If I asked you to describe someone who’d bring about social progress in these difficult times, I’m guessing your first answer wouldn’t be “a college drop-out or an illiterate clown.” Yet it’s exactly these candidates that some very high hopes are being pinned on. In Sao Paulo, Brazil a 45-year old clown named “Grumpy” won a seat in congress by appealing to disillusioned voters with the slogan “It can’t get any worse.” Though his competitors tried to bar him from running because of evidence he’s illiterate, he stayed on and ended up receiving twice the votes of the next runner up.
Here in the US, Peter Thiel, the co-founder of Paypal, is offering $100,000 to 20 people under 20 who drop out of school to pursue a business idea. In Thiel’s mind, this frees up ambitious young minds from the time drain of school and gets them started on the innovative technology that will improve the lives of people to come. While the majority will say giving money to 20 individuals to drop out of school is foolish (in stark contrast to Mark Zuckerbergs recent $100 million dollar lump donation to support schools), I think not. Dropping out of college doesn’t necessarily mean dropping your ambition. Many top-tier, high-impact innovators are people who’ve dropped out of school. If we believe in the domino effect at all, it’s obvious how this unexpected move can trickle down in exciting ways. Why donate $100 million supporting the status quo if you can spend a fraction of that to create some momentum that will have positive reverberations decades down the line.
Likewise, why keep putting the same kind of politician in office over and over again when you can have a clown? The average politician is invested in maintaining a classic political image – creating a vicious cycle of stagnation. Clowns are invested in defying expectation and helping us see the lighter side of life. “Grumpy’s” unlikely victory could convince other politicians to acknowledge the utter bullshit that has become politics and also inspire a fresh crop of left-field people to enter future political races.
So next time you invest in something, try an approach that people would never see coming, come through the back door, walk into the room. If smart money never took risks with the unexpected, it wouldn’t be called smart money, would it? And that’s killin’ it.
I agree. I can’t my mind to stop creating ideas. I guess all I have lacked is faith. I know there are many more out there who have great ideas waiting to become inventions or businesses, etc. However, some select classes would be beneficial on the way. I consider education a tool, creativity the machine and ambition the fuel. Dreams need maintenance. I say do away with requiring job candidates to have degrees. Pull out your transcript and show me what tools you’re good with. College is a waste of money! The education system needs to be student centered. It’s not even oriented for our economy, like some people believe. Higher education in America is designed for it’s own agenda. Don’t get me wrong, I love the sciences, the arts and humanities, but I don’t want to be in debt. Being ‘cultured’ should be a choice, not a requirement. The education system is a cult. It should a means to empowerment. And at it’s worst, a universal education inundates our youth with too many choices. We don’t have to create an environment that will expose people to different experiences. Life does that for us!
Mr.Hall,
Sure, good points..I suppose.., especially regarding the empowerment of people, .but…. don’t confuse laziness and entitlement with struggle and and real hardship.
Also don’t blame others for your failures or boredom. Education is a gift. I wouldn’t expect others to fund your “creative adventures.”
Many people have no choice but to fight their whole lives simply to survive or feed their children.
“None of us are free” -
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4hv6sQXI1WY
Religious or not, Jesus words ring true here too “Stand up, pick up your mat, and walk!”
Nothing comes easy.
Killin it!
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