What if the straight path from high school to college isn't the best way to prepare our kids for life? Abby Falik graduated from Stanford exhausted and burnt out—despite playing the academic game perfectly. That experience led her to spend two decades creating alternatives, founding Global Citizen Year and raising over $65 million to help thousands of young people take transformative bridge years.

Now, with The Flight School, Abby is challenging the entire paradigm. She believes our kids are missing something essential: wisdom, a sense of what it means to be human, and the capacity to navigate uncertainty. Through immersive experiences and "the power of the pause," she's reimagining the transition from high school into a rebellious rite of passage that builds a compass, not just credentials. And she also regularly shares her emerging observations and wisdoms via substack.

Why This Matters

→ The race to college can create hollow achievers rather than wise humans. Many kids work hard to be accepted to college only to arrive exhausted, directionless, and disconnected from any deeper sense of purpose or meaning. Achievement isn't the same as wisdom, and credentials don't teach you what it means to be human.

→ The world our kids face requires a different kind of preparation. In an era of unprecedented uncertainty and rapid change, following a predetermined path won't serve them. They need to develop their own internal compass, learn to navigate ambiguity, and discover what they actually care about; that requires a new approach.

→ The pause isn't a detour—it's the point. Taking time between high school and college isn't falling behind; it's an intentional rite of passage that can fundamentally change a young person's trajectory. When we give kids permission to step off the treadmill and into the unknown, they discover who they are and what matters—which changes everything that comes after.