MacKenzie Price

In just 24 hours, he made $500,000 online.

But first, he had to quit his 60-hour medical job paying just $40,000 a year.

How Ali Abdaal found the "third door" to success: 

Ali Abdaal visited our Alpha School in Austin.

He shared his journey from doctor to YouTube star with 4M+ subscribers.

His story shows what's wrong with traditional education - and what we can do differently.

This speaks to a deeper truth about success... 

As a kid, Ali lived two separate lives.

School hours: following academics, getting good grades.

After hours: coding, building websites, earning $5-10 with web design.

What happened next shocked his traditional parents: 

That side hustle - his "divergence from the academic path" - became his secret weapon.

When applying to Cambridge Medical School, everyone had perfect grades.

But Ali stood out with his coding projects and web businesses.

This wasn't just luck... 

At Cambridge, Ali got his first essay back: 49%.

A devastating score for someone who'd always excelled.

He realized competing purely on academics meant endless grinding with little return.

But there was another way forward: 

"There's almost no career where the academic game gets you ahead," Ali explained.

What truly matters? Being interesting. Taking initiative. Building connections.

Things traditional schools rarely teach.

This revelation changed everything: 

In med school, Ali kept pursuing tech interests.

He joined hackathons, built websites for doctors, and kept one foot in each world.

It perfectly positioned himself at the intersection of fields.

That's where innovation happens... 

During training, Ali had a brilliant insight.

He asked established doctors: "If you won the lottery, would you still practice?"

Half said they'd quit immediately. The rest would go part-time.

This wake-up call prompted his biggest move: 

Ali launched a YouTube channel in 2017.

His goal was modest: create content to market his side business helping students enter med school.

But something unexpected happened as he shared knowledge online: 

The channel took on a life of its own.

In a few years, he went from $40K as a doctor to building a multi-million dollar business.

One course launch made $500K in a day and $2M in three weeks.

But this isn't just about money... 

It's about what Ali calls "the third door" to success.

Imagine a nightclub with three entrances:
• Door 1: The line where everyone waits
• Door 2: VIP entrance for celebrities
• Door 3: The hidden path most never discover 

Today's schools train students to wait in that first door line.

Follow rules. Get good grades. Stand in line.

But the most successful people - from Gates to Spielberg - found that third door.

They created their own path when conventional routes failed.

This is exactly what we're building at our schools.

Students master academics in just 2 hours daily through AI-powered learning.

Then we free them to pursue passions and develop real-world skills.

Our students outperform traditional schools while building businesses, coding apps, and creating portfolios.

In Brownsville, kids from low-income families jumped from the 31st to 86th percentile in one year.

The formula is simple but powerful: 

Success isn't choosing academics OR real-world skills.

It's mastering BOTH efficiently.

"Do the academic stuff, and then build something cool... that unlocks opportunities," Ali explained.

This is the future of education.

Hey, I'm MacKenzie.

I'm on a mission to revolutionize our education system.

Our school:
• Uses AI to meet students exactly where they're at
• Has 2 hours of core academics per day
• Teaches real life skills

If you're tired of the current school systems, keep scrolling...

Thanks for reading!

1. Like/repost if you found this helpful
2. Follow me @mackenzieprice for insights on:

• How to advocate for better education
• Revolutionary learning methods
• Student success stories

Let's transform the future of education together.

We've been lying to our kids for 40 years.

A 1984 Univ. of Chicago study proved personalized learning puts kids in the top 2%.

Yet we still force 30 unique minds to move at one pace.

Here's the study that exposed how schools hold kids back—and the fix they won’t implement: 

In 1984, Professor Benjamin Bloom ran a study at the University of Chicago that changed how we view education.

He discovered that students receiving personalized instruction outperformed traditional classrooms.

By TWO standard deviations.

What's even more impressive? 

This wasn't just a minor improvement in test scores.

The average student with personalized learning surpassed 98% of their peers in traditional classrooms.

We're talking about a complete transformation in how students learn and grow.

And that was just the beginning... 

The data kept validating this personalized approach:

• Achieve 3-8 percentile points higher in math and reading
• Experience 75% higher motivation (vs 30% in traditional settings)
• Perform 70% better when learning is tailored to them

So what's holding us back? 

Here's the reality about our current education system:

It wasn't designed for optimal learning.

It was built for processing large groups through a standardized framework.

Let's look at what this means for our children:

Think about what's happening in classrooms right now:

Our kids are disengaged.
Their potential is capped.
Their natural curiosity is diminishing.

The most frustrating part?

We've had the solution for DECADES.

Let me show you what the research reveals: 

When we empower students to learn at their own pace:

• They master concepts completely before moving forward
• Their engagement soars because content matches their level
• They build confidence instead of anxiety

Yet our current system ignores these proven principles... 

Instead, we're forcing 30 unique minds to:

• Take standardized tests
• Move at an arbitrary pace
• Learn through a single method
• Advance regardless of mastery

This approach isn't just ineffective—it's holding our children back.

And it's getting worse:

The gap between what's possible and what we're delivering continues to widen.

AI and technology have made personalized learning more accessible than ever.

Yet most schools still operate on a century-old model designed for factory workers. 

When schools embrace personalized learning, results are stunning:

• Students master 1.5 years of math concepts in just one academic year
• Reading and math scores soar 13% above national averages
• Dropout rates plummet by 15%

And the benefits extend far beyond academics: 

Schools implementing personalized learning see:

• 12% higher attendance
• 25% better graduation rates
• 30% increase in student engagement

Why? Because students finally take ownership of their learning journey.

But there's an even bigger change that happens: 

When students drive their own learning:

They develop essential life skills:
• Self-direction
• Goal-setting
• Critical thinking
• Time management

These are the skills that shape future innovators and leaders.

Your child has unlimited potential waiting to be unleashed.

The research shows they could be learning faster, understanding deeper, and actually enjoying their education.

But they're constrained by an outdated system.

Here's the good news: 

The technology is ready.

All we need is the courage to embrace change.

Let's transform education together.