So, this thought came from the strategy lessons on Disruptive Innovation.
There are wow-examples of this happening in industry. There is a wow-er example of human resources (which in fact is the other side of story). How best colleges prepare students who are smarter than the need of mainstream companies! Those companies can’t afford them. Worse still, if they pay them enough, still they can’t be challenging enough to satisfy the fire of these students! Result- these companies head towards smaller colleges. And the places these student will be headed to will be smaller, non-traditional- probably disrupting innovators.
There is a third aspect, an individual’s story.
We start pushing from the young age. To stay ahead of crowd, to do better and better.- to meet our need. We push, push and push. The hard work pays. We “succeed”. But at times we overshoot our needs. We end up having more than we initially desired and thus leaving room for disruptive needs/desire- Lesser, more basic desire. It starts hollowing us. We grow dissatisfied. restless.. unhappy…
So, how much to push? Or we too are bound to be doomed? I guess, it’s internal so we can monitor and control better. First of all, do not get pushed by peer pressure and society’s idea of success. Define it for yourself. Do not seek the best. Seek the correct.
But if this is done from beginning perhaps we won’t achieve anything! Well, it’s only logical that I attempt to answer this question- but this will be very shallow attempt as I don’t have much knowledge of society and psychology.
Anyway- I remember one of Chanakya couplet of advice-
“Madly love a child younger than 6. Be strict with the child between 6 and 16. Respect the child over 16- he is an adult now.
So, perhaps we can break the development in 3 phases. Leave the child till age 6. Let the natural abilities and interest emerge. Push him/her hard from 6-16 to develop reasonable “skill” in the area. Then stop pushing; let him/her decide. Of course the advice is over 2000 years old- society has changed so much since, we must shift barriers, but this can be one pattern of solution.
of course as I said- this part I am writing only based on my reasoning and power of inferences…
Lost Wanderer 