This essay would have been better titled: Stop Defending Individual Mediocrity. > A gem cannot be polished without friction, nor a man perfected without trials

This essay would have been better titled: Stop Defending Individual Mediocrity. > A gem cannot be polished without friction, nor a man perfected without trials. To support a tree is to weaken it. A tree should be protected from extremes that would topple it until it has established itself but it must be allowed to sway in the wind. For the action of the weakest winds give it the strength to resist the greater winds.