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On the other hand, as a teenager you can try many things that you later simply won't have time for. It's a shame if that time that could be used for exploration
by facepalm 11y ago
On the other hand, as a teenager you can try many things that you later simply won't have time for. It's a shame if that time that could be used for exploration is wasted on cramming useless knowledge in school.
I would plead for a better school rather than dropping out, though. It's depressing that apparently even Altucher who is supposedly a millionaire can not find a decent school for his kids.
- alistairSH 11y ago>I would plead for a better school rather than dropping out, though. It's depressing that apparently even Altucher who is supposedly a millionaire can not find a decent school for his kids. Totally agree with the first part. School is only a waste if you go a mediocre school. There are plenty of excellent public and private schools available in the US. And most of the people browsing HN during working hours can afford the neighborhoods where those schools are located. Fixing the broken schools in less affluent areas is a more difficult problem. I also find is astonishing that somebody who graduated from Cornell, then pursued a PhD at CMU would advocate for their own child to drop out of school at age 13. It's truly flabbergasting. Is he really asserting that he would be in the same, or better, position today had he skipped 4 years of high school, 4 years of undergraduate at one elite university, and then another handful of years at a second elite university? I'm calling shenanigans.
- andrepd 11y agoYes, like the GP said, plenty of survivor bias. It's easy to say stuff like that after you have succeeded. But succeeding takes a lot more than dropping out of school and following your dreams™. Above all, it takes hard work, and it takes plenty of luck.