LAST Tuesday, March 10, I had the privilege of delivering the inspirational message during the joint awarding of Dean’s Listers of the Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Maynila (PLM) College of Law and College of Medicine. Addressing the top students of my alma mater law school together with the outstanding scholars of its Medical College was both humbling and deeply encouraging.
The speech I delivered carried a title that may seem unusual for an event celebrating academic success: “When excellence is not enough.”
At first glance, it appears almost contradictory. After all, Dean’s Listers represent the very embodiment of excellence — students who have demonstrated discipline, intellectual rigor, perseverance and commitment to learning.
Yet precisely because excellence was being celebrated, it was important to ask a deeper question:
Is excellence enough?
Excellence is admirable. Excellence is necessary. Excellence is the fruit of sacrifice and discipline. Behind every academic award are countless hours of study, quiet sacrifices and moments when students chose responsibility over comfort.
Dean’s Listers did not arrive there by accident. They arrived there by persistence.
But while excellence is worthy of celebration, it is not the final destination of a meaningful life.
Excellence alone is not enough.
Excellence may represent the highest expression of our personal effort, but life itself is larger than personal achievement. There are many things that matter in life beyond what we can produce for ourselves.
This is because human beings were never meant to live in isolation.
There are more things outside of us than there are within us. No person succeeds alone, and no life finds its full meaning apart from others.
From the very beginning of our lives, we are shaped by community. We are born into families who care for us. We grow through teachers who guide us and classmates who learn alongside us. And when we enter society, we discover that our lives are interconnected with the lives of many others.
Civilization flourishes not merely because individuals succeed, but because individuals learn to serve.
This is why I emphasized two simple truths to the awardees that day:
“First, you are not your own”
“Second, your gifts are meant to serve others.”
The first truth may sound unusual in a world that celebrates individual autonomy. We often emphasize independence and self-determination.
Yet in the larger scheme of things, we do not ultimately belong only to ourselves.
One of the oldest and most profound ideas in human civilization is the principle of “Imago Dei” — the belief that human beings are created in the image and likeness of God.
This belief has served as a foundational basis for the recognition of human dignity throughout history. It affirms that every person possesses intrinsic worth that cannot be granted or removed by any state, institution or earthly power.
From this principle emerges the concept of inalienable rights — particularly the rights to life and liberty.
These rights are not privileges granted by governments. They are rooted in the dignity given by the Creator.
But if life is a gift, then life must also carry purpose.
The Creator who gives life is a God of intention. Everything He does is purposeful. And if we bear His image, then our lives must be lived with purpose as well.
To be an image bearer is to recognize that life is not merely about survival or personal advancement. It is about fulfilling a calling greater than ourselves.
In the PLM College of Law, this calling is beautifully summarized in its Latin motto:
“Lex Ad Bonum Publicum” — Law for the Public Good.
This motto reflects the vision of legal education not merely as a pathway to personal success, but as a preparation for public service, justice and community empowerment.
The same can be said for medicine.
Medicine is not simply a profession. It is a vocation of healing. Every physician carries the sacred responsibility of preserving life, relieving suffering and protecting human dignity.
Law and medicine are among the noblest professions precisely because they exist for service.
Which brings us to the second truth:
“Your gifts are meant to serve others.”
When I was in law school about 20 years ago, we were told something interesting. Our professors said that by the time a student reaches the second year of law school, the knowledge and analytical skills gained could already have a market value equivalent to around “P1.5 to P2 million.”
If adjusted for inflation today, that estimate might be closer to “P2.5 to P3 million.”
Whether or not the figure is exact is not the point.
The point is that every semester spent studying increases a student’s value to society.
Every case studied sharpens judgment. Every exam passed strengthens discipline. Every concept mastered expands one’s ability to solve real problems.
Excellence therefore matters.
Excellence sharpens our capacity to serve.
But excellence must always be guided by purpose.
“Knowledge without humility can become arrogance.”
“Power without responsibility can become abuse.”
“Talent without compassion can become self-serving.”
This is why the greatest professionals in history are remembered not merely for their intelligence but for their impact.
The greatest doctors are remembered because they healed.
The greatest lawyers are remembered because they defended justice.
The greatest leaders are remembered because they used their influence to uplift others.
Excellence that serves only the self may produce personal success.
But excellence that serves others creates lasting impact.
And this is why excellence alone is not enough.
True excellence must go beyond personal achievement. It must be directed toward service — service to God, service to people and service to the nation.
Your intelligence, education and talents are not accidents.
They are gifts entrusted to you.
And often, those gifts are God’s answer to the needs and prayers of others.
Somewhere in this country there are communities waiting for lawyers who will defend justice with courage. There are patients waiting for doctors who will treat them with compassion. There are institutions that will be shaped by the decisions you will make.
The real question is not merely “how excellent you will become,” but “how your excellence will be used.”
Because excellence that ends in the self dies with the self.
But excellence that is offered in service multiplies across generations.
So, pursue excellence with passion.
But do not stop there.
Let your excellence become service.
Let your excellence become justice.
Let your excellence become compassion.
Let your excellence become nation-building.
Because in the end, the highest form of excellence is not brilliance, prestige or recognition.
The highest form of excellence is a life offered in service to God and to others.
And when excellence is surrendered to God’s calling, something remarkable happens.
Your talent becomes ministry.
Your profession becomes mission.
And your life becomes a blessing to your nation and generation.
That is why excellence is not enough.
Excellence must become service.
Service must become calling.
And calling must become a life lived for God, for others and for the nation.
Only then does excellence reach its highest purpose.
