In a world of copycats, it is difficult to BE UNIQUE.

From a young age, we are trained to be a copycat. We are forced to follow rules and fit into a category. Today’s school forces us to be part of the crowd, it does not help in being an individual that we want to be. We are trained as in military to be part of an army following orders from others above us.

The worst thing about this whole experience is, the world teaches you to be a follower and expects you to be a leader. School focuses to kill your individuality and gets you to the common fold. Once you get into the common fold, it punishes you for being a commoner. In schools, many students are forced to study subjects that are of no value to them later in their life. The sad part is, most of the colleges also follow the same procedure. Students in engineering in India primarily join the engineering course for a better pay and a secure future and not for the joy of creating something unique which solves the fellow human’s problem.

The aim of School/College is to create a replicable individual and not a remarkable person. It ensures that if not you, someone else. Colleges are not serious about group activities that will help the students in the future. Students are not encouraged to be unique and be part of a group to help each other and solve a common problem. The projects done by students are a sham. Students purchase projects or implement something that is already present in some journal. There is nothing unique again by a student.

In today’s world, we need individuals who can think on their own and challenge the solutions that have been proposed by others.  We need Leaders who can think and lead and not followers.

Today is National Youth Day – Vivekananda’s birthday. Vivekananda was born on 12 January 1863. We have not got a better individual than Vivekananda in the last 150 years. The reason is School. We have created a pool of followers who are waiting for a leader like Vivekananda.

Be the leader, transform yourself. Don’t follow, Lead.