Graduation Day: the message from Antonello Barbaro, CEO of H-FARM Education

November 15, 2024

Dear graduates,

Today marks an incredible milestone in your journey. You’ve worked tirelessly, pushed through challenges, and emerged stronger, wiser, and more resilient than ever before.

Today, we are not celebrating the past years. Today, we are happily standing on the verge of the future.

The degree you are about to hold in your hands is not just a piece of paper, and it’s not merely a testament to the last months and years. It’s a key that opens doors to countless possibilities in your future.
Now, it’s the moment. You must use that key to continue your journey.

At the beginning of this ceremony, we played a song titled “Life is a Highway.”
My question to you today is not “Where are you going?” but “Who is driving your car?”

Be the owner of your choices. Be the driver of your own car.
Choose paths that inspire your soul, even if they seem less traveled or misunderstood by others. Do not let someone else determine your life path. Never regret what you have done if you did it for the right reason. Remember that there are no mistakes if you learn from them.

In a world where everyone wants to be like someone else, dare to be yourself.
Don’t try to fit into someone else’s shoes or pretend to have interests you don’t truly care about.
Instead, find what sets your soul on fire—whether it’s marketing, coding, music, or helping others—and pursue it with relentless will. Remember that there is no DNA-coded definition of success.

Your actions and the impact you have on the lives of others will define you.

Let me share a few words from the famous actor Anthony Hopkins:
“People who laugh at their mistakes are those who are successful, who understand their calling and don’t hide from responsibility. They defend human dignity and want to be on the side of truth, justice, and righteousness. This is what living is for.”

I asked a wise man, one whom I trust greatly, if he had any pieces of advice to share. Professor Fasano, as the wise man he is, told me that he didn’t have advice but could share some experiences and leave the judgment to you.
Here are a few findings:

• Be crystal clear about what success means to you. It can be anything from waking up in the morning to music, to spending your life with a soulmate, to being highly successful in your job. Every way is a good way if it’s your way.
• Don’t settle for mediocrity. Aim high, even if it means taking calculated risks.
• Surround yourself with people who uplift and support you—not just those who agree with you.
• Be ready to put in hard work: nothing will happen the way you want if you’re not prepared to put in a serious amount of work over time.
• And finally, remember that failure is not the opposite of success; it’s a necessary step toward achieving significant goals. No one who did something remarkable did it without failing first.

Probably many of you are afraid to fail, to not be good enough.

I invite you to consider the case of a young man who couldn’t get a recommendation letter from his professors because he kept interrupting classes. He kept “approaching the blackboard to finish equations without being asked,” and at other times, he was indifferent about participating altogether. As a result, he ended up with an anonymous and boring job at a Swiss patent office.
That student’s name was Albert Einstein.

So, as you venture forth, remember to laugh often, love deeply, and embrace the adventure of being unapologetically you.

Because in the end, it’s not about the destination you reach, but the joy and growth in the journey you choose to embark upon.

Remember our mission here at HFC: “Empowering students to transform innovation into human progress for a better society.”

In this journey called life, don’t be afraid to take up space, to make mistakes, and to create something new.

The world needs the best version of yourselves to transform innovation into human progress for a better society.

Congratulations, graduates! You did it!