The heroes of our age
are young. Mark Zuckerberg, the man who made millions on Facebook while still in his 20s, is a notable
example. Though Bill Gates, Steve Wozniak and Tiger Woods are no longer youngsters, they
achieved fame and wealth early in life and that is at least
one reason why they remain famous. Forbes publisher Rich Karlgaard is concerned that our focus on early
achievement is depriving our society of the untapped potential of many—probably
most of us—who develop at a slower rate. He discusses his concerns, and what we
can do about it, in Late Bloomers.
An industry has
developed around seeking early achievement. You have to do well in school and get great SAT scores to get into elite colleges. You have to go to elite colleges to
get jobs with the best companies. You have to work for the best companies to
get ahead in life. If you have the right stuff, you can skip some of these
steps and create your own successful business in your 20s.
Except it’s not really
so. Becoming equipped to succeed on this narrow path, which depends on early
achievement, does not necessarily prepare one to have sustained success or
achievement in any other area of life.
In addition, most of us
don’t have the mental equipment to make wise choices and stick to them while
where young. The brain doesn’t fully mature until we’re in
our mid-20s. Though the brain starts to slow down after that, certain types of intelligence—based on knowledge—continue to
increase into our 40s and can be sustained well into old age. This
late-developing intelligence can more than make up for the slower processing
speeds of older brains.
Kalgaard shares the
stories of some late bloomers. Martha Stewart started her catering business at
age 35, and published her first book at age 41. Toni Morrison published her
first book, The Bluest Eye, when she
was 39. More up my ally, Raymond Chandler was 51 when The Big Sleep, his first book, was published. Karlgaard pulls
examples from the arts, business, sports and other fields.
Karlgaard describes
himself as a late bloomer. He didn’t do well and struggled in dead-end jobs
until he was 25, when his brain finally matured enough for things to start
clicking. This was when he was able to get a job that most of us would
consider ordinary, and he still had a
ways to go before his career took off.
Late bloomers have
several skill, some hard-won, that help them succeed in their own time. They
retain curiosity; they do not specialize to early and they do no avoid failure
they way early achievers often do. The have compassion for other and
themselves; they’ve had to overcome failure. They are resilient; they have
developed perspective and support networks. The have learned to stay calm. The
have insight gained from varied experience. The have wisdom, the elusive quality
that arises from a maturing brain and a wealth of experience. The have learned
when to doubt themselves and when to trust themselves. They know when to stick
and when to quit. They are patient.
As a society, we need to
recognize that early achievement is not the norm. People develop at different
rates and may peak in different ways at different ages. If we want to enjoy the
full potential of people, we have to value the contributions of late
bloomers. We also have to open pathways
for them through life-long learning and late-career pathways that force people
out just because there is no more ways for them to move up the corporate
ladder.
If you’re interested in
this book, you may also be interested in
The First 20 Hours by Josh Kaufman
Future Bright by Martin E. Martinez
The Genius in All of Us by David Shenk
Learn Better by Ulrich Boser
Mindset by Carol S. Dweck
Moonwalking with Einstein by Joshua Foer
The Organized
Mind by Daniel J. Levitin
Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell
The Power of Habit by Charles Duhigg
Quiet by Susan Cain
Self-Love by Robert H. Schuller
Your Intelligence Makeover by Edward F. Droge, Jr.
Karlgaard, Rich. Late Bloomers: The Power of Patience in a
World Obsessed with Early Achievement. New York: Currency, 2019.
