Sachin H. Jain, President and CEO, Board Director at SCAN Health Plan, shared on LinkedIn:
“I recently met with a talented high school student who told me he was interested in ‘helping seniors.’
He was thoughtful. Sincere.
Saying all the right things.
But something felt off.
So I interrupted him.
‘What are you actually excited about?’ I asked. ‘What would you wake up in the middle of the night to work on?’
He didn’t hesitate.
‘The market.’
His entire demeanor changed. His eyes lit up. His energy shifted. He was alive in a way he hadn’t been a moment before. It made me wonder: why wasn’t he spending more time there?
He didn’t say it directly, but it felt obvious. He was trying to be the version of himself he thought the world (and colleges) wanted.
Dutiful.
Appropriate.
Impressive.
But not totally himself.
So I offered a different path. What if those interests weren’t in conflict? What if he went deep on financial markets—and used that knowledge to help retirees navigate their own financial lives?
That idea energized him even more.
It reminded me of the advice of my friend Sheila Akbar, who pushes young people to resist performative achievement and instead pursue what is real and personal to them.
Because too many young people are optimizing for optics instead of truth.
And our job (as mentors, leaders, and parents) is to interrupt that.
To notice when someone comes alive.
To help them build a life around that energy, not around expectations.
I was lucky.
Teachers and mentors like George Gonzalez, Glenn Ritt, Christine Wallace, and Carol Lisa did that for me at Bergen County Academies long before I had the language for it.
They didn’t just reward what I was good at.
They paid attention to what made me come alive.
That’s the work.”
More posts featuring Sachin H. Jain.