<p>At some level, it really seems to be a cultural issue of how much control and planning goes into a kid’s life, and what a “successful outcome” means. To me a successful outcome is the person not the college. I don’t agree with everything that’s been posted so far, and some of it puts the cart before the horse, IMHO, but those are my cultural biases. </p>
<p>Personally, we hope that we inspire a love of learning, a work ethic that finds work to be it’s own reward, and a humanity that humbles and inspires them to make a better world. We hope that they get enough sleep. </p>
<p>But I also want them to try things - well not everything, LOL - but to not be afraid to try things and fail. I want them to get used to mild embarrassment and not fear it (I joke that’s why I embarrass them so much). I want them to be tough enough to get though the toughest day, any day. I want them to generally like the people around them and to not view others as their competition (except in an actual competition like sports or debate - then I want them to take care of business). </p>
<p>I hated the idea purported in some college books that a kid has to decide by 8th grade which ECs she’s going to enjoy, or to choose a sport or a musical instrument for college admissions purposes. By 8th grade, they’re 14 and really ought to be the self-drivers in how they spend their time. They have to own it. I think that 14 is way too young to have tried everything worthwhile even if later on some 25-year old college admissions officer thinks that they’re too well rounded or “we have enough violinists”. Experimenting is worth the risk.</p>