Lifeplan Institute | 10 Million Teenagers in 10 Years: Foreword

Once again, I have been honored by the offer of my friend, George Lucas, to write a foreword to a new book I've authored. The book is A Plan For Life: Why Every Young Person Should Have a Lifeplan. Here is George's gracious introduction:

We are on the cusp of a huge societal shift.

In the past, educators have been so keen on what they are delivering to kids rather than how they are delivering it. The standard paradigm feeds children chunks of data for forty minutes straight. But what if we allowed young people to engage in a dialogue around information as a discovery process? What if they became part of the conversation, with space to contribute their ideas, hopes, and dreams?

Undoubtedly, young people would have more ownership and excitement about their education.

This is the goal of Andy Mecca's innovative Lifeplan, which uses the powerful tools of discovery learning to nurture and shape lives.

It was almost 15 years ago when I wrote the foreword to Andy's book, The Mentoring Revolution, which lays out the miracles of mentoring. A few years later, I penned another foreword, this time to his groundbreaking book, Lifeplan: Tools Every Teenager Needs to Thrive, Not Merely Survive. It's a pleasure for me to do this yet again, given the enormous success of Andy's work in helping young people thrive. This book continues the story about how Lifeplan came into existence and gives compelling examples of its success in shaping the lives of young people from Atlanta to Hawaii.

My father was my mentor and always involved me in the conversation about my dreams and ideas about my future. Over the past 40 years, I have invested considerable resources developing an educational foundation that promotes the most effective education for our youth. I've learned that the most important educational tools are creating a context for the subject and providing an opportunity for cooperative learning among the students. This is discovery learning.

I believe that discovery learning, which focuses on listening to a young person rather than just talking at them, will inform a more effective future for education. Many brilliant, well-educated teachers are clamoring to share the exciting concept of cooperative, contextual learning with their students and peers. Over time, this revolutionary idea can inform the public debate about education in America.

Andy Mecca is at the forefront of this learning revolution. I've known Andy and his wife Kate, a gifted educator, for over 25 years - and it's been a wild ride. This energetic duo have dedicated their lives to mentoring. Sprung from their tireless work over four decades, Lifeplan has been born. Instead of telling young people what to do, it uses the process of discovery learning to uncover their dreams, desires, and goals.

The book you are holding describes the birth of Lifeplan, how it works, and why it's crucial that every young person in America have one. By giving young people these tools, we are ensuring that each young person in America has a chance to thrive. Let the revolution begin.

George Lucas
Marin County, California

My new book -- A Plan For Life: Why Every Young Person Should Have a Lifeplan -- is available now from Amazon.com. I hope you'll enjoy it!

All the best,
Andy