Thank you for publishing this! I am very pleased to hear the general consensus, thank you everybody who took your time to read. I have just started a sub stack of my own and hope to write more soon, please feel free to follow if you want to hear more from an angry "screenager" :)
Loved your letter, Jason. You’ll see my comments here. Looking forward to reading your Substack! At the same time, I’m a little bit disappointed that you didn’t lock yourself up in the library to read all of Shakespeare’s plays or the Bhagavad Gita! You are certainly are a(n entrepreneurial) screenager!
Look at Ted, he got an MBA from Stanford but he’s also a jazz musician, and a philosophy scholar. The humanities, like art and music causes us to focus, process, ponder, practice and not just produce. Thinking, crafting, creating—all this is extremely valuable work even if 99% of this is in your head! There are no or only a very few likes, clicks, web, data or customer metrics on this path.
The mind has a life of its own and sometimes the external world is but a distraction for the true scholar. Don’t fall for thinking that everything action is a step forward, life is not rungs on a ladder. It’s an Escher painting with odd leaps of inter-dimensional insight!
I've subscribed. I'll be interested to see what topics you pursue. I don't know why you aren't intending to follow your heart and pursue a degree in the humanities, although I'm guessing there is a heavy load of parental pressure pushing you towards STEM or business. Just know this: what you do at this point of your life may have little bearing on where you will go. Still, you should pursue what you love. Don't do something because the adults in your life are adamant that is what you should do. Should is for schmucks.
Should is definitely for shmucks ; in retrospect, I could have pursued doing what I love with a degree in music rather than what I perceived was expectations of my family to be either a doctor , etc
What I did at Jadon's age had everything to do with where I went. Other's, not so much. It depends, primarily, on where you want to go and how you want to get there, and how open you are to other influences.
Hi, Jadon. I'm one of Ted Gioia's followers on this Substack, and my first question was going to be "Does Jadon have a Substack of his own?" Got the answer already. Jadon, my family all thought I was a little bit irresponsible over 40 years ago when I got my university degree in one of the most traditional humanities, History. But it wasn't just any history, it was Medieval and Modern European History. I'm sitting on a mountain peak of research and experience that gives me fantastic insight into why our world is in this political, economic, and social mess today. It began long, long before "phones". Let me recommend a writer named Alvin Toffler to you. He wrote three books over the past 50 years: Future Shock, The Third Wave, and Powershift. When you get through those you'll have seen the essence of Toffler's thinking matched to observations of society around him. Sadly he passed away in 2016, but his ideas are still earthshaking.
I chose my major by throwing a dart at my transcript pinned to a pine tree. It landed closer to History than French so I did both a major in History and a minor in French. Both have served me well as I am bilingual to this day. Not the most scientific method but I'm glad I followed that dart.
I'll echo Ted's endorsement that you are already a good writer and critical thinker, and will get better with practice. I like your term for yourself, an "angry screenager". Remember that anger is tremendous energy under pressure. Let that energy go in well-controlled packets and you'll accomplish a lot. If it explodes all at one go, the damage my be irreparable. BTW I'm a mid-term Baby Boomer (1957) , one of the millions who never got rich financially, but are billionaires in friendship, opportunities, and pure joie de vivre (joy of living). I'll follow along with you on your Substack. Best from Carol S.
Jadon, if you really want to go into STEM, then you should. But if, as you intimated by your favorite subject and the quality of this letter, you want to go into the English/writing field, the world of words needs you and others like you, smart, articulate, self-aware, and well-spoken. Well done, here, well done.
Subscribed !! I definitely loved your article because it also was eye opening in a way I could see my son and understand him better because I think that what you and your friends go through are probably the same things he goes through Thank you again
I believe that a large part of the problem, if not THE problem, is that higher education in the United States is treated as a means to an end. “Do this so that you can get that.” I tell my daughters “whatever it is that you do, do it because it alone is worth doing.”
Maybe so. But for those of us who wanted to be licensed: architects (me), engineers, doctors, etc. there was no option. And there's the fact that if a student likes underwater basket weaving it's unlikely he'll be a successful or productive member of society... Unless he manages to create beautiful baskets that are marketable. What are the odds?
You can go to med school and major in biology (boring) while rushing to graduate in 3 years. Or you can major in just about anything, as long as you take the prerequisites. Strong academic work always gets stellar recommendation letters. One can even take time off between undergrad and med school and do a little basket weaving and scuba diving. AOA physician here. Who's rushing you? Half my med school classmates took several years off before starting that rigorous 4 years. Dominated the top of the class.
Architect school is more of the same. You gotta know the prerequisites. Before and after, who's rushing you? As a pretty damn good pianist and guitar player (edited, earlier I wrote architect instead of guitar), I can see where a really good musician with some background in acoustics might be the one you want to design a world-class concert hall. The ones that took years off to travel the world exploring art museums and architecture before having the eureka moment- hey I wanna design these buildings for the rest of my life.
Engineering? Don't get me started. The ones who have the most impact tend to be really well-rounded, thinking outside the box. Not to mention social skills help greatly in getting promoted to upper echelons where you're managing a lot of people and directing big projects. The engineers that are only good at STEM tend to sit at their desks for decades while they watch others advance. The ones that are wicked smart, head and shoulders above their peers, starting companies while being complete nerds are one in a million.
Half of all college grads are "underemployed" after graduation, meaning they work in a field that doesn't require a college diploma. After ten years that percentage has barely dropped at all.
The issue is cost. If somebody wants to go to college and study calligraphy, or Sanskrit, or Hinduism, of course they should be able to. But how many are really going to be willing to do that if it means going into debt for years, possibly decades?
there are zero college grads who went to a real school and paid attention who are "underemployed." the problem is way too many people go to schools like Southeast Arkansas State University- North Campus, and treat the experience as a joke where they party for 4 years and have a lot of fun.
