Kylie Kelce, the wife of former Eagles star Jason Kelce, gave some pragmatic advice to graduates of her alma mater: Fake it till you make it.
Kelce, 32, graduated from Cabrini University in 2017.
The university, located about 40 minutes outside of Philadelphia, is closing down indefinitely after this past school year.
After joking that the students are suffering through adversity by drawing the fifth-biggest Kelce as their commencement speaker and explaining her own journey that saw her switch career paths away from trying to be a physical education teacher (for which there are few openings because they never leave) to transfer into Cabrini University, she provided some words of wisdom.
“Switching my major and changing schools are the primary example of figuring it out as you go,” Kelce said.
“The stats say that one-third of college students change their major at least once, and inevitable uncertainty probably won’t end after college. Everyone’s first question after graduation is: What’s next?
“‘I don’t know can’ be an honest and sufficient answer. The truth is that no one has their lives completely figured out, and if someone tells you otherwise, they’re lying.”
She continued to get her message across through humor.
“Just look at me now — I’m 32, mom of three. Where did the time go? I couldn’t tell you, but what I can tell you is I have no idea what I’m doing,” Kelce said.
“Every day we are winging it, just trying not to mess our kids up. Come to find out — that’s what our parents did too! I’m not trying to ruin the mirage that is parenting, but I really want you to understand that with determination and with potentially a little unjustified confidence you can get through the times of uncertainty.
“The more concise way to say that is to fake it till you make it. Eventually you will have an answer. Your first job probably won’t be your last — unless you’re a PE teacher.”
She also urged listeners to be sincere about who they are.
“I hope as you head to the next chapter of your life you hold true to yourself. One of the most obvious forms of beauty in society is being unique. What a boring world it would be if you and your classmates sitting to either side of you thought exactly the same way, enjoyed exactly the same things and partook in exactly the same activities,” she continued.
“There is excitement in embracing and exploring not only who you are as a person but the cultural and family values you were raised in. Those factors provide you your identity, they provide you the foundation you need to go off and make an impact.”
She closed with an acknowledgment that while Cabrini University is coming to an end, the experiences and people that she met during her college formed her memories of the experience and that the alumni network will still be available for graduating students as they go off into their adult lives.