The Triple Package

I just completed reading the book The Triple Package by authors Amy Chua and Jed Rubenfeld. The thesis of the book suggests there are 3 main attributes that immigrant cultural groups (such as Jews, Nigerians, Indians, Chinese, Mormons and Cubans) in America have that explain their success: (1) a superiority complex, where they believe they are better than everyone else; (2) a sense of insecurity, where they feel like they're never appreciated and no matter how well they do it's not good enough and (3) impulse control or a strong sense of self-discipline, where they truly realize good things happen to those who wait.

I have absolutely no problem with the attributes listed above in themselves and it must be said there are setbacks that come with the advantages - all detailed in the book. However I think we forget there is a generational gap between the people whom the authors collected data on, and their children perhaps, who are around my age. The authors toward the end of the book even stated and i'm paraphrasing, "millennials today are the children of baby boomers who got lucky." My point in bringing this up is when looking at the success these cultural groups have in America and others, we must separate these achievers from their children, and look at things that way. I personally believe the offspring of today's adults are quite intelligent and very driven, but they are not like their parents and haven't had to face all the same challenges. This is by the way no fault of their own, because I also believe the parents don't push or motivate their children as was the case in the past, which is also something addressed in the The Triple Package.

My intentions here are not to diminish young adults today; i've had the honor and pleasure of meeting and knowing some very bright ones throughout my life - my intentions are to get people to proceed with a little insightful caution when observing the success of various cultural groups in America. I recently met a Nigerian around my age who told me personally he would not be successful if it weren't for his middle-aged Father, who worked hard for he and his other siblings. I also read The Millionaire Next Door where author Thomas J. Stanley pointed out that in surveying millionaire families there was a noticeable drop-off between the millionaires reaching wealth, and their children. Furthermore, the author insists that as time goes on those families are slowly losing their wealth. I'd say everyone regardless of family and background has a little Triple Package in them, but even still I maintain, they are not their parents.

This article was Written and Edited by C3D for CollegeWorld, LLC.