You find me someone that learned Sanskrit in college, really learned it. I'll hire them and teach them everything they need to know to be successful. That's one smart MOFO. Any language really.
Almost no job "requires" a college diploma other than the hoops they make you jump through. Ask a doctor what they use from an undergrad course on a daily basis, the answer will be nothing. Ditto for a lawyer. Someone that studies comparative religion with a focus on Hinduism can probably write really well and think outside the box. I'd hire them in a second. Nobody majors in "Hinduism" or calligraphy, so you're just making shit up.
First of all, did you go to college? People actually do major in fields like Women's Studies, Ethnic Studies, Art History, etc.
Second, who are you going to hire? Somebody who got an A in Classical Languages and Literature from Dartmouth or somebody who got an A in business or engineering from some state school?
My point about the number of underemployed college grads is that there are too many college grads. Just getting a diploma isn't a guarantee of a decent job and if you are in the 50% that is chronically underemployed you have the additional burden of student debt plus losing four or five years of employment. Is anyone seriously going to dispute that for those individuals they probably would have been better off not going to college?
Finally, what if that person studies Sanskrit _because_ they wanted a career translating Sanskrit??? You got many positions for classical/ancient languages at your company?
I graduated top of my class in bioengineering at Columbia, then did the same for med school. Not after taking some time off though, and having some interesting jobs. None of which required a college degree.
You mentioned Sanskrit first. I'd say that's a sign of a rather bright individual. Make it a minor, or a double major. I'd hire them in a heartbeat. I ran multiple level I trauma centers, dozens of employees under my umbrella that if I didn't hire directly I could have fired for the slightest hint of incompetence or unprofessionalism. I've started multiple successful businesses. Only two had any remote connection with my undergrad degree, patents for devices used daily in ERs and whatnot. Another was tangentially related to medicine, I was the first "pot-doctor" in Southern Cali.
I concurred that there are too many college grads. Most treated high school like a joke, then went to schools where if you have a pulse, you're admitted. For most of them, I don't care what they majored in. They're not working for me. They were largely incurious in high school and never grew out of it. I'm absolutely not talking about the ones who were passionate about things like music. Worked in record stores and could tell you something about the musicians on every album in the store. Guys who were really into cars and can tell you that's a 1962 Chevy that just drove by, and why it's not a year earlier or later. The ones who just drifted through in a coma, lives of quiet desperation.
I'm also not the one that decided that a college degree is necessary for a lot of bullshit jobs, it becomes a lazy filter for those making hiring decisions. Almost no physician ever uses organic chemistry, apart from a tiny few that go into research. Heck almost none ever concern themselves with calculus or physics, two more prerequisites. First semester med school gross anatomy flunks out more students than all the other classes combined. Almost nobody uses it apart from surgeons, and that's a very different way of learning anatomy anyways.
I don't make the rules. It's all a racket. Schools make money, banks make money on the loans. Half of them should be shuttered, they're no more rigorous than a mediocre high school. Go figure how with all that excess we still have a severe shortage of engineers and nurses in this country, not to mention a dearth of people that can think critically.
I guess 'successful and productive' are subjective. If your baskets give you, and maybe others, joy, isn't that enough? If you're day job is tolerable, and you're happy, I think that is success! Money isn't everything and I have had a couple 'successful' careers. But the one I truly loved, was the one that didn't pay well but allowed me to do all the things I love. I won every award. But the joy was in working with my volunteers, the youth, public speaking, teaching, training, motivating and creating relationships. The hours were long, the pay wasn't great, it was stressful, but abundantly rewarding. Yep, have a BA in Economics and minor in Philosophy. But the joy was in doing what I loved, not necessarily studied for. I made more money in my 'traditional' career but my passion was fulfilled elsewhere.
LOL...I've actually had several including owning my own business. Even my 'traditional ' job had me working as a self-employed purveyor of mortgage loans and working 24/7/365 for about half my time in that business. My kids nearly melted down the New Year's Day I took an application for a service member at my dining room table. His only free day.
Id buy one. Tested for pressure and waterproofing while being produced. Sounds like a possibly efficient business to me. Not many have ever killed 3 birds with one stone...💯😁maybe im just a basket case tho. 😵
Are we mocking, or just musing? Or even having fun? Life's miserable if there's no humor...
And I'm not sure if the basket or the weaving is underwater... Coral reefs are cool. I've never been to the great barrier reef, but I've been to the second largest in Cozumel. Swam with lots of interesting things, including two six foot barracudas that seemed to be measuring me for a tasty meal.
💯%. I say similar all the time, if life ain't majority enjoyable, we are not appreciating properly. Humor is a key component. I read a quote, few times actually, "God's a omedian, everybody's just too scared to laugh." Makes so much sense to me, fearless i am😂. Am serious about such tho, helps me not to miss the beauty of it all. Thanks for the conversation and glad ya didn't get ate...or is it aten¿ a10...1j?
Wow, my comment has generated a lot of... commentary, let's put it. Yours is reasonable, and from my perspective what's productive boils down to the bottom line. If you're not living off of taxes from other people you're productive. In some cases that's through no fault of your own, but them there's the facts. And, unfortunately, our government not only has allowed people to take advantage, but they encourage it.
There are a lot of doctors, architects etc. that included the liberal arts into their education at some point. I agree that’s it’s often more expensive that way rather than to get your 5-year BArch and be done with school. There are a lot more licensed professions now then there was 50 years ago, which is problematic.
I actually do marketing and write proposals for architects and engineers. It’s too bad that most architects can’t write well and have never been taught the basic skills of how to run a business.
So they end up paying me (a BA with a measly English degree) more than a licensed project manager to do it for them. Plus by being observant and intellectually curious about design, getting LEED accredited, and teaching myself CAD software means that I can (and do) design renovations and small homes on the side.
There's so much to unpack with your comment; I'll do my best to write reasonably well, just to earn a little respect for my profession.
