‘Most Likely to Succeed’ Helped Keep Harvard Law Student in School
Being voted “most likely to succeed” in high school can be a burden, but one Harvard law graduate credits the honor with helping keep him in school.
The Wall Street Journal interviewed Brandon Hogan as part of a story on how those voted “most likely to succeed” fare later in life. Research shows most of those who win the vote will do well, but little is known about the psychological impact of the title.
Hogan was voted most likely to succeed at his high school in Winter Haven, Fla. He told the Wall Street Journal that he wanted to live up to the honor. “I wanted in some way to be a leader for the people who were paying attention to me back home,” he said.
That motivation is what kept him from seriously considering dropping out of Harvard Law School a few years ago, he said. Currently Hogan is a doctoral candidate in philosophy at the University of Pittsburgh.
The story cites a poll by MemoryLane.com that found 40 percent of those designated most likely to succeed consider the label to be inspirational, while nearly a third regard it as a “curse.”
Hat tip to Pat’s Papers.
