This statement cuts to the heart of the hypocrisy in how we talk about education. Ask anyone what they want for their own child. They won't say "I want them to be well-educated." They'll say "I want them to be happy, successful, able to support themselves, to find work they love, to have good relationships, to be healthy." Those are real goals. Those are things people actually care about.

Now ask that same person why we need mandatory schooling. They'll talk about an educated citizenry, about well-rounded people, about informed voters, about cultural literacy. These are things they want for other people. They're abstract, societal goals that have nothing to do with their own child's daily life. The shift is striking. When it's personal, success matters. When it's about everyone else, education matters.

This isn't an accident. "Well-educated" is a term we use to justify forcing kids through content they'll forget. It sounds noble. It feels right. But it's impossible to define in a way that everyone agrees on. One person's essential knowledge is another person's trivia. One culture's educated citizen is another's indoctrinated subject. The phrase has no fixed meaning, which makes it perfect for defending a system that can never be held accountable.

Meanwhile, success is concrete. It's measurable. It's personal. A person knows when they're succeeding. They know when they're self-sufficient, when they're healthy, when they're happy, when they're contributing. You don't need a committee to define success for you. You feel it. You live it. It's real in a way that "well-educated" never is.

Think about what this means for how we design school. If the goal is success, then everything flows from the individual. We ask: what does this person need to live well? Then we help them get it. If they need coding skills, we help them learn to code. If they need to get in shape, we help them get in shape. If they need to learn a trade, we connect them with someone who knows it. If they need to heal from trauma, we provide support. The system bends to the person.

If the goal is "well-educated," the person bends to the system. They have to fit the curriculum, meet the standards, pass the tests, earn the credentials. Their needs are irrelevant. Their interests don't matter. Their success is defined by how well they comply. The system doesn't serve them. They serve the system.

This explains so much of the friction between schools and communities. Parents see their kids being forced through content that has nothing to do with their lives. They see their kids stressed, anxious, disengaged. They know this isn't preparing them for anything real. But when they push back, they're told it's for their own good, for the good of society, for some abstract goal they can't even define. They're supposed to trust the system even though the system keeps failing.

The irony is that a system focused on success would actually produce better societal outcomes. People who are self-sufficient don't need handouts. People who are healthy don't drain healthcare resources. People who are happy contribute more to their communities. People who have found their path are less likely to cause problems. The societal good emerges naturally from individual success. You don't have to force it. You just have to help people become who they want to be.

This is why the shift matters. It's not just semantics. It's a fundamental reorientation of what school is for. Instead of a system designed to produce a certain kind of person, we get a system designed to help each person become who they are. Instead of forcing everyone through the same mold, we support everyone in building their own life. Instead of measuring success by compliance, we measure it by flourishing.

People only want a well-educated society for other people. What they want for themselves is success. It's time to be honest about that and build a system that actually delivers what people want..

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