I have a BS Arch from UTA, which had (has?) a 4/2 program. I spent five and a half years getting my four year degree. Two years and sixty-four credits in a Florida Junior College only yielded forty transferred towards my Bachelor's, but I wouldn't have missed playing tennis on my retired fighter pilot Dad's team for anything. Also, to get an architecture degree one must take all of the freshman and sophomore classes, so I was done with leeching off my parents and went to work when I returned home, but I was unable to take the ARE in Florida because they required a five-year professional or master's degree to sit for it. I considered getting a master's at FAMU, took the GRE and killed it (I'm a multiple guess wizard), applied, got accepted, met with the Dean and was ready to go, but fate stepped in when I met my future wife and wasn't willing to leave her behind for two years. And, you know, having a poor salary beats the hell out of scrimping another two years and having to pay for my own misery. So I got a call from my best friend in Fort Worth who let me know the firm where he worked needed help. One phone interview and I was packed up and on my way with a hefty increase in income, and the ability to get licensed because Texas only required a four year degree. That brings me to your word: problematic. Being an architect in my opinion shouldn't require a license, much less require graduate or any degree to get the license. It's simply the same as the guilds of yesteryear. I'm basically doing the same work I did when I was fifteen years old and getting paid for it. It's my experience that makes me good at what I do. Forty-plus years allows a lot of time to learn, after all. I literally use nothing I learned in college to do my job, with the exception of the engineering classes I took, which for me were basically innate. Physics is physics, and as long as you're not talking about string theory, the theory of relativity, or nuclear engineering I'm going to understand how it works enough to design a structure that a P.E. with whom I work shouldn't have to crap all over what I've given him.
I think it's great that you've managed to end up designing projects, but don't get me started on LEED. Oh well, you did. LEED is what any architect should be doing (from a design standpoint) as long as the client is willing to pay for the increase in costs. Mandating it is another bad thing (to me), similar to the comments I made previously. I designed and built the house where I reside twenty-two years ago. Six inch studs with R-19, R-30 in the attic, Pella low E insulated glazing in the windows and the French doors, Toto low water usage toilets, a reasonably reflective galvalume AR panel roof, and the most efficient HVAC available in 2021 when it was being built. I was the client who was willing to pay for it, and it was expensive. Almost fifty percent more than the average cost per foot at the time. Of course, the house is complicated structurally (though you wouldn't realize it looking at it), and has very nice finishes and fixtures in addition to the energy saving items above.
Finally, I'll mention CAD software. I've used Autocad since version 2.1 in 1986. Autodesk was, and is, a devious company. They intentionally let their early versions by copied (pirated) until the mid-aughts when they started requiring key codes and other things to install the software. By that time they had about ninety percent of the CAD software market. You used to be able to acquire a "perpetual" license, but their idea of perpetual, to paraphrase Inigo Montoya: Doesn't mean what they think it means. Now, if your computer isn't connected to the interweb, it's nigh impossible to use it. The problem for me is that it really is the best software available because of two features: the command line and LISP. If you have no idea what actions are available, in most cases you can type the item (like line, circle, copy, etc.) and that's what it will do. LISP allows everything from simple one or two lines of code to allow a single keystroke to perform a series of commands that you use frequently. Or, as my best friend, who teaches Autocad and REVIT and is a complete computer nerd, has written a phone book thick program for a corporate client account that can produce over a billion different versions of their prototype buildings. It's mind boggling. So there's good, along with ever-increasing bad.
It's good you're helping building construction professionals. I, for one, have zero interest in the business side of the profession, and would definitely need your assistance if I were to go out on my own, however unlikely that would be.
It’s the whole idea that education, and specifically higher education, are a means to get a job. We’re not as far down that street in Europe as you are in the US, but it’s ebbing that way and there seems to be no way of stopping it.
Although I taught High School Math for 10+ years, I had plenty of opportunity to read student essays. When the students found out I was a reading addict, quite a few of them would ask me to take a look at their writing. Jadon's communication skills are off the charts. If you had told us he was a grad student involved in a creative writing program I would have believed it. I hope we get to read similar letters in the future. Thanks for sharing.
Mannn, as a teacher, there is nothing more amazing that learning one of the kids in your class has this depth of a desire for humanity, to fully live, explore, think, create. In spite of the systemic suppression of this most basic human instinct (alongside the new trouble of technology there have always been a thousand other things that suppress it, social pressure/power, herd instincts, traditional masculinity, fear), I have encountered a surprising number of kids who can articulate a basic level of humanity more skillfully than most of their teachers. I had one student in the ghetto of Chicago who got all Fs and Ds, and had probably never finished a book, but when asked what he really cared about, could critique technology, social conformity, and inhumanity in ways that would impress Thoreau. And he was the coolest kid in the grade!--though none of his friends knew the intellectual side of him. These are kids who often see even the ways their teachers have bought into a system that makes no sense, and thus have nowhere to go with their innate wisdom and curiosity.
You have to ask yourself what is wrong with the education system when a clearly brilliant young man is only getting Fs and Ds. In my experience academic achievement rarely correlates with intelligence. I know PhDs who are so one-dimensional, so lacking in creative thought and analytical thinking that you can only assume that their privilege and the fact that no-one fails a PhD anymore, no matter how bad, that they are in the position they are. I have had various careers starting life out as a classical musician, then retraining as a biochemist and working in medical research and then again retraining as a veterinarian. I can tell you that the musicians were the smartest, most switched on bunch, whereas most veterinarians are dumb as dog shit. Smartest guy I know barely went to school past year 9. I wish there were more opportunities in our education systems for the truly intelligent, the truly independent and creative thinkers.
I've assigned your State of the Culture 2024 to my AP Lang students (junior English) as well. I think it resonated with some, but others are so foregone that they couldn't make the connection between your argument and their own addiction.
