Do You Know How Lucky You Are?

For those students out there the time is now imminent for the start of a new year. For some it has already started. Given this, it is time for me to drag out some tired old words I repeat to people as they begin a new journey or a new grade.

Let me set the stage. Most who come to this blog (analytics are great) are from places and schools and families that support education at top places. Most of the demographics indicate that students who read this (and parents too) are the kinds of people who have high goals and aspirations. And most of the students have had great academic success and wonderful experiences outside of the classroom. In other words, the audience is the cream of the crop from around the world.

And yet, what I often hear about the start of a new year is a sense of dread and stress rather than the excitement that should come with an opportunity to learn and to spend time with great friends, in and out of the classroom. I would say this is especially true for a couple of groups in particular. Those students going into junior or senior year of secondary school and those in college or university who are going to graduate and apply for jobs or graduate schools. For these people they are already looking beyond the horizon of the world they live in the deep dark beyond they imagine. Imagination does strange things. Sometimes it gives us the unwavering dream of a future. For example, today I talked with the man who started what is now one of the biggest music entertainment businesses in the world. I was lucky enough to live with him in college. In any case, I saw from day one his unwavering drive to move toward a goal. He started by delivering newspapers at 4 a.m. and has now ended up flying non-stop back and forth across the world to represent some of the top bands in the business. But he had a vision and he never let it go, no matter what the odds, and at times, the odds seemed pretty great.  But he shared something that was a little troubling. He told me that too many students today have the idea that they are entitled to success. And I agree with him. Students who go to good high schools and work hard think things come easy after that. I wish it were so. But people like my friend know better. But he also loves his work. He had a passion and a dream and he worked tirelessly.

That is one approach. The other is to take the road of following the unknown. By this, I mean that each student needs to be teachable. Some of the smartest students I have worked with are also the toughest to teach because they already think they know. A small group do. But frankly, at 17, most people are pretty clueless. And that means that smart does not make a person a success. It is learning how to learn. This cliché is worth its weight. If students keep their minds open they should change their minds every week, depending on a conversation, a class, or a new activity. The brain is open at that time to almost anything as long as students don’t erect walls of cool or irony and anti- intellectualism. Those students will miss an incredible journey: having teachers change their lives. Some of the blogs students have submitted here underscore this.

Unfortunately, students worry about things that are unimportant, like which school they will attend. It does not matter which school a student enrolls in. It matters only how a student grows and performs at the school he or she is in. I have said this a million ties and so few believe me,b but it is true. So students. Chill. Stop worrying about something you cannot control. Admission officers hold your fate and it is getting harder each year to predict these tea leaves. Instead, work as hard as you can. If you do, the outcome will be great. It may not be the name you planned on, but that does not matter. Let the rankings go and get a life. You will be much happier and perform better.

Which brings me to my title of this entry. You, who attend great schools and have supportive parents, are the 1%. You are the ones who have choices. Yes, you have tons of homework, and papers, and applications. But at least you have them. I talked today with someone else, a very young mother who worked in a fast food place next to a Starbucks I frequent. And she is in a double-wide with her best hopes on tomorrow when she hopes she can talk herself into a factory job she could not interview for. The reason she could not interview was that the time took place during her work hours and her boss said if she talked she could walk. Out the door and out of a job. The stories I heard today are common, both the good and the bad, but the people who read this blog don’t often hear them. They filter out the incredible work it takes to reach success and they forget they are in a position so few in the world have.

So focus, chill, and be grateful. You are the luckiest people on the planet. But to whom much is given much is expected (I hope you know who first said this.). Take your education seriously and it will take you seriously. It will take you to new places, mentally and physically. And it will take you to a place where you can find your passion and pursue it with all your strength. You are so lucky; you can choose your story. Make it a good one. People like me want to read them and learn from them.