“We receive three educations, one from our parents, one from our school masters, and one from the world. The third contradicts all that the first two teach us.

― Charles Louis de Secondat Baron de Montesquieu

I am not speaking for all communities, but, there’s this common myth amongst my parent and her friends, that kids in school who always got high scores in math will be the most successful person; those with high grades in school surely will get a well-paid jobs, they wouldn’t even need to look for a job, it will be offered to them on a silver tray. And of course, throughout my schooling year, I am never in that group; and my own mother is never shy to compare me with those kids. Why can’t you be more like such and such… she is an honor student, he always becomes a straight-A student, and she gets an award for her astounding performance; I wonder why my only daughter is not even trying to learn to be like them… etc.. etc.

Now, being in my forties and living in the same house with my mother, I occasionally meet with these golden kids now just-average-adult. Unsurprisingly, they too struggle in life, they too have loads of problems in life; there are no significant differences between me, the average student with them, the golden students.

So now I am convinced, that the skills we need to face the education from the world are very much different from the skill set taught in school. Often we need to unlearn the skill we learn dutifully in school, to re-define the whole concept of the success we learn in school, and readjust with a concept of success that is more personal to us.

I am not suggesting that education from parents and school is not important, but we all should remember that life after the schooling years is actually a starting of a new form of education. We shall not forget to tell our children that to be able to thrive in this ‘world education’ they will need to learn and unlearn, to adapt and adjust, to build and destroy, to open and shield themselves.

Cheers, stay foolish, stay hungry, 



Karin Sabrina