Some of the challenge comes down to generational gaps. I was arguing about the impact of TikTok and phone addiction with my brother. He insisted that it was just like his own generation (X) being addicted to TV or video games. But it really isn't the same. You couldn't lug around some heavy box around to watch TV everywhere you went, and the shows actually required some attention. I was also trying to explain the difference between pop culture and dopamine culture, one that caters to the lazy brain and the other that hijacks the brain.
It fell on deaf ears though. I suspect this is because he wants to believe that giving his kids iPads and letting them roam free online won't harm them. Teaching class after class of screenagers has convinced me that he's wrong. It's a problem, and I think a hard pass on screens in the house is the main way out of this mess.
My experiences interacting with high school students in recent years have greatly impressed me. They are doing so much more independent critical thinking, having discussions, researching issues, then they are given credit for. I wouldn't say that young folk are incapable of action; I've found them eager to act but without supportive guidance or enough knowledge of byzantine systems to get started. It's on adults to provide better assistance and knowledge so they can move on their ideals.
As a freshmen in college, I agree with so much of what he has said in this letter. The fact is, is that there’s a large percentage of us who would absolutely agree, but we’re seemingly utterly helpless when it comes to taking action.
I don’t think that there’s a big difference in thought between high school-aged kids and parents; it’s just the disconnect that, well, leads us astray. Thanks for sharing Ted!
I believe this notion of ‘helplessness’ comes from how we view the outlook of our future. Very often responses would sound similar to “It’s all going down the drain anyway, so there isn’t much for me to do.”
We’re constantly reminded of how bad everything is now, so when faced with making hard decisions, even with life-long benefits, typically we do nothing.
Ted, you're becoming a household name. High school assignments and all. That's a good thing for us, and, I hope, a benefit for you, from whatever direction: monetary, spiritually or otherwise. Obviously you'll receive criticism as well, but that's also a good thing because your truth is unsettling for those who want control and those who refuse to acknowledge that a differing opinion isn't a personal assault. I'm not a sixteen year old (I'm nearly four times his age), but it's a rare occasion when I don't have a mind full to the brim after reading one of your posts.
Hi -- Jadon's teacher here. Just wanted to send gratitude for all who are communicating on this topic: it is a serious one to have. Thus, why I shared it with my students. Ted, Jadon--keep the torch burning. And I promise to do the same.
Jadon implies that there were indeed others in his class who resonated with Ted’s arguments. We can’t reach everyone, nor should we try to do so. Let’s focus on the ones who ‘have ears to hear.’ They are the future.
I recently listened to a podcast on Conversations with Tyler and Jonathan Haidt. It was an excellent interview and well worth the listen. Jonathan tackles these same issues, and one can only hope that an effective backlash against social media is brewing.
3 thoughts immediately come to mind after reading this.
-Thank you to Jadon's teacher for sharing Ted's article.
-Thank you to Jadon for sharing his thoughts. Jadon will do wonders in both STEM and the Humanities.
-Thank you to Ted for taking the time to reply to a fellow human being, albeit a young earthly age, but an old soul. When it comes to the arts and matters of the heart, age doesn't mean a thing. Lovely, uplifting, and full of hope. My fingers are crossed (and the joints now ache) for the pendulum to swing back the other way! Kids will find their way back to wonder in the natural world. In our real and flawed world.
And you are correct Ted. Tech leadership has created a monster with their culture of "move fast and break things" that at the same time generates billions in revenue for themselves and their investors. All the while, our clueless (or greedy? or both?) political leadership lets the tech mayhem continue to harm the citizenry and the kids.
My son is finishing up his last years of college and I am proud he chose to study history and art. We fully support him in that decision. I've been sharing a few choice articles of yours with him (I hope that's OK) so that he can see that there are in fact pathways through adulthood for folks who can think and work outside the STEM.
And kudos to you too Ted. My son rarely reads the articles I send him, but yours he does.
The political leadership is ignorant and has been hijacked by the corporations who contribute to their campaigns. Don't expect anything useful from them.
There's only one way to justify charging tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars for a college education: to portray it as a financial investment that will pay dividends over a lifetime of working. All of the money flowing into higher ed (including from government subsidies like grants and loans) has distorted the perception of what college is for. Now it's a means to an end, a certificate that (hopefully) allows one entry into a white collar profession and a commensurately greater paycheck.
Take that to its logical conclusion and why would anyone choose a major other than engineering, comp sci, business, pre-law, etc.? It's no paradox that many more Americans attend college now compared to the 1960's and yet programs like humanities are dying.
Even worse is what these perverse incentives are doing to college students. If the goal of college is to go work at a bank there is no point in rebellion or exploration. Instead It's "do your homework, get good grades, punch the clock, keep your head down, don't make trouble." Is it any wonder that the current generation of college students is overwhelmingly conformist and risk averse?
Thank you for publishing this! I am very pleased to hear the general consensus, thank you everybody who took your time to read. I have just started a sub stack of my own and hope to write more soon, please feel free to follow if you want to hear more from an angry "screenager" :)
https://substack.com/@theangryscreenager
Loved your letter, Jason. You’ll see my comments here. Looking forward to reading your Substack! At the same time, I’m a little bit disappointed that you didn’t lock yourself up in the library to read all of Shakespeare’s plays or the Bhagavad Gita! You are certainly are a(n entrepreneurial) screenager!
Look at Ted, he got an MBA from Stanford but he’s also a jazz musician, and a philosophy scholar. The humanities, like art and music causes us to focus, process, ponder, practice and not just produce. Thinking, crafting, creating—all this is extremely valuable work even if 99% of this is in your head! There are no or only a very few likes, clicks, web, data or customer metrics on this path.
The mind has a life of its own and sometimes the external world is but a distraction for the true scholar. Don’t fall for thinking that everything action is a step forward, life is not rungs on a ladder. It’s an Escher painting with odd leaps of inter-dimensional insight!
Sorry - Jadon - autocorrect. Sigh.
I subscribed and am looking forward to reading your thoughts. Being an adult, I won't offer any advice. You'll find your way, as most of us did.
