Thank you, Duke! Next stop: LinkedIn

This is a tribute to all my fellow Duke University Blue Devils. To my friends, classmates, teachers, colleagues, supervisors, and mentors - I couldn't have done it without you.

If I had to choose one word to describe my Duke journey, it would be “pivotal”.

Pivotal in terms of intellectual development and gaining perspective, pivotal in terms of an increase in self-awareness and reflection, pivotal in terms of growing confidence and authenticity, pivotal in terms of identifying and seizing opportunities, pivotal in terms of developing meaningful relationships. Pivotal in terms of the number of nights I would voluntarily sleep outside to attend a sporting event*.

Sometimes I ask myself “What if I hadn’t been so incredibly fortunate to have a father who’s been so supportive of my decision to come to Duke?” “What if I had chosen Harvard over Duke?” “What if I hadn’t made a proactive decision to put myself out there and push the envelope every single day?” “What if I hadn’t met all these incredible people who have enriched my life in so many ways?” Just thinking about these possible alternative outcomes is so overwhelming in itself that endless gratitude doesn’t even come close to properly encompassing my profound and multifaceted appreciation for this place I will forever call my home.

This past Christmas I gave my dad a booklet that contained words of wisdom from me, some of my friends, current/former supervisors and mentors. One section of the book was dedicated to what those people had learned about me as an individual over the past years. While all of the submissions were extremely humbling (thank you again to those of you who helped me with this project!), I wanted to share the contributions of four people that particularly stood out to me.

1. “I’ve always been envious of Thamina’s ardor for life. Her passion to do what she loves and to be with people that she loves is inspiring. To love and appreciate life like Thamina is difficult, but she does it with ease. That, in my opinion, is her biggest strength. The world is her oyster.”
2. “She cares so deeply about her friends - I’ve never met someone who is so dedicated and intentional about her relationships.”
3. “Thamina is one of the most genuine people I have ever met. Her incredible loyalty, honesty, and compassion make her an incredible friend to all who know her. […] When I look back on my Duke experience decades from now I will most likely forget many of the people who came into my life during those four years, but I can safely say that Thamina will not be one of them.”
4. “She dedicates herself 200% to absolutely everything she does and wants. She gives her full heart to everyone. She pushes you to be the best version of yourself. She is fearless and she is real.”

There are two common themes that are reflected in these quotes: (Com)Passion and people. YOUR passion and YOU people. 

While my (grand)parents can certainly take some credit for the qualities mentioned above, I was only able to become the person that I am today because of YOU. I was able to thrive at and take full advantage of Duke and the amazing opportunities that presented themselves to me because of YOU. Your unparalleled passion made me not take a single day on this gorgeous and vibrant campus for granted. Your passion for Duke Basketball has become my passion. Your passion for technology has become my passion. Your passion for gender equality advocacy, diversity, and inclusion has become my passion. Your passion for critical thinking has become my passion. Your passion for Div School grilled cheese has become my passion. The list goes on and on. Your passion, talent, and intelligence have been my fuel - and I will draw on that infinite resource of “outrageous ambition” (as late U.S. Senator and former Duke University President Terry Sanford put it) wherever I go. For that, I want to extend a heartfelt THANK YOU to each and everyone of you.

As I am about to embark on a new journey at LinkedIn in Dublin, Ireland, the two P’s (passion and people) will remain loyal companions. 

I recently read Satya Nadella’s (Microsoft CEO) “Hit Refresh” on Microsoft’s transformation and cultural change over the past few years and one thing he said early on in his book really resonated with me:

"My personal philosophy and my passion [...] is to connect new ideas with a growing sense of empathy for other people. Ideas excite me. Empathy grounds and centers me." 

It is exactly that - the “interplay of empathy and technology” - what makes me so incredibly excited to start working for LinkedIn in the fall (side note: LinkedIn was acquired by Microsoft in late 2016 for those of you who didn’t know) to help realize the company’s vision to create economic opportunity for every member of the global workforce. As LinkedIn’s CEO Jeff Weiner stated in his commencement speech at Wharton a couple of weeks ago, compassion has become essential in the realization of said vision.

My plea to all of my fellow Duke graduates is to use that education we were so fortunate to have been given to bring more compassion into this world - we’re in desperate need right now. I’m only a few days shy of my 24th birthday and therefore still have A LOT to learn but I cannot wait for all of us to soon become the community, business, and government leaders that will have a lasting positive impact.

While my time as a student and fellow has come to a close and I have had all the feels over the past ~8 weeks, I am now experiencing nostalgia rather than sadness. This is not a “goodbye”, it is a “see you later” because we are FOREVER DUKE.

*Our men's basketball team is REALLY good (we've produced the most NBA players out of all colleges), therefore, students want to attend all the big games. However, there aren't enough seats for everyone, which is why students have to get "in line" by tenting outside the basketball stadium for days and in case of the Duke-UNC game even for weeks. This is no joke. It's a 30-year old tradition and there is a very elaborate set of rules for tenting that you can look up here.