<p>My sister-in-law is one of the smartest people I know. PhD on the Emory U. faculty at (I think) 28. </p>
<p>She has a very clever saying that I often think about…</p>
<p>Some folks have plenty of smarts, but they lack “horsepower.” </p>
<p>She is a firm believer that regardless of one’s intelligence, unless the work ethic is there, they will never realize their potential… Needless to say, she’s a very, very hard worker…</p>
<p>I know this isn’t ground breaking, but it is a way of thinking about what makes some successful when others fail.</p>
<p>Broken down to my “simple” point of view, we each are born with a certain sized “engine.” Only so many cubic inches of capacity. But it’s up to us to generate RPM’s and determine the horsepower we put out…</p>
<p>Someone can have a huge engine, but few rpm’s while others spin away with the little engines they have…</p>
<p>Anyway, it’s a clever analogy that I thought I’d share… Again, not earth shattering, but clever nonetheless…</p>
<p>"Genius is one percent inspiration, ninety-nine percent perspiration. " - Thomas Edison
My mom says the difference between me and LangLang is he practice piano hrs a day and actually loves it (not that he’s so talented that he didn’t need practice much) while I play a hour a day and whine. she is probably right.</p>
<p>I, too, often use that horsepower expression with the kids. You can have all the inate intelligence in the world, but if you can’t propel yourself forward it’s all for naught.</p>
<p>So is post #5. Thanks for a phrase I can use on my many h.s. students, who apparently believe that college admissions is really (or should be) about a brain scan. (Um, no.)</p>
<p>CC is a good place to see this in action. The many posts by kids with 2350s wanting to know if Harvard won’t see how smart they are despite a low GPA…</p>
<p>There are at least two kinds of “genius”. Edison, for example, would identify a problem and then go through thousands of iterations with his staff to find a solution, keeping exact records of methods and materials along the way. The light bulb, which now represents a moment’s inspiration, came together after something like 10,000 trials. By contrast, Kary Mullis says the entire idea of PCR - which is essential in working with DNA - came to him as he was driving. And some “genius” is either luck or lucky attribution. Alexander Fleming is known as the discover of penicillin but a more truthful version is that he set up an experiment, went on vacation, came back and didn’t think much about the mold that was growing. Other people actually did the work - and, bluntly, the British system then was so anti-commercial that penicillin almost didn’t become a drug (and was literally carried to the US in vials in pockets).</p>
<p>BUT note that without that one percent there is no genius. To often we take this saying to elevate the hard worker to the level of a true genius. One can practice trumpet 24/7 and never be a a Miles Davis. You can be good, very good, but not the sublime.</p>
<p>I also would be wary about judging the “horsepower” of HS students and projecting them as adults for at least 2 reasons. </p>
<p>1) For many very bright kids a lot of the “busy work” components of HS academics is a total turn off and they will not do it while other students will slug through any assignment given to them … while I agree discipline and and ability to complete tasks will serve folks well as adults I am not willing to make negative future predictions on students who understand material but do not do other work uneeded for understanding but needed to be judged a good worker.</p>
<p>2) While some people have a good work ethic under virtually any circumstances others may not work that hard when uninterested but become totally engrossed when passionate about a topic … and they may not find that topic until they are in college.</p>
<p>I have told my kids that we gave them their ability… their contribution to the pile is their effort… overall, at this point, I am DELIGHTED with their efforts… yes, there have been disappointments along the way, but, that is how we have all learned…about ourselves and one another…</p>
<p>I used to sell computers… and the analogy I used at work was that some folks have faster processors, some have better, more reliable memory… some thrash & crash and get the blue screen of death… balanced performance was always optimum IMHO… and don’t forget to make sure you have a strong disaster recovery plan!! That applies to real life too!!</p>
<p>crossposted with 3togo…and you are right on with your perspective too… I know of one kid who took a path of least resistence in HS and came home from first semester of college with straight A’s… I know of another kid who recently went back to school for a professional degree (RN) and got straight A’s… which she never accomplished in either HS or college … so, channeling Winston Churchill… never, ever give up… when they choose to excel, they can excel… which was also the subtext of the Andre Agassi book… didn’t like playing tennis until he decided he wanted to play tennis…</p>
<p>Laughing at epiphany’s post #6. Many bright kids are convinced of their intelligence and think that teachers and colleges will somehow just know that truth about them. Application time can be a rude awakening when they suddenly realize they can’t actually prove how very smart they are. Watching my special needs youngest D persevere and have surprising successes at times, has taught me the value of a student not trusting in her intelligence as much as her hard work to carry her forward. Really bright people sometimes presume too much return on their raw ability and have surprising failures. At the same time, though, there’s no subsitute for genius either.</p>
<p>It’s more complicated than I think described so far. I’ll continue with the engine metaphor, but apologies to the mechanically minded who might find me sounding pretty nonsensical</p>
<p>Some have an engine that will jsut run and run, over any roads put in front of them; lord only knows why but they just go and go and go. But many people have engines designed for super speed and horsepower on some roads, and not on others.</p>
<p>School requires a lot of mindless work, busy work, repetition, sequential thinking, rote memorization, following particular rules. Particular courses and particular pedagogical approaches. That doesn’t excite everybody or even work for some types of learners. As but one example, the big thinkers, the really innovative ones, the ones that see patterns and pictures and think in abstract…may be the ones with so much future potential, yet typical school is such they have little interest and hence drive it. Its like their engines get stuck in the mud of the educational road. It doesn’t speak to them, their strengths, their interests. Only later might their engine get a boost and kick in full speed when their academic world gets more complex and abstract and/or they can specialise more in what turns them on. </p>
<p>I truly believe we would all be much much more productive and successful, not to mention much more fulfilled and happy, if we could find the thing that fuels our engines. Everyone has an engine, every engine has a fuel that work best (just some lucky ducks can take any ol’ fuel). </p>
<p>Sure we have to be pragmatic and all about jobs of the future, but I find it sad when I repeatedly read about kids aiming for majors because their parents think they should, it seems safe, it pays well, it has prestige, everyone else is doing it…when they may have given zero consideration to what excites them and speaks to their natural talents and drive and who really knows what the world of work will prize a decade from now.</p>