Easy "no" vote. Don't take life too damn seriously. Despite what Mikey might believe, not all time must be "productively" spent. Also, one good way to get better at relationships, to understand yourself and your needs better, is to be open to having them. Good luck in your productive and unproductive endeavors!

[quote="kmikeym, post:1, topic:9"] whether Jackson should stop actively pursuing a romantic relationship [/quote] If this is the question, then I will have to vote "yes", with an emphasis on the "actively pursuing" part. However, I would like to be clear that my opinion is not that he should forego all chances of romantic relationships. I believe that if Jackson stops an **active pursuit** of romance, and instead focuses on professional and personal development, he will become naturally more confident, and so will become naturally more attractive and may unexpectedly find himself in a romantic relationship regardless!

I voted yes for the following reasons: 1. It is more attractive to the opposite sex to date someone that is good at something and has a highly developed skill. Focusing on development now will allow for greater return in romance later on. 2. Focusing on professional development while young strengthens character, self reliance and allows one to discover what one might like or not like in other people. Postponing a major focus on romance will allow Jackson to naturally meet people and learn small lessons without risk of deterring him from his mental and professional focus. These lessons will allow him to develop a set of criteria for the person he is actually looking for, slowly leading to a more successful long term relationship in the future. 3. People become more attractive as they do the things they are more interested in doing. Instead of focusing on romance, the romance will come from an appreciation of being good at something instead of a simply physical connection. In the interest of maximizing my long term shareholder value in Jackson, I voted yes. I made the same choice when I was younger and was greatly rewarded with a long term relationship I would have missed had I spent my early years looking for a relationship. Delayed gratification is a powerful asset to develop, and a worthwhile endeavor that pays off with compound interest. I'm hoping my vote will too.

I'm all for Jackson actively pursuing a relationship -- but I certainly remember what that entailed when I was his age. It wasn't pretty. I wonder if Jackson is open to getting advice from the community on just how he goes about this "pursuit." (we corrected the name in this post -k5m)

Jackson should pursue his true feelings (apparently Jackson is interested in this right now) and potentially make mistakes in order to learn about himself rather than just live proscriptively. Jackson will learn plenty about himself, his interests, and relationships by following his feelings. Experience in relationships can be just as important as personal/professional development is to the success of your future relationships. I don't see young love hampering Jackson's ability to hone his other interests - he strikes me as a well-balanced and driven young person who has already made great inroads into the industry and fields that interest him, and I imagine he'll continue to do so one way or the other. Let the boy have some young, dumb fun

@marijke, I think you are missing the point. A "yes" vote does not prevent Jackson from "having some young dumb fun," it just means that he will be focusing his efforts on personal and professional development instead. By doing so, and by not actively seeking out romantic interests, he will in fact appear more attractive! This will hopefully attract more romantic interests to pursue him, and he will end up finding someone anyway! I urge you to change your vote to a "yes".

Oh, I understand that he's not precluded from romantic pursuits! I still feel a no is in order though and that he should explore some of his whims.

Maybe being unnattractive to partners and bad at relationships will provide good learning experiences!

For the record I dislike the phrasing of this vote, both options seem unsatisfactory to me. I would like to encourage Jackson to follow his heart where it leads him, but to not obsess over the fact that he doesn't have a relationship. Desperation is neither attractive nor fulfilling. The **right** relationship **will** come when he's ready. In the mean time my recommendation would be that he learn to be comfortable in his own skin and that he practices having fun exploring whatever opportunities (business or pleasure) come his way.

We agree the phrasing is poor. Our apologies. We didn't feel we should change it after some shareholders cast a vote.

I wonder if perhaps a vote is the wrong tool for some these issues? Instead of everything being a vote, perhaps Jackson could simply request feedback from the shareholders as one might go to a board for advice.