Last Sunday Tom Hanks gave the Commencement speech to Yale graduates. Like many Commencement speakers, he urged the class to choose faith over fear and move forward with their lives. But the real star of Hanks' talk was not his message, but Sam Tsui, one of Yale's graduating seniors.
Some of you may not know Sam Tsui, Yale class of 2011, although I've written about him before. Search for "Michael Jackson medley" on the web, and you'll see a video of several versions of Sam signing all the parts to an accapella medley of Michael Jackson songs. The video was produced by Kurt Johnson, Yale 2010, and has received millions of views since it was posted. Sam and Kurt created other videos that made Sam an internet star, whose video views run in the hundreds of millions. Tom Hanks referenced Sam Tsui's success at this several times during his speech, and using him as an example of someone who followed his passion, and still got his Yale education.
Can Sam's success teach content creators anything? I wouldn't be writing about this if I didn't think so. One thing we can learn is the value of actually creating the content you're dreaming about -- no one can watch your videos unless you make them. Go and do it. Second, it's important to be original. This concept was fresh when it appeared, and became viral when people started sending it to their friends to view. So make your video fresh. Don't imitate others: create your own compelling content. Remember you have no control over how the public will respond to your work; your job is to make it as compelling as you can.
If you dedicate yourself to creating your content and making it as good as possible then perhaps one day you'll be as famous and accomplished as Tom Hanks -- or Sam Tsui.
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