“This Speech Will Change Your Life!” COMMENCEMENT SPEECH “What Will You Do With The Power That Is YOU?” Jamie Kern Lima | Columbia University GSB 2025
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Imagine if one tool that's a simple question to ask yourself every day can transform your confidence, your self-belief, and your entire life. I am so excited for this episode with you today as I'm sharing the commencement speech I just gave to Columbia University where I share how this one question I ask myself daily has changed everything in my life and it can for you too.

What will you do with the power that is you? It's one of the most empowering questions you can ask yourself because at its core, it's a reminder that you hold so much power inside of you and you do. I can't wait for you to hear this episode and let me know how you're going to start using this question in your life.

And whether today you're listening for yourself or because someone that you love shared this episode with you, I want to welcome you to the Jamie Kernley Michaud podcast family. Thank you so much for being here and can you take two seconds and do me a favor, just hit

the follow button on the app that you're listening on. Thank you so much. It truly means so much to me. You can also get inspiration into your inbox from me to you for free. You can join my newsletter community at jamiekearnlima.com. Also, this incredible episode today, it's not just for you and me. Please share this.

with every single person that you know who might need some inspiration today or perhaps a boost in their ability to trust the power inside of them because this powerful tool and episode can truly impact my, yours, and their life too. Jamie Kern Lima is her name. Everybody needs Jamie Kern Lima in their life. Jamie Kern Lima.

Jamie, you're so inspiring. Jamie Kern Lima. Class of 2025, congratulations. When I think about today, I think about the word power. The power of the degree that you've earned, the power of everything you've learned inside and outside of the classroom at this incredible legendary institution that is Columbia Business School.

and the power of your real-world work and life experience that have gotten you to this very moment right here, and the immeasurable power of possibility that lies ahead in your future.

The power of all of these is now stacked together in your favor as a platform to stand firmly on and as a springboard to launch from into your vision and into your dreams for what's ahead. And today, perhaps more than any other day in your life so far, you're best positioned to ask yourself this purpose-defining question and to answer it with uninhibited vision.

What will you do with the power that is you? This question helped me believe that where I came from and even my past mistakes didn't have to determine where I was going. And along with my faith helped me believe my dreams were possible. Even on the days when it felt like nothing was going my way or the days when I was tempted to tell myself lies, like I don't have what it takes,

I'm not enough and big dreams like this don't happen to people like me. And maybe I should just take that other job because it feels super safe, but it doesn't feel in alignment with what I was created for. What will you do with the power that is you? It's one of the most empowering questions you can ask yourself because at its core, it's a reminder that you hold so much power inside of you

And you do. I used to ask myself this question when I was waitressing tables at Denny's and had big dreams of launching a business but was also dealing with so much self-doubt. I would lean on this question when I needed to believe I was worthy of launching a company in my living room,

And while later enduring hundreds and hundreds of no's and rejections for years, and I needed the strength to keep going. I would later lean on this question when I needed a North Star of what came a rapidly scaling company during a hyper growth trajectory.

And I consulted this question when deciding to sell the business I started in my living room to L'Oreal in what became a billion dollar deal and their largest US acquisition to date. Go Columbia! What will you do with the power that is you? It's a privilege of a lifetime that you get to decide the answer to that question.

And yet so many people end up not living their answer to that question. It's so easy with all the pressure that comes with life and even with the privilege and power you've worked so hard to earn to lose touch with our power, to start to choose certainty over calling, to choose fulfilling other people's expectations over fulfilling our purpose.

to play it safe, to check the box, to fit the mold, to succumb to the pressure of getting the right job, the pressure to pay off loans, the pressure to make your family proud, the pressure to exceed the curve, the pressure to win on paper even if it means losing yourself, the pressure of climbing the ladder even if your gut tells you it might be leaning against the wrong wall.

