There is something about children, perhaps a higher dopamine level or even a lack of pressure from society to be realistic, that makes them so certain they can succeed. Once they conceive an image of themselves in ten, twenty, thirty years, it is fact in their minds. They rest assured that they will live up to every expectation they have set for themselves, without an ounce of self-doubt.

When I was young, I envied Disney Channel stars. I spent copious amounts of time enveloped in the actors’ work. I wanted a life just like theirs. And for many years, I truly believed I would get it. That was it, I was decided. That would be my job for the rest of my life.

One day, at the age of ten, I spontaneously decided that the concrete way to commence my career would be to start a band. Despite the fact that I had access to only a guitar and a piano, neither of which I had mastered, I saw no flaws in this plan. I called a select few of my friends, those whom I believed to be worthy of such a noble opportunity, and invited them over to have the first official “band meeting.” The agenda: decide on a band name, decipher who was playing what, and write our first song.

Once everyone had arrived, I insisted we get down to the matters at hand. This was strictly business. But, much to my dismay, none of my friends were really focused on the band. We talked for a few minutes about what our catchy band name could be, and soon enough everyone was off-topic and begging that we do something else. I was offended, to say the least, but I was especially frustrated. How was I to start a successful band if my friends simply weren’t zealous enough? I tried to convince them to stay on task, but there was no use. They weren’t the passionate band members I needed.

It wasn’t until the age of twelve that I realized being a Disney popstar/actress/icon was not for me, partially because I grasped the fact that I was a terrible singer and actress, and partially because I finally realized how improbable the idea of me becoming famous like the all-admirable Miley Cyrus was. It was a lottery, and I decided to stop wasting my dollar-bills on it and save them for something better and more practical. Looking back on it now, I was so silly to have even believed that I would be on Disney Channel like all the people I grew up watching. But there was a beautiful side to it that I couldn’t even begin to understand back then.

Within every child, there is an unscathed, untainted, pure essence that yields a surplus amount of optimism and determination. As a young adult and onwards, it becomes so impossible for us to risk believing that we can do something impractical, whether it be careers or decisions or projects or goals. We lack that beacon of positivity. Whereas a child will set his mind to a dream and pursue it, an adult will doubt himself and perhaps even let it slip away due to its absurdity. Without the enthusiasm and certainty of a child, failure is inevitable.