
Mark Cuban has a simple tactic for influencing young children—and getting them to think about their own limitations, or lack thereof.
And he uses it often, he says. “I get emails from kids all over the world, because ‘Shark Tank’ is shown everywhere, asking me business questions,” Cuban recently told the “Lex Friedman Podcast.”
This tactic is as simple as pointing at a light bulb or a chair.
“When I go talk to elementary school kids, one of the things I do is, I say, ‘Okay, let’s look around. You see that light? One day, that light didn’t exist. Then someone had an idea… and now your school bought it,'” Cuban said.
He continued: “‘You see that chair? Chairs didn’t always look like that. Somebody had that idea. Why not you? When you walk out… ask yourself, ‘Why not me? I Why can’t it be a world changer?”
The core of Cuba’s message is relatively simple: anyone can create something that changes the world. World-weary adults may roll their eyes, but experts say children need parents and other role models to model good behavior, including the willingness and confidence to believe. That they can come up with a world-changing idea.
Children’s attitudes and mindsets can be greatly influenced by positive role models, including notable and relevant success stories, research shows. And the more children hear stories of overcoming long odds, persevering and ultimately succeeding, the more likely they are to embody those traits in their lives and careers, according to Indiana University psychology professor Mary Murphy. Will press.
“Storytelling is one of the most powerful ways to teach (children),” Murphy wrote for CNBC Make It last year.
Cuban has his own impressive backstory, having taught himself to be a salesman at the age of 12 by selling trash bags door-to-door. Years later, he became a billionaire by helping launch Broadcast.com, one of the Internet’s earliest streaming media platforms. “People thought I was an idiot,” he told CBS last year.
These days, he also finds himself inspired by his conversations with young students — crediting the “spirit” he sees in his conversations with them, he said on the podcast. “When I talk to schools, I see it … that sparkle in kids’ eyes that there’s something bigger and better and more exciting out there,” Cuban said.
He added that it’s inspiring to see so much optimism from a young generation that “also has to deal with (climate) fears and other things.”
“But that’s the beauty of children,” Cuban said. “Gen Z really embodies that. And for me, that’s really exciting.”
Disclosure: CNBC owns exclusive off-network cable rights to “Shark Tank.”
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(Tags translation) Parents (T) Mark Cuban (T) Mary Murphy
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