My challenge today is to dare to trust the knowing and the power that's inside of only you. The one that guides you not to what you can do, but to what you were created for. Because pressure never stops. But the real pain doesn't come from pressure, it comes from regret.

from ignoring your gut, from silencing the whisper inside, from doubting the power that's inside of you, from not answering the call that has only your name on it. Stories are one of the most powerful ways to unite us together, and I want to share a story that I hope you can lean on when you face challenges ahead that are inevitable of anyone going after big dreams. When I got into Columbia Business School, my mom cried.

Neither of my parents attended college and they knew without saying it I would be the first to change the course of history for my family. When B-School started, I quickly discovered I was learning as much from the alumni I would meet and as much from my fellow students as I did also inside the classroom. And so to try to amplify that, I began interviewing them for the school paper, bottom line,

I loved it so much, and I started to get this whisper or this knowing that said I'm supposed to go into journalism as my first career out of B-School. And I made the decision to trust it. In 2004, when the average starting salary of a Columbia MBA was six figures, I took a job for $23,500 working in a small town in Washington State anchoring the news. I'm pretty sure I destroyed the curve.

and said yes to one of the lowest starting salaries in the history of Columbia Business School. A few years in, I was moving up in markets and loving it, but didn't realize my dreams were about to take a tumble and a massive detour. See, while anchoring the news live one day, I hear in my earpiece from the producer, "There's something on your face. There's something on your face. You need to wipe it off. You need to wipe it off."

I knew what it was. I have a skin condition that's called rosacea. There's no cure for it. It gets really red and bumpy. And until that moment, I'd always been able to just cover it up with makeup, like no big deal. When I glanced down live on TV in that moment,

It was during a commercial break and I saw like, if you imagine desert clay cracking and red coming through, that was what was happening under the hot HD lights. My rosacea was coming through on live television. I tried to cover it up and for the first time ever, the makeup didn't work. And this turned into a really long season of self-doubt where I'd be live on television every time thinking like, am I going to get fired? And every time I go on, I'd hear in my earpiece, Jamie, it's still there, it's still there.

I spent most of my paycheck just trying to find something that would work. Every product out there, and nothing would. And then one day I felt this whisper. Maybe you've had a whisper like this in your life. It was a whisper that said, "If you cannot find anything that works for you, why don't you figure out how to create something that does?"

So my gut, my intuition, my knowing said, you can do this. You can start a business and figure out how to find the best chemist and make an amazing product that's probably going to help so many people if you do. But my self-doubt said, oh, but you've got no money. You don't know anyone in the beauty industry. You are not qualified. I made the decision to dare to trust my gut.

to trust my knowing over my self-doubt. I also leaned on my Columbia Business School network. I called every alumni in the database that I could find asking their advice. And then my husband, Paulo, he's right over there, CBS class of '04 alum. He was working in investment. Yes. He's over here.

He was working in investment banking and he and I both decided to quit our jobs. We poured every penny we had into starting a company called IT Cosmetics in our living room.

What we did not know is from the moment we went all in, it would be more than three years before we could even afford to pay ourselves a single penny. It would be hundreds and hundreds of no's and rejections. And during this journey, you know, I realized even though there were thousands of beauty companies out there, a lot of them I loved, I had never seen a company showing women with skin issues, you know, bright red bumpy skin or whatever it might be.

And then I also realized from the time I was a little girl, I would watch those beauty ads and I loved them. I always aspired to look like them. But deep down inside, they always made me feel like I wasn't enough.

So when we launched IT Cosmetics, we had this huge, wild, crazy vision to literally change the beauty industry and to instead of using airbrushed, photoshopped images and models, we wanted to use real people like me, every age and shape and size and skin tone and skin challenge and call them beautiful and mean it

but it wasn't being done at the time and no one thought it would work, especially all the experts. Every single retail store said no. And so many of them said, "If you have any shot at selling products in our store, you have to use images of unattainable aspiration." They'd always say those words, which means you can't even look like that because it's not real, right? And it's like everyone was doing that at the time,

but I wanted to change that for every little girl out there who's about to see those ads and start doubting herself and every grown woman and person who still does. But literally no one thought it would work and it is scary to trust yourself, right? Especially when no one around you seems to think that you're right

