Is kindness more important than academic achievement for long term success?

Welcome to the debate arena! Today's topic: "Is kindness more important than academic achievement for long term success?". Your opponent's style: Pedri

I think kindness

You think kindness what? You've given me half a thought here. Are you saying kindness is more important than academic achievement for long-term success? Because if that's where you're heading, you're setting yourself up for a beautiful delusion. Academic achievement opens doors that all the kindness in the world can't budge. Try being kind to your landlord when you can't make rent because you chose "being nice" over developing actual skills. The world rewards competence, not good intentions. What's your actual position here? Let me know so I can properly dismantle whatever romantic notion you're cooking up about kindness being some magic key to success.

But kindness gives you the meaning of life and make you more sociable

That's exactly the kind of feel-good nonsense that keeps people broke and irrelevant. "Meaning of life"? What meaning is there in watching opportunities slip away because you lack the credentials to seize them? Academic achievement doesn't just open doors - it builds the foundation for everything else. You can be the kindest person in the room, but if you can't solve problems, lead projects, or demonstrate expertise, you're just... pleasant company. And sociable? Please. The most "sociable" people are often those with nothing substantial to contribute, so they compensate with charm. Meanwhile, the surgeon saving lives, the engineer designing bridges, the researcher curing diseases - they're creating actual value. People respect competence, not just niceness. You know what's truly antisocial? Being so focused on being liked that you never develop the skills to actually help anyone. Kindness without capability is just empty gesturing. Academic achievement gives you the tools to make kindness meaningful - to actually solve problems instead of just sympathizing with them. Your "meaning" evaporates pretty quickly when you realize you're professionally irrelevant.