The premise behind TRAM’s 'Personal Perspectives' lecture series is simple: Give Stanford luminaries a microphone, a stage, and an hour to talk about their careers and interests, and people will show up.

Part informal talk, part Q&A session, the lectures allow faculty to share their stories and reflect on the lessons they’ve learned along the way. “What we’re really interested in,” TRAM director Dean Felsher, MD, professor of oncology, explained, “is how they became who they are.”

Stanford president John Hennessy, PhD, was the latest speaker in the series, and he took to the stage last week to discuss his dynamic career – a mix of research, industry, academia, and leadership that is inextricably tied to the spirit of Silicon Valley.

“I guess I’ll start with when I arrived at Stanford,” Hennessy said, by way of introduction. “But please stop me at any point, as I can talk for a long time. I am an academic after all.”

Hennessy first came to Stanford over thirty years ago to interview for a faculty position. The newly minted computer science PhD was taken with the university and the unseasonably warm winter weather. “When we flew back to New York, it was sleeting, so I looked at my wife and said: ‘If I get this offer, we’re going to California,’’’ he recounted to appreciative laugher.

He got the job and joined the Department of Electrical Engineering as an assistant professor. A few years later he took a sabbatical to focus on his first start-up -- MIPS Computer Systems – which was later sold to Silicon Graphics for $333 million.

Soon after, he returned to the university and quickly moved up the academic ladder, becoming department chair, dean, provost, and finally president.

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Listening to Hennessy talk is exhilarating, and a little dizzying. He’s lived myriad lives – as student, start-up founder, academic, textbook author, business advisor, university administrator – and has the wisdom to show for it. His lecture was peppered with sage advice and wry insights, such as,­ “If you ever want a really great experience, go on a cold call. Your appreciation for the work that salespeople do will go up by leaps and bounds. Good salespeople are worth their weight in gold.”

As his lecture came to a close, Hennessy offered parting words to the crowd: “Say what you mean. There’s a tremendous temptation to not be thoroughly honest. Stay engaged – I’m a proponent of managem­ent by walking around. And remember,” he concluded, “to never shoot the messenger.”

Learn more about 'Personal Perspectives'