And after a few years of nonstop no's, literally we had no money left. There was a huge moment that happened. I'd always dreamed of us going on QVC, which is a live television shopping channel. It's broadcast to 100 million homes across the country. And when you have a product, QVC is a huge deal because they can sell more there in 10 minutes.

than in most national store chains across the entire country in a year. So it's massive. And I got a word that the head of QVC Beauty, who's a legend, a guy named Alan Burke, he wanted to have a call with me. And I was like,

Oh my gosh, I've been sending them so many samples for years and right now as we're down to no money left, I have no idea how we're going to keep going, like this is it. This could change everything. And I remember when I got the call, I was so pumped up, I was like pacing around our office, which was our living room, power posing, trying to tell myself, okay, they'll be lucky to have us. And when I answered the call, he said, hello, Jamie, this is Alan Burke with QVC.

And he said, "Listen, I wanted to call you myself and let you know that we've received your samples, all of them, and I've had a meeting with the entire buying team and it is unanimous that you are not the right fit for QVC or for our customers." And I remember in that moment, well, the truth is tears started streaming down my face, but I went into re-pitching again. I'm like, "Oh, but Allen, I am the right fit." And he thanked me for loving QVC and said it's a no.

I wanted it to be a yes so bad at the time, and we had been getting so many rejections for years, and I really had hoped that this would be it, but it wasn't.

So we kept going and barely keeping the company alive. We continued to get rejection after rejection. In fact, one potential investor from a really well-known private equity firm, we were both hoping this would be our saving grace. He loved our product. And we did meeting after meeting after meeting, went to the diligence phase, you guys. The very end of it, the final meeting, he says, congratulations. You should be so proud of this product. But it's a no. We're going to pass on investing in it cosmetics.

And when I asked him why, I remember he got really quiet and he says, "You want me to be really honest with you?" And he said, "I just don't think women will buy makeup from someone who looks like you with your body and your weight." I cried in bed for three days after. But here's the thing and here's the key is every time that we would meditate or pray and get really, really still, like I get this feeling inside that said, "You're supposed to keep going. You're supposed to keep going."

And I trusted that voice and trusted the power inside of me. And I'm sharing this because my hope and prayer today is that you do that too, every single step of the way outside of this room, and to trust it over all the no's that might be happening all around you like they were for us. So after years of countless rejections and no's,

finally happened. We got one single yes that had the power to change everything. QVC finally gave us a yes. Then I learned we would get one shot, one shot to go live on QVC to present our product in this 10 minute window and either hit their sales goal or not come back. I learned we'd have to sell over 6,000 units of products.

in a 10 minute window, live on air. Y'all, we were doing one to two orders a day on our website. Like that's what we were doing. And we had to sell over 6,000 units. And then I learned it's a consignment offer. What that meant is we would somehow have to figure out how to pay for, manufacture, ship in, pass regulatory compliance, pass QC, all of the inventory. Then I go live on air in 10 minutes. And if it doesn't sell, we take it all back and we're not paid.

So you should never say yes to that, ever. Right? But we were so desperate. And we decided to say yes and go all in. The only problem was we were out of money. So we applied. We went to try and get an SBA loan. Twenty-two banks said no.

and they should have. And the 23rd bank, California Bank and Trust, gave us an SBA loan to cover that purchase order and a little bit more. We hired third-party consultants who are amazing at helping so many people sell their products, but they all said the same thing. They said, "You need to use what they considered beautiful models to sell the products." And here's the thing, like,

You know, I have skin issues. They wanted us to use everyone that had no skin issues, that were the same, you know, skin tone. They all looked like they were barely 18. But I knew that doing that, doing what everyone else was doing, isn't what I was created for. And it's not what you're created for either.

