How not to think about college - YouTube Video of the Week #3

As a parent of a high school junior, I have been involved in an increasing number of conversations about college options with my son. With all of this mounting anxiety regarding helping my son make the right choice for him, the video below from Dan Gilbert's TEDx talk at TEDxYouth@Omaha was a great reminder about what we need to focus on.

As Mr. Gilbert states, "we can't change the system, but we can change how we think about the system."

The focus of the talk is the three questions that are most often considered when searching for colleges and flipping them -

1. Instead of asking - "Where is the best place for you?"  Ask - "Who will you meet?"       Because - "Who is greater than where. "
2. Instead of worrying about "Getting in."  Worry about getting out. With a 6-year graduation rate nationally of 59% make sure you major in something that you love. 
3. Instead of focusing on the job you will get when you get out - think about the transferable skills you will acquire along the way. Skills are greater than jobs since the typical 25-year old will have had more than six jobs.