We all know we are unique in some way or the other, because through time we have learnt a few of our limitations along the way, and others don’t seem to have those same limitations or have overcome them, like being able to deliver a speech in front of a gathering, or knowing how to cook a delicious dinner for your loved ones, like wise even our young have a few things that they might not be able to do just yet!, and I stress on “just yet”, it takes times for a few of us like me, I was not good at math in school, but over the years I got better at it, although I didn’t take the traditional path in India to take up science, I choose commerce and now have completed my masters specializing in Finance and Marketing and am very happy I did so.

But, I didn’t know that through the years because i believe what my education system just like all over the world says to their students, this is a common test, you all have to score a minimum of these many marks to pass, if you don’t by the end of the year you get to stay back because your not fit to move on with the rest of your friends, I mean no one said it out loud but making a student stay back is the best thing you can do to break a young person’s spirit, I have friends who even now look back at their child hood and they are not completely happy and they have done quite well for themselves in life.

My question is how can you have a common test for a room full of budding individuals?

Would you be happy if had to write an exam just like that to get promoted or recognized?, don’t we like the fact that we have the freedom to contribute to our work and prove ourselves in our own way?.

Now i’m not stating that our young people know what they want to be or have the skills to know what they can or cannot do, because I know I didn’t either, and if I was told I was unfit for passing through as early as in school!!, may be I would start to believe I may not be cut out for the future ahead as well, and we all know the news talking about young people taking their own lives, http://ibnlive.in.com/news/suicide-rate-in-india-highest-between-the-ages-of-1529/267455-3.html, very sad but very true!!. and this is not just in India either.

So, I would like to plead with every teacher who comes across this, to please make it clear to your students and to the young who are reading this; that what we learn in class is to get us ready to be able to do what we want in the future, look ahead for it, and failing is never the end, the day you stop trying is the day you have really failed. But always know that success is different for everyone just like we are all different, here is a video link of this amazing person who just can’t help but inspire you to, give it a shot but give it your best shot and if you have done what you did in the best way that you can, then that is success and the result it doesn’t matter.

http://www.ted.com/talks/john_wooden_on_the_difference_between_winning_and_success.html

Here is another person you ought to know.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iG9CE55wbtY

And that’s not all, people have recognized this problem and are working towards it, it will take some more time but there is hope, there are many projects all around the world like.

http://www.ted.com/talks/lang/en/geoff_mulgan_a_short_intro_to_the_studio_school.html

http://www.ted.com/talks/lang/en/john_hardy_my_green_school_dream.html

and for every parent around the world with children in schools this is a must watch

“Waiting for superman” buy it and watch it.

And for the realist that say, “what about me i’m in the regular system right now”, well there are numerous people who have thrived in this system People like:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ratan_Tata

http://www.abdulkalam.com/kalam/

And for the people who think well i’m not for this system then here are a few that i’m sure you know about but did you know they were all drop outs!!:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steve_Jobs

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bill_Gates

I’m using these iconic people because of their fame and many if not all of you would already know about them, but there are scores of many others that don’t like the lime light and like their privacy, we should all learn from them and their well documented experiences, and build strength because although i said we are all different, once you get to living life we find that many of us face the same challenges and that’s the beauty of it, same problem but different solutions, because we are all different but we are all on the same boat.