Perfection v/s Innovation

There’s always been so much hype around those college dropouts who go on to become billionaires: Bill Gates, Steve Jobs, Larry Ellison, the list in the field of technology is endless. Well, ok, it only happens in America, but still…

I thought that the reason for this was the following: a guy without a degree can’t get a regular job. That would force him to take a chance on building his own company. And among the many, many such attempts, a microscopic few would become mega-successful. And famous. And (mis)quoted and twisted out of shape to state that the way to riches is to drop out of college!

I still think I am right in my reasoning. But after reading these lines in the article, “The No. 1 Enemy of Creativity: Fear of Failure”, I think there is another reason as well:

“…if your internalized view of failure is anything that is not perfect, then you are disempowering yourself from exercising your inherent creativity.

You're certainly not the only one shackled by these norms, and I don't blame you with the way our educational system is focused so rigidly on "correct answers" and standardized testing. This must change. And modern management systems must become far more adaptive.”

That certainly is true to a very large extent. Top students aim for perfection; they don’t drop out and the flip side of that approach is that their mantra is “Failure is not an option”. But the path of innovation, on the other hand, is littered with failed attempts! A path that our top performers will go to all lengths to avoid.

But before you rush to the conclusion that not being a top student is the way to success, remember this: most top students will get into well paying jobs and have a comfortable life. Whereas only some innovative people will be able to achieve that. For every JK Rowling, there are a million writers who live in poverty. But how many engineers or doctors that you know of are poor?