Dr. Todd Rose

Up until a few years ago, the top thing that emerged every year had to do with character.

Think like Mr. Rogers kind of stuff, right?

Wonderful.

A few years ago, it switched to I want to be famous and it hasn't changed back.

I remember they interviewed one kid in the study and he said, I want to have a million followers.

They said, okay, for what?

And he said, doesn't matter.

So it's bad enough when these illusions lead our young kids to pursue dead ends that we know that's not how you live a good life.

That's bad enough.

But when it starts to become about the fundamental assumptions of democracy, of free society, of our shared humanity, you can see the real danger to us individually and collectively.

So because, again, they don't know it's a lie?

And they're looking to society to tell them initially what to value.

Like we're social species.

We internalize the norms, the aspirations.

What does it mean to succeed?

And they will internalize that as, well, that's what I believe.

I mean, they genuinely believe it.

They're not lying.

The kids aren't lying.

They'll learn the hard way again, just like we all have, that that's a really bad way to think about living a good life.