn shared work into a dialogic address.
Scale
A local Ann Arbor institution becomes a model for practical values.
The speakers use Zingermans not as a business case alone, but as proof that beliefs shape organizations, work, and daily conduct.
Paul: Generosity is the path to joy
Saginaw asks graduates to place joy on their success list and argues that generosity produces it directly.
Measure
Success is measured by contribution, not only gain.
Starter
Generosity spreads from person to person like a living culture.
Community
Food Gatherers and shelter meals turn values into durable public work.
Saginaw asks graduates to place joy on their success list and argues that generosity produces it directly.
Ari: Own your choices and keep learning
Weinzweig shifts from giving to agency: keep learning without grades, notice small things, and choose beliefs deliberately.
Learning
An active learning life continues after institutional pressure ends.
Choice
Care, kindness, reading, work, and attention become daily choices.
Details
Small gestures and overlooked people matter more than prestige admits.
Weinzweig shifts from giving to agency: keep learning without grades, notice small things, and choose beliefs deliberately.
• Key takeaways •
Beliefs shape behavior
Connects to generosity.
Generosity produces joy
Connects to joy.
Learning stays active
Connects to kindness.
Kindness is practical
Connects to lifelong learning.
Greatness is self-defined
Connects to purpose.
Closing charge
The closing connects kindness, meaningful work, self-management, and vision into a charge to make a positive difference.
Define greatness by contribution
Kindness
Being a good human being is treated as practical wisdom.
Work
Good work is hard, meaningful, and tied to care.
Vision
Graduates are asked to write and pursue their own definition of greatness.
The closing connects kindness, meaningful work, self-management, and vision into a charge to make a positive difference.
Visual speech maps
Browse more visual maps from University of Michigan or continue with related mapped speeches below.
Transcript
No official full transcript has been located yet. A video of the address is available above.
Provenance
Imported from NPR commencement archive; cross-referenced with Open Commencement DB
NPR archive last updated in 2015; destination availability has not been exhaustively rechecked | Open Commencement DB transcript; not independently verified against the original recording
Explore this speech
Find the next thread through the archive
Themes in this address
No canonical themes have been assigned yet.
Speeches like this one
Search all speeches ->