Everyone gets a gold star!

Just so you all know, I’ve taken a very open interpretation of “current events” for my post this week.  I had an experience this past weekend that relates to a current social issue that I’ve wanted to write about, so here I go…

A few nights ago, my family and I went to a popular sporting event (I may be a little paranoid, but I don’t want to be too specific with the unnecessary details) and, as with most sporting events, the night began with the singing of our national anthem.  When the announcer introduced the singer, I noticed that he was really talking the guy up.  Apparently the singer was an American Idol finalist and had auditioned to sing back up for a famous pop musician (the word auditioned should have raised a red flag because anyone can technically audition for anything, but I wanted to be excited and I was hoping to hear someone good).  The stands were packed and I would guess that there were about 1,000 to 1,500 spectators there that night, and after that grand introduction, I got my hopes up and thought that we were really going to hear something special.  Well, we ended up hearing a rather unexpected version of our national anthem.  The guy started singing, and then he ended up changing keys after the first line (I can understand that this kind of thing can happen when you’re singing in a huge open space through a fuzzy sound system), but then he changed keys again and again and again.  The singer had a very pleasant voice and all, but by the end of the song, he had sung in just about every key known to music.  I couldn’t believe that I had just heard a person sing our national anthem that badly in front of so many people.  It was obvious that the singer had some vocal talent, but he needed practice.  More importantly, he needed someone close to him to tell him specifically what he was not doing well so he would have a fair chance to work on and eventually fix whatever it was.    

I think that this is a big issue in our society today.  Everyone gets a gold star whether they deserve one or not.  The labeling of “above average” has become the new “average” and “average” has become the new “below average.”  Anyone who was in the grandstand that night was shown a prime example of why this is problematic.  Just so we’re clear, I’m not trying to hate on the poor guy, because he definitely had a natural talent.  I know firsthand that singing for a large number of people through a fuzzy sound system is nerve wrenching, and he may have been nervous or just having an off night.  But for someone with his resume, I was surprised that no one close to him, whether it was a friend, family member, or vocal coach, had told him what parts of that song he needed to work on before performing it for an audience.  It seemed like everyone was so focused on his accomplishments and how naturally gifted he was that his talent was never really harnessed to its full potential.

I’m not saying that it’s everyone’s place to tell others what they need to fix and how they need to do it, because that’s unnecessarily rude and it rarely ends up being constructive or useful in any way.  What I’m saying is that accolades often replace encouragement, and they shouldn’t.  Everyone needs encouragement, especially when they have talent and, most importantly, drive.  Accolades, or praises for achievement, should be limited to when they are deserved.