Emerson College/YouTube Jennifer Coolidge delivered the commencement address at Emerson College's 2025 graduation on May 11 TheWhite Lotusactress attended the school before dropping out to pursue a career in Hollywood Coolidge spoke candidly about self-confidence and perseverance, encouraging the graduates to "just friggin' go for it" after finding what truly motivates them Jennifer Coolidgeknows how to make any room smile. On Sunday, May 11, the actress, 63, delivered the 2025 commencement addressfor roughly 1,000 graduates at Emerson College. Coolidge studied performing arts at Emerson, which is located in Boston, Mass., before dropping out to pursue a career in Hollywood, perBoston.com. Duringher speech, Coolidge reflected on her childhood, expressing that she grew up a few miles away from the college as a "very, very strange kid." TheWhite Lotusactress — who made reference to her iconic line from the HBO hit and her loyalgay fan baseby joking that she was "excited" to be "speaking with some very excited gay students" — looked back on her last day of first grade, during which her school had a field day with an obstacle course. After her teacher explained how to complete the event, Coolidge said she "ran like hell" and beat the fastest girl in school — or so she thought. "I was so elated that I had won, and to me, it just meant that I was going to get the blue ribbon. And then the teacher came up to me and told me that I didn't win the blue ribbon because I was disqualified," said Coolidge. "And it turns out, I had skipped all the obstacles. I just ran along the outside." Coolidge admitted that the mishap caused her classmates to tease her for years. "I realized I was going to go the rest of my life as a joke. I was so uncomfortable with myself, I began to completely live in my head from that moment on," she explained. After a while, though, the experience caused her to have "insane expectations [for herself] and believe they're going to come true." Her change in mindset grew even stronger after she saw a magazine that belonged to her mother featuring Grace Kelly and her royal wedding, which made Coolidge dream of becoming the queen of Monaco. "In retrospect, it was the one and only thing I really had going for me. I had this thing inside of me telling me that I could achieve anything, anything, in this world, and there was just nothing to back it up," she said, causing laughter from the crowd. The comedian used this anecdote from her childhood to make her message to the graduates clear. "When you find the thing that you want to do, I really want to highly recommend, just friggin' go for it," she said. "You really have to psych yourself up into believing absurd possibilities, and you have to believe that they are not absurd." Coolidge noted that being "overly sensitive" made her constantly feel like she was in a "state of just recovering" from negative feedback — whether it was being rejected for a role or hearing a hurtful comment. Taylor Hill/Getty Eventually though, Coolidge was able to become her "own champion" and find the strength to move forward. "Don't listen to the people who mess up the real story that you've got going," she urged the graduates. "It is your ability to convince yourself you really can make it, because you really have to be your own champion." TheAmerican Pieactress ended her speech by expressing that the point of her obstacle course story was to remind the graduates that "it really doesn't matter what anyone thinks or says." "When it comes to the obstacle course of your life, you have to find your own path," she said. "And you can't perfectly plan it out from the beginning. Part of directing your life is just letting it unfold. So let it." Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE's free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories. Before Coolidge's career took off, she was waiting tables and performing with the Groundlings improv troupe. In June 1995, she auditioned for — and was rejected by — execs atSaturday Night Live. But four years later, she landed the role as Stifler's Mom in theAmerican Piemovie series and as Paulette inLegally Blonde.Other roles followed in films likeBest in ShowandA Cinderella Story. In 2021, she skyrocketed to fame with her role as Tanya McQuoid inThe White Lotus, which ultimately won her two Primetime Emmy Awards and a Golden Globe. Read the original article onPeople
