When parents were asked in a poll last week which they would their children rather be: book smart or street smart, 55% answered book smart and 45% street smart (Parent.Com poll, January 2012).
Which are you? I strongly believe that it’s important to do well academically, but at the same time, we cannot neglect learning from experiences. Don’t you agree that learning about a country and living in the country make a big difference?
I remember one girl from my junior high school. Her parents were focusing on her grades too much rather than the importance of study, so she ended up cheating in exams just to get good grades in order to satisfy them. Also, in my high school which was pretty competitive, I saw a clear difference between students who studied only from textbooks and those who read so many different books (other than textbooks). Many of the former got stuck at a certain point and it seemed that they couldn’t see things beyond the knowledge they got from textbooks.
A degree from top universities, a job title, or a great GPA is important, but “how you got there” is more important. If your mind gets trapped with one of those, you will not be able to judge your surroundings very well. You can call it “ego.”
There is a famous Japanese baseball player, Sachio Kinugasa, who played baseball for consecutive 22 years and never missed a game. At his retirement ceremony, he said, “Intelligence can bring people to a certain level, but what makes a difference from there are continuous efforts.” It may not sound anything special, “continuous efforts.” However, doing the same thing over and over for a long period of time is not that easy, especially if you can’t see an instant result.
Look at successful people around you. Not everyone had a ticket to success. Henry Ford, Bill Gates, Larry Ellison, Sheldon Adelson, Steve Jobs, Mark Zuckerberg and many more were college dropouts. I believe that success comes from boldness, continuous efforts, strength and a keen ability to judge your surroundings in addition to intelligence.
“Genius is one percent inspiration and ninety-nine percent perspiration.”
Thomas Edison
Photo: PhoTones_TAKUMA
