When this 16-year old kid got his first million after 2 years in his business, we know that in this generation and probably in the next one, there will be more young millionaires. Of course, this is not unprecedented. Mark Zuckerberg, founder of Facebook, launched his website in 2004, when he was just a sophomore student at Harvard. After some years, he has become one of the youngest billionaires around the world. I can't help but think of Malcolm Gladwell's book Outliers whenever I read about these stories. In that book, he said:
Am I just rationalizing through Gladwell's theory these people's success that in my humble opinion, if the Filipino people are born in such an environment, with more access to these things and with a government that supports ICT as an integral, if not fundamental, aspect of education, maybe, just maybe, the young millionaires will sprout across the Pearl of the Orient?
"[T] he biggest misconception about success is that we do it solely on our smarts, ambition, hustle and hard work."
In Outliers, he hopes to show that there are a lot more variables involved in an individual's success than society cares to admit, and he wants people to "move away from the notion that everything that happens to a person is up to that person".
It just makes me restless and frustrated to see our country so behind in ICT and its integration in education and governance. I believe, given the same opportunities, our kids can do equally well in making their millions. These days, it is quite clear where the money is going. In my humble opinion, access to ICT resources and opportunities will largely determine who will be the next big thing in Forbes Magazine. And that next person may just be 9 years old making apps for your Smartphones.
Paulyn Duman
Blog #13
(for September 10)
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