There's setting expectations, but saying "none of you will have jobs after graduation" feels criminally cynical and counter productive, especially coming from a teacher.
In 2009, in the midst of the financial crisis, one of my commencement speakers (and the recipient of an honorary doctorate) was Kenneth Chenault, CEO of American Express. I don't remember his exact words, but his message to the graduating class was, we have a different perspective on the world and different values— thriftier ones, necessarily— and if we stay true to them, the world will reflect them when we succeed.
"Maybe instead of having a car, like your parents' generation, your first big purchase may be a bike. Times change." Something like that.
Four days later, he laid off four thousand workers from AmEx, just a smidge more people than the graduating class.
Edit: according to Wikipedia, that year he took home $16.6 million.
In 2009, in the midst of the financial crisis, one of my commencement speakers (and the recipient of an honorary doctorate) was Kenneth Chenault, CEO of American Express. I don't remember his exact words, but his message to the graduating class was, we have a different perspective on the world and different values— thriftier ones, necessarily— and if we stay true to them, the world will reflect them when we succeed.
"Maybe instead of having a car, like your parents' generation, your first big purchase may be a bike. Times change." Something like that.
Four days later, he laid off four thousand workers from AmEx, just a smidge more people than the graduating class.
Edit: according to Wikipedia, that year he took home $16.6 million.