Korean Job Discussion Forums

[manlyboy]

Ask any kid what their dream is, and they'll answer that they want to be an athlete, or an actor, or a model, or a rock star, or something of that nature. Invariably, it will be something to do solely with ego. Kids' dreams rarely involve contributing to society. That's just the way we are when we're young. So my question is - Why do we teach our kids to "follow their dreams"? It's a simple matter of mathematical fact that the vast majority of us will never become these superstars we dream of being. It seems almost cruel to be filling kids heads with the conviction they're going to grow up to be masters of the universe.
Is this a major flaw in Western culture?

[VanIslander]

[manlyboy]

Woah, woah, woah there, VI. The op was not a personal lament of my own failure to become middleweight champion of the world. It was an honest inquiry as to the value of telling kids they can be king of the world if they want.
This is not something I've seen to be very evident in other cultures. When I asked kids in Indonesia about their ambitions, they often revolved around taking care of their families and communities. I think you'll find that most kids in the West have much more personal ambitions relevant to their own individual egos.
You wanted to be a writer. How many aspiring writers ever achieve their dream of becoming professionals and getting published? And isn't the goal of having your work published and appreciated by others in itself an act of egoism, and a desire for a kind of fame? Is it wise to convince a child they're going to grow up to be a writer when the odds of it coming true are minimal?
I think we should be encouraging kids to contribute to their communities when they grow up, not telling them to strive for their own egos.

[VanIslander]

If you ain't talking about yourself, where are you coming from? what motivates your inquiry?

[manlyboy]

What peaked my interest in this was that I had always accepted it as a self-evident truth that we should encourage kids to follow their dreams. But having seen that this is a predominantly Western phenomenon, and that other cultures tend to nurture more realistic ambitions in their kids, I'm wondering if it's actually harmful to our society to be producing individuals not particularly interested in contributing to it.

Children are inherently selfish, and we shouldn't be encouraging them to carry on that selfishness into adulthood by following wholly egocentric goals.

What motivates me is that this seems to be a flaw in our society which most of us don't see.

[kermo]

Well, what are the other options? If you ask Korean kids what they want to do with their lives, they'll probably tell you "dentist," "surgeon" or "lawyer." If you ask them why, they'll tell you it's about the money.

Alternatively, you could encourage children to sacrifice themselves for the good of society. The world needs more janitors and prison guards! Start a business cleaning up after grisly murders and messy suicides! Head for a factory! The world is waiting for you.

[billybrobby]

[Bulsajo]

I think it'd be great if grade 7 teachers told their kids that they have a better chance of winding up as janitors and dept store cashiers than astronauts, movie stars, or rocket scientists; I can't think of a better way to mold young minds and socially engineer our society to the betterment of all....

[Moldy Rutabaga]

I think that maybe unrealistic expectations is a universal. I see too, too many ajummas convinced that their rotten kid is going to SNU to be a physiotherapist. And many third-world families encourage their children to be responsible to their family duties out of raw necessity, not because it's for the good of the world.

Nevertheless, I agree that there is an overemphasis in North America on being famous (and/or rich) rather than contributing to society. This doesn't mean that some children don't want to be doctors or teachers or pastors, only that these more altruistic careers are less emphasized.

It's partly a good thing and partly bad. The bad thing is that reflects reality-- people are paid astronomically more and regarded far more for throwing a ball or shooting a puck well than for helping save lives in the west. But it is partly good because it does motivate people to be that one in a thousand artist or musician or politician. A society that doesn't foster innovation or achievement at all doesn't get any.

I don't buy the argument that it sets children up for disappointment. I wasn't disappointed when I learned I couldn't be an astronaut; I was a little boy and I moved on to something else, as kids do. And as one poster has said, there's many shades of achievement. I did become a published writer and recorded musician-- even if only in a campus newspaper or a cheesy website-- but it's an atom of fame to be proud of.

Ken:>

[manlyboy]

[Tiger Beer]

[kermo]

[winnie]

I don't think there is anything wrong with teaching our children to aim high and follow their dreams. I do agree that we tend to overemphasize having careers that pay well. For example, when I told my family I wanted to be a social worker....they said "where is the money in that?" So I reconsidered, studied something else....then came to the realization that money isn't everything....it's about other things. So now, I am back to social work......

Perhaps they will never be all that they want to be, but if they never aspire to be anything at all, they will achieve very little. Thus, dreams are important!

One of my fav quotes goes something like: "Shoot for the moon, even if you miss, you'll land among the stars."

[kermo]

[rapier]

A lot of western educational institutions are to blame.

In order to raise funds, due to lack of govt subsidees, many places offer courses that have such mass apeal yet are quite unrealistic.
They get tons of applicants determined to shell out to study courses like "fashion modelling 101" or " television acting". But how many people following their ridiculous dreams actually have a chance in hell of making it?

Its kinda ridiculous and sad. First up you have that western romantic notion that (against all practical considerations) you should follow your heart./ then you have the second illusory romantic notion that you can become anything you want if you want it that badly.

So you have tons of people wasting their lives on the bread line, struggling to become famous artists or movie stars: turning down that steady career in office management or whatever to pursue their dream. Then, ending up on the scrapheap.

Or in Korea teaching esl.