Detours Ahead, Keynote Speaker Tells Grads

Shareable Quotes on Failure, Flexibility and Sponsors

SMITH BRAIN TRUST – Aspiring leaders who want to unlock their potential should anticipate detours in their nonlinear rise to the top, Tracker Group co-founder and CEO Connie K. Weaver told graduates during her commencement keynote address on Dec. 20, 2017, at the University of Maryland’s Robert H. Smith School of Business. Weaver, a 1975 University of Maryland alumna, drew lessons from her own career, which has included stops at AT&T, Microsoft, MCI, McGraw-Hill, The Hartford and Bearing Point. More recently, she served as senior executive vice president and chief marketing and communications officer at TIAA until her corporate retirement in April 2017. Here are nine shareable quotes from her speech, divided into three broad categories.