And I knew I'd rather play my heart out fully and try to change the beauty industry, even if we sold nothing. I'd rather stand for something than sell a whole ton of product but stand for nothing. So my one big shot came, and it literally took everything inside of me to dare to believe that

and to go for it. And in my one big shot, we were teetering on bankruptcy at the time after years of hearing no's, we cast models of every age, one in her 70s who had hyperpigmentation, one in her 20s who was dealing with acne, models of every skin tone and skin challenge like me, and I wiped my makeup off on live television, showed my bright red bumpy skin, and literally everything was on the line. And right as I was standing there in the QVC studios about to go live,

I learned you are not even guaranteed the 10 minutes. They know by the second what's selling and who's ordering online and what's, you could be a minute or two in and think like, oh, I got eight minutes left. If you're not hitting goals, boom, your clock jumps down to one minute, you're done. So I learned that, like no pressure, right? And I remember the moment that bright red on-air light came on.

And I saw the clock, and it was like 9:59, 9:58. I remember walking over to models, every age and shape and size and skin tone and skin challenge, calling them beautiful and like viscerally meaning it in every ounce of my being.

We were a few minutes in, and I didn't know how we were doing, but I knew I wasn't cut yet. I was like, okay, okay. And then at the nine-minute mark, I hear the host say, the deep shade's almost gone. The tan shade's almost sold out. And at the 10-minute mark, this giant sold-out sign came up across the screen, which is wild. Yeah, it was crazy. Y'all, I struggle.

I start crying on national television. They cut from me and went to like Dyson Vacuum or something. And then my husband, Paulo, who's right over there, my husband, Paulo, comes rushing through the double doors of the studio. I'm crying and I'm like, real women have spoken. And he comes over to me. I thought he was going to give me a hug. He just like comes over to me, puts his fist in the air, and he's like, we're not going bankrupt. And I was like, ah!

And that one airing turned into more than 250 shows a year. We grew to more than 1,000 employees and became the largest beauty brand in QVC's history. With so many experts, they said it would never work. Eventually, changed an industry. And I don't know who needs to hear this today, but someone else's no is no indication that

your idea or your art or your business or your vision isn't gonna work. And even though we got enough no's and rejections to wallpaper this entire campus, we kept getting back up. Every time we got knocked down, we kept going and we kept growing. And in 2016, L'Oreal, the biggest beauty company in the world, knew that we had created something unlike what everyone else was doing.

What we were told over and over would never work had grown into one of the largest beauty companies in the country. And in 2016, L'Oreal paid $1.2 billion cash to buy the company I started in my living room, which is just wild, and then made me the first woman to hold a CEO title of a brand in their 108-year history. It's just crazy. And here's the thing.

Here's what I really hope you take root today and every day outside of here is I don't care how many no's you get. That bank might tell you no. The investor might say no. A boss might not see your potential. You have a power inside of you, a knowing that when you trust it, it'll always lead you to the next right step or the next right lesson. No one else's doubt will

gets to define your destiny. No one else's no gets to define your yes. And here's the thing, the day the L'Oreal deal was announced, it was everywhere, the homepage of the Wall Street Journal. And that was the first time I heard from that potential investor who said women won't buy makeup from someone who looks like you with your body and your weight. He says, congratulations on the L'Oreal deal. I was wrong.

And I don't know if y'all have seen the movie, have you seen the movie Pretty Woman, where she like goes in the store and they won't help her? And then she goes back two days later. So what I wanted to say to him was big mistake.

Huge. I wanted to say I can give you 1.2 billion reasons why. It's a huge mistake. But I didn't. I kept it classy because I wouldn't have wanted to be him. And here's what I know is, you know, I believe rejection is God's protection. Because here's the thing, y'all. Had he believed in us, we were so desperate. We would have given him so much equity, probably for close to nothing. But because he didn't believe in us, we were still the largest shareholder of the company the day L'Oreal acquired us.

So, and remember the head of QVC Beauty, Alan Burke, who said you're not the right fit for QVC or our customers. So shortly after we launched on QVC, he became one of my greatest mentors and friends. He still is to this day, and he had been there decades at QVC. And shortly after we launched, he retired.

