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Why Disobedient Kids Make Great Entrepreneurs
By Daniel Schmitz, Legends Report Contributor
Do you know a child who is always pushing their boundaries and doesn't fit into the 'normal' ways a kid should behave? How easy it is to judge this child as being a trouble maker!?
Although it can be quite challenging to be around kids like this, underlying their behaviour can be the character traits of questioning the status-quo; of being creative, wanting to explore new areas, and not being afraid of failure. If you look at the lives of many legends like Richard Branson, you will see that many had unconventional childhoods. These, as a recent article on Inc.com shows, are good foundations on which to build, and become a great entrepreneur!
Entrepreneurs Are Boundary Pushers
"Entrepreneurs are boundary pushers. Sometimes, in the opinion of government officials, they are lawbreakers. But they are probably doing what they've always done--going back to their childhoods.
"It turns out there are plenty of benefits to a little bit of naughtiness or disobedience," writes Lauren Knight in her "On Parenting" column in The Washington Post this week. "Research shows that disobedient children earn more as adults and are also more likely to be entrepreneurs."
Breaking Rules As a Child Can Help You To Succeed Later On In Life
One 2015 study cited by Knight tracked a group of 745 people spanning 40 years--from the age of 12 to the age of 52. The results suggested that if you were a rule breaker and defiant of your parents as a kid, you took those traits into adulthood--and they helped you succeed.
"Some rather intelligent children who defy authority or challenge the status quo tend to think more outside the box, lending them a certain creative upper hand when it comes to new ideas and starting businesses," summarizes Knight. "Entrepreneurs tend not to play by the rules."
A Great Business Needs To Be Provocative And Dangerous
The point is this; as frightening is it can be to feel as if your business model depends on the scales of justice, that very dependence is also a positive sign. It indicates that you've hit on something pervasive and vital enough to be the province of judges and lawmakers.
"Your new thing can't be merely better than the status quo; it needs to be so great that it is sought out over the old, familiar thing," writes Goetz, whose startup helps consumers make smarter, more personalized choices about their prescription drugs by offering both user testimonials and data (from the FDA's reports on adverse events and other sources). "To do that, your new thing must be more than provocative; it must be dangerous."
Strong Willed Children Become Leaders As Grownups
Which connects back to your ability to be defiant as a child. Laura Markham, a clinical psychologist at Columbia University, tells Knight that strong-willed children--by which she means spirited, headstrong, rambunctious, and courageous - are usually self-motivated and inner-directed. That's why they become leaders as grownups. "They are more impervious to peer pressure and go after what they want with more gusto," Knight writes.
It is fascinating to see how behaviours usually seen as negative and non-conforming, can be the foundation of building an amazing life. There is a lot to learn from failures and from weaknesses. How often do we see challenging kids as a problem, and put them on medication instead of understanding the underlying root causes? What difference would it make if we could see their behaviour as a gift; an opportunity to be successful, and to build something meaningful?
What do you think? Do naughty kids have more of the ingredients needed for success? Share in the comments below...
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