What they REALLY mean to say
He may not look 16 but he was... And like many others his age or younger, he was told a recipe to follow to the tee to be "successful"; what they forgot to explain was what success was. The recipe is simple: go to school, then to high school, then to university, then work, then get married, have kids and give them the best life you can and that they deserve.
Today, with hopefully still a long road ahead to live, a lot of mistakes to make and an interesting future to discover I KNOW that recipe is obsolete and what they Truly meant by it. See, this kid was not the top of his class, he was not the most popular of the class, he was not the most attractive either. But he WAS the most passionate and inquisitive. As a result, he did not care to get the best grades, he cared about understanding why some were easier to improve than others, why he was weaker in some areas and stronger in others. He decided to try swimming, music, poetry and math just to see if he could, if he liked them all the same. He learned that friends are more important than grades and studying, because although a great job will help you save to accomplish things; friends will get you through the times were money shows what it is: fictitious.
Oh and then he learned to travel, to leave your beautiful comfort zone and understand see what is out there on your own. The best part about traveling alone is that, no matter how many people you meet and friends you make, at some point the ALONE part kicks in and you will have to learn to live with Yourself, you realize you have introduced yourself to many people over the years... But how many times have you gotten to be with YOU?
Here's where the obsolete recipe should be introduced in a better way to understand why it "works":
When they say go to school, they mean learn to live and work with others.
When they say go to high school, they mean find people who you can count on and realize who are the ones NOT to.
When they say go to university and then work, they mean find a career, something you love and are passionate about SO much that you could depend on yourself to succeed at it in life and in that process make a living.
When they say get married and have kids, they mean find a reason to wake up every morning, something so important that you lose your ego and think greater than just YOU.
When they say give them the best life you can and they deserve, it does not mean give them a recipe to follow doubtlessly... They mean:
Give them your best every day and in that process make them understand that
Success is not a destination you get to
It's the climb of steps you go through to get to your goals