And when he did, we hired him in a paid position on our advisory board. So the guy that rejected me was now working for me. Like, no one can tell you you're not the right person.

And, you know, it's really such a lesson just to never take rejection personally and never take someone else's doubt about you personally. And never let that doubt turn into doubt in your own head. Because the person who doubts you today might be calling you boss tomorrow. Three, isn't made by the ones who play it safe. So today I ask you,

What is the true calling that has only your name on it? What does the power inside of you tell you that you're destined for? Your calling might be to work in investment banking, to become an MD or a partner, or to start your own firm. Your calling might be to consult for five years, then start an idea in your living room you haven't been able to shape.

Your calling might be to put one foot in front of the other in the best direction you know how until you hear that call that says, "This is it." Your calling might be to dare to make the lowest salary in Columbia Business School history until you're on your path to making the highest. You might not know what your calling is, but when you do know, I dare you to commit to trusting that calling, not the one you can do,

the one you were created for. Because if you're like me, you didn't come this far to be impressive, you came this far to be impactful. And I believe your success won't come from being the smartest in the room, it'll come from being the most aligned with who you truly are and with who you're born to be.

And my hope and my prayer as you walk out of here today, making the decision to unwaveringly, fully trust yourself and trust the power that's inside of you right now, even when it scares you, even when no one else might get it, even when it might go against the curve. Because the world doesn't need more MBAs who can analyze a case study. The world needs more of us MBAs who become the case study.

And I want to ask you to imagine what case study could one day be written about you. And imagine what would happen if you made the decision right now to fully believe that you have what it takes to make it happen because you do. Columbia Business School Class of 2025, what will you do with the power that is you?

I cannot wait to cheer you on as you bravely, boldly live the answer. Thank you and congratulations!

If you loved today's episode, please click on the follow or subscribe button for this show on the app you're listening to it on or watching it on. And if it added value to your life, if you could please give it a rating or review, I'd be so grateful. And again, share it with everyone who you believe in. Share it with another person in your life who could benefit from it. Maybe someone you know is making a change in their career or in their marriage or in their health or just needs to say who they are is enough.

Please post this episode and share it with others online or in your community who just might need the words and tools and lessons in this episode today. You never know whose life you're meant to change today by sharing this episode. And thank you so much for joining me today. And before you go, I want to share some words with you that couldn't be more true.

You, right now, exactly as you are, are enough and fully worthy. You're worthy of your greatest hopes, your wildest dreams, and all the unconditional love in the world. And it is an honor to welcome you to each and every episode of The Jamie Kern Lima Show. Here, I hope you'll come as you are.

Heal where you need. Blossom what you choose. Journey toward your calling and stay as long as you'd like because you belong here. You are worthy. You are loved. You are love. I love you. And I cannot wait to join you on the next episode of the Jamie Kern Lima Show.

In life, you don't soar to the level of your hopes and dreams. You stay stuck at the level of your self-worth. When you build your self-worth, you change your entire life. And that's exactly why I wrote my new book, Worthy, How to Believe You Are Enough and Transform Your Life for You. If you have some self-doubt to destroy and a destiny to fulfill, Worthy is for you.

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Overcome limiting beliefs and imposter syndrome. Achieve your hopes and dreams by believing you are worthy of them and so much more. Are you ready to unleash your greatness and step into the person you were born to be? Imagine a life with zero self-doubt and unshakable self-worth.

Get your copy of Worthy, plus some amazing thank you bonus gifts for you at worthybook.com or the link in the show notes below. Imagine what you'd do if you fully believed in you. It's time to find out with Worthy. Who you spend time around is so important as energy is contagious and so is self-belief.

I'd love to hang out with you even more, especially if you could use an extra dose of inspiration, which is exactly why I've created my free weekly newsletter that's also a love letter to you delivered straight to your inbox from me.

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