Tatyana Vladimirovna Chernigovskaya is a well-known Russian biologist and linguist, an expert in neuroscience and psycholinguistics, a professor at St. Petersburg State University. Especially for Forbes, Tatyana Vladimirovna, after speaking at the Gaidar Forum, spoke about why some manage to become successful while others do not. 

Interviewer: Why do some people manage to make money, while others do not, even if they really want it and try? Is there anything different, shall we say, in the “brain of a billionaire”? 

Tatyana: I only have a tricky answer to this question. Yes, people are different; they are objectively different. There is nothing you can do about genetics. It is a big player and cannot be ignored. 

But, on the other hand, if a person fails, it means that he simply has not yet found his way in life. Maybe he mistakenly decided to make millions. Perhaps, in fact, he has no plans to buy yachts and go on trips around the world. In reality, his goal is to sit at home by the fireplace and knit a scarf, which is happiness for him. Only he hasn't figured it out yet. 

I: How do you know what you want? It's not as easy as it sounds. 

T: You have to look for it and go to certain places. Art is paramount. As one very wealthy and well-known art dealer said, art answers questions that have not yet been asked. This is a profound thought. Art drags you into a space in which no one has ever been. And when you start living in this complex space, you may have these meanings. Besides, you need to try to communicate with interesting people - this also plays a huge role. It is necessary to look for people who ignite - not in a banal sense - people. Those with whom you can talk all night, drink two bottles of whiskey and then understand everything. 

I: You said that children should be taught many things at once so that they have a choice. How should a child be raised so that he can become an entrepreneur in the future?

T: What I will say may sound trite at first glance, but in fact, it is not as simple as it sounds. It is desirable to love your child. We must try to get to know him, take a closer look at him and understand what he is. The character can be seen quite early, when the children are playing in the sandbox, and one of the children imposes his will on the others. That one is the leader. But it's easy to say; the question is how to do it. We need to give children the opportunity to make this choice. If he has never painted, never made music, how are you going to know if he is capable of it or not? 

I: That is, you can't force a child? No coercion? 

T: This is a much more complex question, and in reality, it is not clear what to do about it. I read somewhere that Bach, Beethoven and Mozart, when they were small, were beaten on their hands so that they would sit at the harpsichord. These geniuses! It means that some degree of coercion is needed. But this is a complicated point. On the one hand, you should not torture children and give them what they are allergic to. On the other hand, if you do not expose them, you will not understand what he is allergic to. 

I: Psycholinguistics as a scientific discipline was created on your initiative. Tell me, can a person program himself for success with the help of words, self-hypnosis? If so, how? 

T: You can even force yourself to learn to dance the tango in the evening for a dare. Here the question is different: at what cost and should it be done? Pumping yourself up about "I have to be successful" is a failure, in my opinion. It can be successful up to a certain point, but in the end, it will fail anyway. But if a person is really interested and has the ability, he will automatically become successful. If he does something because he knows how to do it or is not afraid when everyone is afraid. Then, success awaits him. 

I: This is probably a naive question, but do you think money makes people happy? 

T: I have an exact answer to this question: no, they don't. And I say this not because I am a romantic who thinks that money is not needed at all. Money, of course, is required, but happiness is not about money. Happiness is about finding meaning. And for one person, meaning may be worth a ruble, and for another, a billion. It all depends on whether there is any sense in your business or whether it is a story about who will build more Easter cakes. The point is to make it satisfying, to tickle you. I was asked a funny question a few years ago: would I choose an interesting job or money? A second later, I replied that, of course, an interesting job. And this is not because I am so unmercenary. I just wouldn’t be able to live this life.

Original source: https://www.forbes.ru/karera-i-svoy-biznes/371667-chem-otlichaetsya-mozg-milliardera-obyasnyaet-tatyana-chernigovskaya

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