I've subscribed. I'll be interested to see what topics you pursue. I don't know why you aren't intending to follow your heart and pursue a degree in the humanities, although I'm guessing there is a heavy load of parental pressure pushing you towards STEM or business. Just know this: what you do at this point of your life may have little bearing on where you will go. Still, you should pursue what you love. Don't do something because the adults in your life are adamant that is what you should do. Should is for schmucks.
Should is definitely for shmucks ; in retrospect, I could have pursued doing what I love with a degree in music rather than what I perceived was expectations of my family to be either a doctor , etc
What I did at Jadon's age had everything to do with where I went. Other's, not so much. It depends, primarily, on where you want to go and how you want to get there, and how open you are to other influences.
I meant to write "may have little bearing". Life can take you all kinds of places was my point.
I see. Thanks for clarifying. That didn't sound like you.
I've edited my comment so that people don't think I'm insane :)).
I'll keep that in mind for the next time I comment. Well, I probably won't, insanity runs in my family.
Hi, Jadon. I'm one of Ted Gioia's followers on this Substack, and my first question was going to be "Does Jadon have a Substack of his own?" Got the answer already. Jadon, my family all thought I was a little bit irresponsible over 40 years ago when I got my university degree in one of the most traditional humanities, History. But it wasn't just any history, it was Medieval and Modern European History. I'm sitting on a mountain peak of research and experience that gives me fantastic insight into why our world is in this political, economic, and social mess today. It began long, long before "phones". Let me recommend a writer named Alvin Toffler to you. He wrote three books over the past 50 years: Future Shock, The Third Wave, and Powershift. When you get through those you'll have seen the essence of Toffler's thinking matched to observations of society around him. Sadly he passed away in 2016, but his ideas are still earthshaking.
I chose my major by throwing a dart at my transcript pinned to a pine tree. It landed closer to History than French so I did both a major in History and a minor in French. Both have served me well as I am bilingual to this day. Not the most scientific method but I'm glad I followed that dart.
I'll echo Ted's endorsement that you are already a good writer and critical thinker, and will get better with practice. I like your term for yourself, an "angry screenager". Remember that anger is tremendous energy under pressure. Let that energy go in well-controlled packets and you'll accomplish a lot. If it explodes all at one go, the damage my be irreparable. BTW I'm a mid-term Baby Boomer (1957) , one of the millions who never got rich financially, but are billionaires in friendship, opportunities, and pure joie de vivre (joy of living). I'll follow along with you on your Substack. Best from Carol S.
Jadon, if you really want to go into STEM, then you should. But if, as you intimated by your favorite subject and the quality of this letter, you want to go into the English/writing field, the world of words needs you and others like you, smart, articulate, self-aware, and well-spoken. Well done, here, well done.
If I may add, he now has the exposure to assure he can pursue this field.
Jadon, just that article alone makes me want to understand my own teenage son better because he is as you term it, a screenager 😀
Subscribed !! I definitely loved your article because it also was eye opening in a way I could see my son and understand him better because I think that what you and your friends go through are probably the same things he goes through Thank you again
I just subscribed & am looking forward to your posts. You chose a great name for your site.
Kudos to the teacher that assigned reading Ted’s Substack article!
Thank you!
I believe that a large part of the problem, if not THE problem, is that higher education in the United States is treated as a means to an end. “Do this so that you can get that.” I tell my daughters “whatever it is that you do, do it because it alone is worth doing.”
Maybe so. But for those of us who wanted to be licensed: architects (me), engineers, doctors, etc. there was no option. And there's the fact that if a student likes underwater basket weaving it's unlikely he'll be a successful or productive member of society... Unless he manages to create beautiful baskets that are marketable. What are the odds?
Nothing could be further from the truth.
You can go to med school and major in biology (boring) while rushing to graduate in 3 years. Or you can major in just about anything, as long as you take the prerequisites. Strong academic work always gets stellar recommendation letters. One can even take time off between undergrad and med school and do a little basket weaving and scuba diving. AOA physician here. Who's rushing you? Half my med school classmates took several years off before starting that rigorous 4 years. Dominated the top of the class.
Architect school is more of the same. You gotta know the prerequisites. Before and after, who's rushing you? As a pretty damn good pianist and guitar player (edited, earlier I wrote architect instead of guitar), I can see where a really good musician with some background in acoustics might be the one you want to design a world-class concert hall. The ones that took years off to travel the world exploring art museums and architecture before having the eureka moment- hey I wanna design these buildings for the rest of my life.
Engineering? Don't get me started. The ones who have the most impact tend to be really well-rounded, thinking outside the box. Not to mention social skills help greatly in getting promoted to upper echelons where you're managing a lot of people and directing big projects. The engineers that are only good at STEM tend to sit at their desks for decades while they watch others advance. The ones that are wicked smart, head and shoulders above their peers, starting companies while being complete nerds are one in a million.
You should read Richard Feynman.
Half of all college grads are "underemployed" after graduation, meaning they work in a field that doesn't require a college diploma. After ten years that percentage has barely dropped at all.
The issue is cost. If somebody wants to go to college and study calligraphy, or Sanskrit, or Hinduism, of course they should be able to. But how many are really going to be willing to do that if it means going into debt for years, possibly decades?
there are zero college grads who went to a real school and paid attention who are "underemployed." the problem is way too many people go to schools like Southeast Arkansas State University- North Campus, and treat the experience as a joke where they party for 4 years and have a lot of fun.
You find me someone that learned Sanskrit in college, really learned it. I'll hire them and teach them everything they need to know to be successful. That's one smart MOFO. Any language really.
Almost no job "requires" a college diploma other than the hoops they make you jump through. Ask a doctor what they use from an undergrad course on a daily basis, the answer will be nothing. Ditto for a lawyer. Someone that studies comparative religion with a focus on Hinduism can probably write really well and think outside the box. I'd hire them in a second. Nobody majors in "Hinduism" or calligraphy, so you're just making shit up.
