Daniel Pink

So just to take a step back, when I was maybe like 9 or 10, what I really wanted to do, I did have a career aspiration. I mean, my original career aspiration was to play both Major League Baseball and the NBA. And by the time I was 10, it seemed like that dream was not going to come true.

So just to take a step back, when I was maybe like 9 or 10, what I really wanted to do, I did have a career aspiration. I mean, my original career aspiration was to play both Major League Baseball and the NBA. And by the time I was 10, it seemed like that dream was not going to come true.

And so the other thing that I would do when I was much younger is when I was actually in elementary school and even in junior high, what we now call middle school, I was actually in a lot of plays and actually wrote a lot of plays. curiously enough. And when I was maybe like 10 or 11 or 12, you had asked me what I wanted to do. I would say, oh, I think I want to write and direct movies.

And so the other thing that I would do when I was much younger is when I was actually in elementary school and even in junior high, what we now call middle school, I was actually in a lot of plays and actually wrote a lot of plays. curiously enough. And when I was maybe like 10 or 11 or 12, you had asked me what I wanted to do. I would say, oh, I think I want to write and direct movies.

But then I kind of abandoned that. Not kind of, I did abandon that in part because I was also pretty good in school because school was actually really easy. When I went to school, basically all you had to do was be compliant and give the authority figure what they wanted on time neatly. And you were suddenly, quote, a good student. And so for whatever bizarre reasons of,

But then I kind of abandoned that. Not kind of, I did abandon that in part because I was also pretty good in school because school was actually really easy. When I went to school, basically all you had to do was be compliant and give the authority figure what they wanted on time neatly. And you were suddenly, quote, a good student. And so for whatever bizarre reasons of,

personality and insecurity. You know, I was a good student and the good students typically didn't participate in the arts. Those are two different worlds. So I went that way and I was a good student because it was so easy because the system was so stupid. So I went to college and college is different because college, I could actually learn something.

personality and insecurity. You know, I was a good student and the good students typically didn't participate in the arts. Those are two different worlds. So I went that way and I was a good student because it was so easy because the system was so stupid. So I went to college and college is different because college, I could actually learn something.

and pursue what i wanted to pursue and i ended up pursuing linguistics just because i was sort of the perfect combination for me and that it was obviously about language i would simultaneously be in classes with linguistics classes literally like from one to another with computer science majors the early computer science majors there's a certain kinds of syntactical courses in linguistics that are also the core of computer science and then i would also be in classes with poetry

and pursue what i wanted to pursue and i ended up pursuing linguistics just because i was sort of the perfect combination for me and that it was obviously about language i would simultaneously be in classes with linguistics classes literally like from one to another with computer science majors the early computer science majors there's a certain kinds of syntactical courses in linguistics that are also the core of computer science and then i would also be in classes with poetry

students because there's other aspects of linguistics that were very literary and so the combination of sort of the math and literary was fantastic for me i loved it and then i went to law school largely because i grew up in columbus ohio and i was a middle class kid who went to college on financial aid and was concerned that i needed to make a living and that was the way to do it and i didn't want to be a doctor and i didn't want to be an engineer

students because there's other aspects of linguistics that were very literary and so the combination of sort of the math and literary was fantastic for me i loved it and then i went to law school largely because i grew up in columbus ohio and i was a middle class kid who went to college on financial aid and was concerned that i needed to make a living and that was the way to do it and i didn't want to be a doctor and i didn't want to be an engineer

It's a very common pattern among American middle-class people, zero to one generations removed from coming to this country without any money. or, you know, anybody who wants to try to get a stronger foothold into the middle class. And so I did that. And I was also deeply interested in politics at the time. And I went to law school.

It's a very common pattern among American middle-class people, zero to one generations removed from coming to this country without any money. or, you know, anybody who wants to try to get a stronger foothold into the middle class. And so I did that. And I was also deeply interested in politics at the time. And I went to law school.

And once I figured out what lawyers did, I was like, I'm not doing this. It was too boring. I was like, I'm not doing this. And even if it makes a lot of money, I'm not going to do this. And so I happened to be fortunate in that my law school had a program where

And once I figured out what lawyers did, I was like, I'm not doing this. It was too boring. I was like, I'm not doing this. And even if it makes a lot of money, I'm not going to do this. And so I happened to be fortunate in that my law school had a program where

If you went to work upon graduation and you earned below a certain salary, no matter what you did, they would help subsidize the repayment of your student loans. And again, circumstantial. But for that, I maybe would have gone to practice law to pay off my student loans. But that allowed me not to do that.

If you went to work upon graduation and you earned below a certain salary, no matter what you did, they would help subsidize the repayment of your student loans. And again, circumstantial. But for that, I maybe would have gone to practice law to pay off my student loans. But that allowed me not to do that.

And so I started working on political campaigns because that's actually what I was deeply interested in doing. And that took me to some early work in politics.

And so I started working on political campaigns because that's actually what I was deeply interested in doing. And that took me to some early work in politics.