Bill Gates recently gave a speech at a High School about 11 things students did not and will not learn in school. He talks about how feel-good, politically correct teachings created a generation of kids with no concept of reality and how this concept set them up for failure in the real world.
"Rule 1: Life is not fair - get used to it!
Rule 2 : The world won't care about your self-esteem. The world will expect you to accomplish something BEFORE you feel good about yourself.
Rule 3 : You will NOT make $60,000 a year right out of high school. You won't be a vice-president with a car phone until you earn both.
Rule 4 : If you think your teacher is tough, wait till you get a boss.
Rule 5 : Flipping burgers is not beneath your dignity. Your Grandparents had a different word for burger! flipping: they called it opportunity.
Rule 6: If you mess up, it's not your parents' fault, so don't whine about your mistakes, learn from them.
Rule 7: Before you were born, your parents weren't as boring as they are now. They got that way from paying your bills, cleaning your clothes and listening to you talk about how cool you thought you were. So before you save the rain forest from the parasites of your parent's generation, try delousing the closet in your own room.
Rule 8: Your school may have done away with winners and losers, but life HAS NOT. In some schools, they have abolished failing grades and they'll give you as MANY TIMES as you want to get the right answer. This doesn't bear the slightest resemblance to ANYTHING in real life.
Rule 9: Life is not divided into semesters. You don't get summers off and very few employers are interested in helping you FIND YOURSELF. Do that on your own time.
Rule 10: Television is NOT real life. In real life people actually have to leave the coffee shop and go to jobs.
Rule 11: Be nice to nerds. Chances are you'll end up working for one. If you agree, pass it on. If you can read this - Thank a teacher!
Most of all Thank A Veteran for keeping our country free so this can be passed on to someone else. "
Thank you Bill Gates for your words of wisdom. As graduation approaches, these rules should be shared with all seniors.
6 comments:
Oh, I LOVE THIS!!! Thanks for sharing it!!!!! ~Janine XO
These notes should be stuck to the inside of all of their lockers. It whould serve as a daily reminder as to the main purpose for them being in school to begin with.
Your post evoked two memories:
1) My former pupils at a juvenile offenders facility had one reproach: "you teach us to have confidence in people, we could have confidence in the educators, not so out there and you did not prepare us for that".
2) In the 70s I was interviewing a freshly graduated social worker for some job offers that we had posted. When asked which one, she said the one in school social services. I asked why? Because they have two months vacations. When told that was not the case she took a despondent look. She was not hired for any of the jobs.
This was absolutely fabulous, I loved it, Rosaria! I will print it out and save it for my son, for when he grows up. Points 7, 10 and 11 are my favorites.
Thank you for sharing it, Maestra.
My husband has done work for Bill Gates, he said not only is he brilliant, but he's a no-nonsense kind of a guy. This was wonderful, and proves hubby right.
Wow, one of the rare occasions when I agree with everything that Mr. Gates says. Thanks for posting that.
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