First of all, did you go to college? People actually do major in fields like Women's Studies, Ethnic Studies, Art History, etc.
Second, who are you going to hire? Somebody who got an A in Classical Languages and Literature from Dartmouth or somebody who got an A in business or engineering from some state school?
My point about the number of underemployed college grads is that there are too many college grads. Just getting a diploma isn't a guarantee of a decent job and if you are in the 50% that is chronically underemployed you have the additional burden of student debt plus losing four or five years of employment. Is anyone seriously going to dispute that for those individuals they probably would have been better off not going to college?
Finally, what if that person studies Sanskrit _because_ they wanted a career translating Sanskrit??? You got many positions for classical/ancient languages at your company?
I graduated top of my class in bioengineering at Columbia, then did the same for med school. Not after taking some time off though, and having some interesting jobs. None of which required a college degree.
You mentioned Sanskrit first. I'd say that's a sign of a rather bright individual. Make it a minor, or a double major. I'd hire them in a heartbeat. I ran multiple level I trauma centers, dozens of employees under my umbrella that if I didn't hire directly I could have fired for the slightest hint of incompetence or unprofessionalism. I've started multiple successful businesses. Only two had any remote connection with my undergrad degree, patents for devices used daily in ERs and whatnot. Another was tangentially related to medicine, I was the first "pot-doctor" in Southern Cali.
I concurred that there are too many college grads. Most treated high school like a joke, then went to schools where if you have a pulse, you're admitted. For most of them, I don't care what they majored in. They're not working for me. They were largely incurious in high school and never grew out of it. I'm absolutely not talking about the ones who were passionate about things like music. Worked in record stores and could tell you something about the musicians on every album in the store. Guys who were really into cars and can tell you that's a 1962 Chevy that just drove by, and why it's not a year earlier or later. The ones who just drifted through in a coma, lives of quiet desperation.
I'm also not the one that decided that a college degree is necessary for a lot of bullshit jobs, it becomes a lazy filter for those making hiring decisions. Almost no physician ever uses organic chemistry, apart from a tiny few that go into research. Heck almost none ever concern themselves with calculus or physics, two more prerequisites. First semester med school gross anatomy flunks out more students than all the other classes combined. Almost nobody uses it apart from surgeons, and that's a very different way of learning anatomy anyways.
I don't make the rules. It's all a racket. Schools make money, banks make money on the loans. Half of them should be shuttered, they're no more rigorous than a mediocre high school. Go figure how with all that excess we still have a severe shortage of engineers and nurses in this country, not to mention a dearth of people that can think critically.
I was just about to reply to your extensive comment, but noticed that Slaw did a fine job of doing it for me.
I guess 'successful and productive' are subjective. If your baskets give you, and maybe others, joy, isn't that enough? If you're day job is tolerable, and you're happy, I think that is success! Money isn't everything and I have had a couple 'successful' careers. But the one I truly loved, was the one that didn't pay well but allowed me to do all the things I love. I won every award. But the joy was in working with my volunteers, the youth, public speaking, teaching, training, motivating and creating relationships. The hours were long, the pay wasn't great, it was stressful, but abundantly rewarding. Yep, have a BA in Economics and minor in Philosophy. But the joy was in doing what I loved, not necessarily studied for. I made more money in my 'traditional' career but my passion was fulfilled elsewhere.
"If your baskets give you, and maybe others, joy, isn't that enough?"
Obviously not, given your choice to have, as you put it, a 'traditional' career.
LOL...I've actually had several including owning my own business. Even my 'traditional ' job had me working as a self-employed purveyor of mortgage loans and working 24/7/365 for about half my time in that business. My kids nearly melted down the New Year's Day I took an application for a service member at my dining room table. His only free day.
24/7/365... Life's too short for that. Unless that's what you must do to be responsible, and I commend you for it.
Which strengthens my previous comment. I truly hope you find a way to make joy in your life attainable.
Id buy one. Tested for pressure and waterproofing while being produced. Sounds like a possibly efficient business to me. Not many have ever killed 3 birds with one stone...💯😁maybe im just a basket case tho. 😵
Nice, you must have more disposable income than I. And that's some skill, creating waterproof woven baskets. Good on ya.
Maybe we're mocking nature or the super ultimate master CREATORS...is a coral reef not essentially an underwater basket!?🙇.....😁
Are we mocking, or just musing? Or even having fun? Life's miserable if there's no humor...
And I'm not sure if the basket or the weaving is underwater... Coral reefs are cool. I've never been to the great barrier reef, but I've been to the second largest in Cozumel. Swam with lots of interesting things, including two six foot barracudas that seemed to be measuring me for a tasty meal.
💯%. I say similar all the time, if life ain't majority enjoyable, we are not appreciating properly. Humor is a key component. I read a quote, few times actually, "God's a omedian, everybody's just too scared to laugh." Makes so much sense to me, fearless i am😂. Am serious about such tho, helps me not to miss the beauty of it all. Thanks for the conversation and glad ya didn't get ate...or is it aten¿ a10...1j?
Who gets to say what's productive and what's not? Is translating Sanskrit literature "productive"? How about painting, writing music, sculpting?
watching a bird fly by... either intensely or just with a smile...
Wow, my comment has generated a lot of... commentary, let's put it. Yours is reasonable, and from my perspective what's productive boils down to the bottom line. If you're not living off of taxes from other people you're productive. In some cases that's through no fault of your own, but them there's the facts. And, unfortunately, our government not only has allowed people to take advantage, but they encourage it.
There are a lot of doctors, architects etc. that included the liberal arts into their education at some point. I agree that’s it’s often more expensive that way rather than to get your 5-year BArch and be done with school. There are a lot more licensed professions now then there was 50 years ago, which is problematic.
I actually do marketing and write proposals for architects and engineers. It’s too bad that most architects can’t write well and have never been taught the basic skills of how to run a business.
