On a hazy early summer afternoon in 2015, I sat in the passenger seat of my grandfather’s Buick Lucerne while we drove through Rockford, Illinois.
The two of us were discussing the conclusion of my freshman year of high school, specifically academics — something that was of frequent discussion with my grandpa, who my brothers and I referred to as Farfar (Swedish for “Father’s Father”).
This conversation, however, was one that still sticks with me over six years later.
“Laurence,” my Farfar, who was also named Larry Larson, said. “You’ve got a lot of potential. Don’t let it go to waste … I’ve known a lot of people with great potential who have let it go to waste.”
When Farfar talked, you listened.
Not only because his resonant, baritone voice and towering figure commanded a room, but because the man was successful by every sense of the definition.
The son of Swedish immigrants, he didn’t speak English when he started elementary school in Rockford, resulting in him being sent home until he learned the language.
He climbed that hurdle, graduating from Rockford East High and eventually the University of Illinois with a degree in architecture.
In the 1960s, he co-founded the architecture firm Larson & Darby in Rockford with his brother-in-law, a business that is still around today. With Larson & Darby, he designed buildings across the world, United States and northern Illinois, many of which are hard to miss on drives through my hometown of Rockford.
Outside of business, he was involved with multiple charitable causes in the Rockford community in addition to teaming with my grandmother to raise my father and his three brothers — all of whom have been successful in their own right.
Needless to say, his words of wisdom were something of value.
“Yes, I won’t,” I told him in response, slightly jarred by the deep turn the conversation took.
I would come to find that this brief lecture was one that Farfar really wanted to drive in, as I heard it a few more times before he passed away that October of 2015.
He was successful in making sure I got the message, as I’m often reminded of his words — especially now commencing my senior year of college.
I truly believe that everybody has potential in some shape or form. But, as my grandfather implied, I’ve noticed it tends to go to waste many times, especially with college kids.
It’s an intimidating concept, really. There are more paths to failure than there are to success.
Everybody in college is chasing success, whether that be academically, socially or in the professional world. Just a few decisions could make success dramatically easier or dramatically harder for an individual.
A lot of those critical decisions are made at college — whether it’s what major you choose or which people you surround yourself with.
With this in mind, I offer the same message to all the new folks on campus that my grandfather offered to me: Don’t waste your potential.
If you have a passion for something, don’t waste it by not chasing it. Don’t waste your time on people who won’t help you grow. Don’t waste an opportunity to try something new. Don’t waste a failure by not learning from it.
I’d like to think that I haven’t wasted much during my time at Bradley.
I think if I told that to my Farfar, he’d probably say, “Well, Laurence, there’s always room for improvement.”
Here’s to a school year of improvement and making the most of your potential.
