Tell Kids The Truth: Hard Work Doesn't Always Pay Off
Time|July 1, 2019

A STAR ATHLETE AT THE COLLEGE WHERE I work recently stopped by my office. After committing a few unforced errors during a weekend match, she was riven by self-criticism.

Rachel Simmons
Tell Kids The Truth: Hard Work Doesn't Always Pay Off

“I can’t stop beating myself up,” she told me. “I’m at peak fitness, and I practice hard. How is this happening?”

This student, like many I teach, believes she should be able to control the outcomes of her life by virtue of her hard work. It’s a mentality verging on invincibility: a sense that all-nighters in the library and hours on the field should get her exactly where she needs to go.

I study and write about resilience, and I’m noticing a troubling spike in students like this athlete. Their faith in their own sweat equity confers a kind of contingent confidence: When they win, they feel powerful and smart. When they fall short of what they imagine they should accomplish, however, they are crushed by self-blame.

We talk often about young adults struggling with failure because their parents have protected them from discomfort. But there is something else at play among the most privileged in particular: a false promise that they can achieve anything if they are willing to work for it.

この記事は Time の July 1, 2019 版に掲載されています。

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この記事は Time の July 1, 2019 版に掲載されています。

7 日間の Magzter GOLD 無料トライアルを開始して、何千もの厳選されたプレミアム ストーリー、8,500 以上の雑誌や新聞にアクセスしてください。

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