Exceptions are not Examples
One
of the common debates, we tend to hear in the current context is ‘How important
is education, in the success of an individual?”. The general sentiment today
seems to be in favour of NO. We believe that schools and colleges of today, is
not preparing leaders for tomorrow, rather it is just preparing a bunch of
clerks.
While
I understand the reasons for this changing mindset, I am still in favour of formal
education. Let me substantiate this with some points.
I
often tell people, that this country can develop into a strong nation, only
when educated people enter politics and take up leadership roles. One of the counter
argument, I hear when I say that, is that, “It is not necessary for a person to
be educated to enter politics, rather that person should have good intentions” .
The political leader often cited to substantiate this claim is, former Chief Minister
of the state Thiru. K Kamaraj. While this is a valid example they are making,
let us ponder as to how many such good exemplary leaders do we really have? On
the contrary, can we ever discount the contribution of so many educated leaders
such as Gandhi, Jawaharalal Nehru, Sardar Vallabbhai Patel or Ambedkar and so
on?
Similarly,
when we talk about education as an important factor to be successful in career,
people tend to defend by saying, “Not necessarily “ and cite examples of people
like Bill Gates, who was a school dropout or Dirubhai Ambani, who had no formal
schooling. Well, these people have
undoubtedly made it great in life, but again how many of such examples do we
have. On the other hand, think about the many educated people who have been highly
successful in their careers, such as Steve Jobs, Narayana Moorthy, Indra Nooyi
or Sundar Pichai.
While
it is true that there are exceptional cases of people, who are illiterate or
didn’t have formal schooling but who have made it big in life, it still doesn’t
make a valid point of contention. So, the point I wish to make is “exceptions
shouldn’t be taken as examples.”
Now
the question is, if that is the case, why do we often glorify such people
rather than the educated and successful people. The answer is this. These types of exceptional leaders are rare
and it is a general trend that we tend to appreciate what is rare and what is
not common.
Moreover,
the fundamental reason to nurture these thoughts is to inculcate hope in the
minds of people, who have not had the capacity to pursue academics or who have
met with less academic success. That is to say, when someone is not successful
in education, we don’t need to completely give up on them, rather motivate them
with these examples, which give them a hope that they too can become successful
people.
This
sort of inspiration still continues to build successful entrepreneurs and
leaders and that is a good thing. While leadership seems to be an inborn trait,
found in anyone irrespective of whether that person is educated or uneducated,
Education certainly provides the competency one needs to be a more resourceful
thinker and therefore lead more effectively.
So,
while we admire these exceptional people, let us not take them as examples,
rather commit ourselves to be a master of our craft, by conscious effort of
learning and building our skills.
All
of us are planted with the seed, which has an innate ability to succeed.
Education is just like a nursery, which nurtures the seed to bloom into a
flowering plant. When an tested and
trusted framework is available, why leave success to chance.
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