So they end up paying me (a BA with a measly English degree) more than a licensed project manager to do it for them. Plus by being observant and intellectually curious about design, getting LEED accredited, and teaching myself CAD software means that I can (and do) design renovations and small homes on the side.
There's so much to unpack with your comment; I'll do my best to write reasonably well, just to earn a little respect for my profession.
I have a BS Arch from UTA, which had (has?) a 4/2 program. I spent five and a half years getting my four year degree. Two years and sixty-four credits in a Florida Junior College only yielded forty transferred towards my Bachelor's, but I wouldn't have missed playing tennis on my retired fighter pilot Dad's team for anything. Also, to get an architecture degree one must take all of the freshman and sophomore classes, so I was done with leeching off my parents and went to work when I returned home, but I was unable to take the ARE in Florida because they required a five-year professional or master's degree to sit for it. I considered getting a master's at FAMU, took the GRE and killed it (I'm a multiple guess wizard), applied, got accepted, met with the Dean and was ready to go, but fate stepped in when I met my future wife and wasn't willing to leave her behind for two years. And, you know, having a poor salary beats the hell out of scrimping another two years and having to pay for my own misery. So I got a call from my best friend in Fort Worth who let me know the firm where he worked needed help. One phone interview and I was packed up and on my way with a hefty increase in income, and the ability to get licensed because Texas only required a four year degree. That brings me to your word: problematic. Being an architect in my opinion shouldn't require a license, much less require graduate or any degree to get the license. It's simply the same as the guilds of yesteryear. I'm basically doing the same work I did when I was fifteen years old and getting paid for it. It's my experience that makes me good at what I do. Forty-plus years allows a lot of time to learn, after all. I literally use nothing I learned in college to do my job, with the exception of the engineering classes I took, which for me were basically innate. Physics is physics, and as long as you're not talking about string theory, the theory of relativity, or nuclear engineering I'm going to understand how it works enough to design a structure that a P.E. with whom I work shouldn't have to crap all over what I've given him.
I think it's great that you've managed to end up designing projects, but don't get me started on LEED. Oh well, you did. LEED is what any architect should be doing (from a design standpoint) as long as the client is willing to pay for the increase in costs. Mandating it is another bad thing (to me), similar to the comments I made previously. I designed and built the house where I reside twenty-two years ago. Six inch studs with R-19, R-30 in the attic, Pella low E insulated glazing in the windows and the French doors, Toto low water usage toilets, a reasonably reflective galvalume AR panel roof, and the most efficient HVAC available in 2021 when it was being built. I was the client who was willing to pay for it, and it was expensive. Almost fifty percent more than the average cost per foot at the time. Of course, the house is complicated structurally (though you wouldn't realize it looking at it), and has very nice finishes and fixtures in addition to the energy saving items above.
Finally, I'll mention CAD software. I've used Autocad since version 2.1 in 1986. Autodesk was, and is, a devious company. They intentionally let their early versions by copied (pirated) until the mid-aughts when they started requiring key codes and other things to install the software. By that time they had about ninety percent of the CAD software market. You used to be able to acquire a "perpetual" license, but their idea of perpetual, to paraphrase Inigo Montoya: Doesn't mean what they think it means. Now, if your computer isn't connected to the interweb, it's nigh impossible to use it. The problem for me is that it really is the best software available because of two features: the command line and LISP. If you have no idea what actions are available, in most cases you can type the item (like line, circle, copy, etc.) and that's what it will do. LISP allows everything from simple one or two lines of code to allow a single keystroke to perform a series of commands that you use frequently. Or, as my best friend, who teaches Autocad and REVIT and is a complete computer nerd, has written a phone book thick program for a corporate client account that can produce over a billion different versions of their prototype buildings. It's mind boggling. So there's good, along with ever-increasing bad.
It's good you're helping building construction professionals. I, for one, have zero interest in the business side of the profession, and would definitely need your assistance if I were to go out on my own, however unlikely that would be.
With all respect I’m shocked and saddened that an architect - architecture is an art - could express such an idea.
Evidently you're easily shocked and saddened. Unfortunately I can't help you with that.
Yes not only worth doing , but you love doing it 👍👍totally agree
It’s the whole idea that education, and specifically higher education, are a means to get a job. We’re not as far down that street in Europe as you are in the US, but it’s ebbing that way and there seems to be no way of stopping it.
Although I taught High School Math for 10+ years, I had plenty of opportunity to read student essays. When the students found out I was a reading addict, quite a few of them would ask me to take a look at their writing. Jadon's communication skills are off the charts. If you had told us he was a grad student involved in a creative writing program I would have believed it. I hope we get to read similar letters in the future. Thanks for sharing.
Mannn, as a teacher, there is nothing more amazing that learning one of the kids in your class has this depth of a desire for humanity, to fully live, explore, think, create. In spite of the systemic suppression of this most basic human instinct (alongside the new trouble of technology there have always been a thousand other things that suppress it, social pressure/power, herd instincts, traditional masculinity, fear), I have encountered a surprising number of kids who can articulate a basic level of humanity more skillfully than most of their teachers. I had one student in the ghetto of Chicago who got all Fs and Ds, and had probably never finished a book, but when asked what he really cared about, could critique technology, social conformity, and inhumanity in ways that would impress Thoreau. And he was the coolest kid in the grade!--though none of his friends knew the intellectual side of him. These are kids who often see even the ways their teachers have bought into a system that makes no sense, and thus have nowhere to go with their innate wisdom and curiosity.
You have to ask yourself what is wrong with the education system when a clearly brilliant young man is only getting Fs and Ds. In my experience academic achievement rarely correlates with intelligence. I know PhDs who are so one-dimensional, so lacking in creative thought and analytical thinking that you can only assume that their privilege and the fact that no-one fails a PhD anymore, no matter how bad, that they are in the position they are. I have had various careers starting life out as a classical musician, then retraining as a biochemist and working in medical research and then again retraining as a veterinarian. I can tell you that the musicians were the smartest, most switched on bunch, whereas most veterinarians are dumb as dog shit. Smartest guy I know barely went to school past year 9. I wish there were more opportunities in our education systems for the truly intelligent, the truly independent and creative thinkers.
