"The Youngest Chess World Champion, and the power of Dreams"
André Rosendo
Entrepreneur I Building businesses in higher & early education I Driving next generation health solutions with nanotechnology
As I watched the remarkable clip of Gukesh Dommaraju , the youngest chess world champion, something profound struck me. His journey represents more than an individual victory—it reflects what is possible when belief meets nurture. It took me back nearly two decades to an experience that revealed something alarming about how we, as a society, sometimes crush potential instead of cultivating it.
Almost 20 years ago, I was working as an adviser at my first company, OK Student , a international student agency that helpes young people chart their paths abroad—deciding what they wanted to study and who they wanted to become. One particular meeting with a child and his parents left an indelible mark on me.
As we sat down for what should have been a transformative conversation, I quickly realized the child couldn’t answer even the simplest of my questions—not because he lacked the ability but because his parents answered for him.
“What do you want to be?” I asked gently, only to be interrupted. I pressed further: “This is his question to answer. Please, let him speak.” I could see the panic in the child’s eyes as he looked toward his parents for approval, their judgmental gaze rendering him voiceless. After much reassurance that he could speak openly, he finally murmured the words that had clearly been buried under a mountain of insecurity and doubt:
“I want to be an astronaut.”
His parents burst out laughing.
What followed was heartbreaking: They explained to me—and by extension, to him—what they had clearly repeated throughout his short life: that becoming an astronaut was an absurd notion, that he wasn’t special, and that such lofty ambitions were reserved for other people, “extraordinary people.”
At that moment, I realized that the seeds of this child’s future self-esteem, creativity, and dreams were being methodically destroyed—not by society or school but by those who should have been his greatest supporters. Parents, in the guise of realism, sometimes crush ambition before it even has the chance to take root.
Sir Ken Robinson famously stated, “Schools kill creativity,” but I would argue that sometimes parents do too. They unintentionally extinguish a child’s confidence, self-worth, and aspirations by framing dreams as “impossible” and by forcing children to conform to their own limited expectations. In doing so, they leave behind not a thriving individual but a hollow shell—neither the person the child wished to become nor the idealized vision the parents imposed.
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The Rare Triumph of Belief Thankfully, Gukesh Dommaraju did not grow up in such an environment. Watching him emerge as the youngest chess world champion, I have no doubt that his remarkable journey was supported by the belief of those closest to him—his parents, Mrs. Padmavathi and Mr. Rajinikanth. Their belief in him as an individual and in his dreams clearly fueled his ambition and unlocked his potential.
Belief Creates Champions The lesson is clear: The only type of person who can become an astronaut, a chess champion, or anything extraordinary is someone who aspires to it—and who is supported in that aspiration. Geniuses don’t emerge from a vacuum; they thrive in environments where curiosity and passion are nurtured, not dismissed.
Children inherently learn by interest or necessity. This fundamental principle has been explored by many thinkers, including psychologists like Lev Vygotsky, whose Zone of Proximal Development emphasizes the importance of environments that challenge and support learners within their individual growth zones. Psychologists Jonathan Plucker and E. Paul Torrance, leaders in creativity research, have shown how supporting a child’s natural curiosity fosters lifelong innovation and problem-solving skills—skills that cannot be measured by rote memorization or test scores.
Our Responsibility as Adults The question is: Are we creating these environments for our children? Or are we still tethered to outdated models of education and parenting that stifle creativity, critical thinking, and individuality?
At Open Learning School , we believe education should do more than transfer knowledge—it should empower children to dream, explore, and develop their unique potential. That means stepping away from the assembly-line approach of one-size-fits-all instruction and embracing a learning model built on curiosity, self-directed exploration, and support.
A Call to Action Gukesh’s story, like so many others, reminds us that nurturing young people is not about creating carbon copies of what we think they should be but rather enabling them to become who they truly are.
To parents, educators, and anyone influencing the next generation: believe in your children, even when their dreams sound impossible. Their success depends on it.
And to those reading this article, I extend an open invitation: How can we, as a society, transform our schools, families, and communities into spaces where creativity and dreams are not only protected but championed?
#EducationReform #ChampionDreams #CreativityInLearning #FutureOfEducation #NurturingPotential #CuriosityDrivenLearning #LearningByInterest #TransformEducation #IndividualityMatters #openlearning