Learning Curves

July 3, 2007 10:58 AM

Seven Accomplished People Share Their Stories Edutopia invites seven people to write about their personal education and career decisions: "Successful lives are often the result of what is learned when we are supposed to be learning something else. The following seven personal stories, from accomplished men and women in fields ranging from music to magazines, from real estate to restaurants, from television to literature -- CNN correspondent Christiane Amanpour, U.S. Representative Barbara Lee, author Lemony Snicket, builder Donald Trump, mezzo soprano Frederica von Stade, restaurateur Alice Waters, Smithsonian editor in chief Carey Winfrey -- illustrate the crucial importance of such hard-to-measure factors as serendipity, curiosity, and coincidence, and often a teacher with a keen instinct about a student's unsuspected potential."
posted by landedjentry (8 comments total)

I'm surprised at the inclusion of The Donald. He had a huge leg up thanks to his father's business and his inheritance, and has built much of his empire by leveraging other people's money (and often finding ways to not pay it back). Did his education really have much to do with his personal success?
posted by JaredSeth at 12:13 PM on July 3, 2007

Why no linky for The Donald?
posted by Sk4n at 12:16 PM on July 3, 2007

I wish the stories were longer - they don't feel fully fleshed out at the length they're at.
posted by pombe at 1:30 PM on July 3, 2007

What do you mean Lemony Snicket isn't his real name?!
posted by cardamine at 1:34 PM on July 3, 2007

The inclusion of the Donald pretty much negates the value of the entire project. Although it may have helped it get funded.
posted by wendell at 2:05 PM on July 3, 2007

More interesting if they profiled people who were hardworking, smart and through a series of badluck events out of their control, did not become a success.
posted by geoff. at 2:19 PM on July 3, 2007

More interesting if they profiled people who were hardworking, smart and through a series of badluck events out of their control, did not become a success.

You're welcome to read my life story anytime.

Apart from the inclusion of the smarmy Donald Trump, the terms "accomplished people" and "successful lives" put me right off this article.
posted by flapjax at midnite at 3:33 PM on July 3, 2007

"I have always tried to focus on human stories, to get behind the headlines."

Christiane Amanpour is hot!
posted by ZachsMind at 6:40 PM on July 3, 2007