A good blog post today from my favorite marketing author, Seth Godin, about the relentless pursuit of specific goals. It got me thinking about students who relentlessly pursue a goal to gain admission to a highly selective college.
It's risky to measure your success by whether or not Stanford says "Yes," because they reject most of their applicants. That's giving too much power to someone else.
What's broken in college admissions isn't necessarily the fact that
kids are working hard; what's broken is that too many kids (and a lot
of parents) only find value in the work if the chosen college offers
admission. There's a reason why those who are rejected from their dream schools aren't relegated to substandard lives. The work you do to be a competitive college applicant means you're smart, dedicated, and willing to work hard. Those traits will make you successful no matter where you go to college. Whether or not your dream school admits you, there's value in the work you do along the way.