Graduation season is here, and here is the 2026 Commencement Speech for George Mason Law School by Luke Nichols, who is a practicing attorney but probably best known as the owner of the popular YouTube Channel Outdoor Boys which includes a lot wilderness hunting, fishing, and bushcraft (“survivalistâ€) content.
I’m a follower of his channel and I appreciate that he makes content based on his own personal interests and adventures, as opposed to creating trendy content specifically to chase clicks or followers or viral popularity. In fact, he recently stopped making any new videos entirely because he became “too famous†and it started to affect his day-to-day life.
This 9-minute speech has a personal finance tilt and I think it’s worth sending out to any other new grads who might appreciate his perspective. Nichols includes a good personal story about how having some money in the bank can change your life in many ways. Having money isn’t just about living in a nicer place or a nicer car. It’s about having the optionality to take asymmetrical risks and really pursue the life that you want. For example, you might be able to take the lower-paying opportunity with a great mentor.