I've assigned your State of the Culture 2024 to my AP Lang students (junior English) as well. I think it resonated with some, but others are so foregone that they couldn't make the connection between your argument and their own addiction.
Some of the challenge comes down to generational gaps. I was arguing about the impact of TikTok and phone addiction with my brother. He insisted that it was just like his own generation (X) being addicted to TV or video games. But it really isn't the same. You couldn't lug around some heavy box around to watch TV everywhere you went, and the shows actually required some attention. I was also trying to explain the difference between pop culture and dopamine culture, one that caters to the lazy brain and the other that hijacks the brain.
It fell on deaf ears though. I suspect this is because he wants to believe that giving his kids iPads and letting them roam free online won't harm them. Teaching class after class of screenagers has convinced me that he's wrong. It's a problem, and I think a hard pass on screens in the house is the main way out of this mess.
My experiences interacting with high school students in recent years have greatly impressed me. They are doing so much more independent critical thinking, having discussions, researching issues, then they are given credit for. I wouldn't say that young folk are incapable of action; I've found them eager to act but without supportive guidance or enough knowledge of byzantine systems to get started. It's on adults to provide better assistance and knowledge so they can move on their ideals.
As a freshmen in college, I agree with so much of what he has said in this letter. The fact is, is that there’s a large percentage of us who would absolutely agree, but we’re seemingly utterly helpless when it comes to taking action.
I don’t think that there’s a big difference in thought between high school-aged kids and parents; it’s just the disconnect that, well, leads us astray. Thanks for sharing Ted!
Why are you utterly helpless and unable to take action? I’m genuinely curious.
I believe this notion of ‘helplessness’ comes from how we view the outlook of our future. Very often responses would sound similar to “It’s all going down the drain anyway, so there isn’t much for me to do.”
We’re constantly reminded of how bad everything is now, so when faced with making hard decisions, even with life-long benefits, typically we do nothing.
Ted, you're becoming a household name. High school assignments and all. That's a good thing for us, and, I hope, a benefit for you, from whatever direction: monetary, spiritually or otherwise. Obviously you'll receive criticism as well, but that's also a good thing because your truth is unsettling for those who want control and those who refuse to acknowledge that a differing opinion isn't a personal assault. I'm not a sixteen year old (I'm nearly four times his age), but it's a rare occasion when I don't have a mind full to the brim after reading one of your posts.
As always, thanks for sharing.
Hi -- Jadon's teacher here. Just wanted to send gratitude for all who are communicating on this topic: it is a serious one to have. Thus, why I shared it with my students. Ted, Jadon--keep the torch burning. And I promise to do the same.
Jadon implies that there were indeed others in his class who resonated with Ted’s arguments. We can’t reach everyone, nor should we try to do so. Let’s focus on the ones who ‘have ears to hear.’ They are the future.
Yes !! The proverbial for those who have ears to ear let them hear 👂
I recently listened to a podcast on Conversations with Tyler and Jonathan Haidt. It was an excellent interview and well worth the listen. Jonathan tackles these same issues, and one can only hope that an effective backlash against social media is brewing.
3 thoughts immediately come to mind after reading this.
-Thank you to Jadon's teacher for sharing Ted's article.
-Thank you to Jadon for sharing his thoughts. Jadon will do wonders in both STEM and the Humanities.
-Thank you to Ted for taking the time to reply to a fellow human being, albeit a young earthly age, but an old soul. When it comes to the arts and matters of the heart, age doesn't mean a thing. Lovely, uplifting, and full of hope. My fingers are crossed (and the joints now ache) for the pendulum to swing back the other way! Kids will find their way back to wonder in the natural world. In our real and flawed world.
Respectfully,
Kate
Yes an old soul indeed which is refreshing
Great insights from Jadon. Kudos my man.
And you are correct Ted. Tech leadership has created a monster with their culture of "move fast and break things" that at the same time generates billions in revenue for themselves and their investors. All the while, our clueless (or greedy? or both?) political leadership lets the tech mayhem continue to harm the citizenry and the kids.
My son is finishing up his last years of college and I am proud he chose to study history and art. We fully support him in that decision. I've been sharing a few choice articles of yours with him (I hope that's OK) so that he can see that there are in fact pathways through adulthood for folks who can think and work outside the STEM.
And kudos to you too Ted. My son rarely reads the articles I send him, but yours he does.
The political leadership is ignorant and has been hijacked by the corporations who contribute to their campaigns. Don't expect anything useful from them.
Vote them out for better. Not saying it’s easy. Not saying I’ll see it. But I ain’t giving up.
Yes, all of them.
Jadon, what insight! High-school student, undergrad, academic or global managing director, whatever your ‘label’ Jadon, it’s a great read
Best not risk unintentionally offending when we want to applaud!! (Loudly)
There's only one way to justify charging tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars for a college education: to portray it as a financial investment that will pay dividends over a lifetime of working. All of the money flowing into higher ed (including from government subsidies like grants and loans) has distorted the perception of what college is for. Now it's a means to an end, a certificate that (hopefully) allows one entry into a white collar profession and a commensurately greater paycheck.
Take that to its logical conclusion and why would anyone choose a major other than engineering, comp sci, business, pre-law, etc.? It's no paradox that many more Americans attend college now compared to the 1960's and yet programs like humanities are dying.
Even worse is what these perverse incentives are doing to college students. If the goal of college is to go work at a bank there is no point in rebellion or exploration. Instead It's "do your homework, get good grades, punch the clock, keep your head down, don't make trouble." Is it any wonder that the current generation of college students is overwhelmingly conformist and risk averse?