its kinda scary how your whole life depends on how well you do as a teenagerĀ
oh my god No it doesnāt donāt put this kind of pressure on people?? you can absolutely fuck up in your teen years and continue on to a good life just fine. you can drop out of school, get a GED, still go to college and finish your degree as late as you want. i know people in my school who still havenāt graduated and theyāre 26. some older. you can always transfer someplace else, always build yourself up from the ground. after a certain amount of college credits, a lot of schools really donāt care about your high school GED or your SAT scores anymore. if you fuck up in your teenage years you are not a failure!! you can ALWAYS re-invent yourself, always start over. there is always a second chance.
Reblogging this for my followers freaking out over art school/college. I dropped out of high school and never thought Iād get into college as easily as I did. You will be fine!
Fun story my biology professor just told us: Ā When he was 23 he was married to his wife and worked two jobs to support them since she was in college: gas station attendant and construction worker. Ā He worked these two jobs because that was the only work he could get since he was at the reading level of a third grader. Ā
One night he was writing something and his wife noticed he was writing from right to left. Ā Since she was studying occupational therapy she realized he had a learning disability and started working with him. Ā He slowly began to learn to read, and at 26 got his GED and went to college.
His first year of college he took the lowest level math course he could take, 001. Ā Over the years he worked on learning what he needed to, ended up graduating with a biology degree. Ā He then went on to get his masters and PhD, graduating at the top of his class. Ā He is now an extremely accomplished biologist and professor.
So donāt let anyone tell you that youāre future is based on your choices as a teenager.
Seriously. Ā Do not believe this. Ā You arenāt even stuck with your choices you make in your 20s. Ā I didnāt start working in my current field until just after my 30th birthday. Ā It has nothing to do with what I went to school for in my 20s. Ā My husband has a political science degree, and heās a sports journalist.
You are not tied to anything. Ā Go. Ā Be.
My day job did not exist when I was a teenager. And the idea of trying to be an author was a distant thing on my radar. I thought I was going to be an English teacher. And then I thought I was going to be a music teacher. And then I thought I was going to be a drama teacher.
Also in there: therapist, early childhood educator, then finally: web developerābecause by then it was an actual thing that existed. I didnāt actually figure out what IĀ āwanted to do when I grew upā until about eight years ago, when I was 36. I tried pursuing writing when I was 30, stopped, then started pursuing it seriously again when I was 40.Ā
There is always time to change. And donāt let anyone tell you that high school isĀ āthe best time of your lifeā either, because thatās bullshit too.
I was a high school drop out and didnāt go to college until I was within a month of my 40th birthday. While there I changed my major twice. Then I taught art long enough to earn retirement. Before college Iāve worked in dog kennels, as a cashier, a dental assistant, a vet assistant, electronics assembly,Ā a machinist in the military, picking up trash in a state park and as locksmith at a university. After teaching I worked night shift as a securety guard. Life is freaking adventure, not a locked grid you must move from one square to another. Take a chance, If you fail, get back up, dust yourself off and try something new.Ā
Your life is not over at 25. You can continue to learn and engage with hobbies and change your life path and meet new people. Get rid of this idea that what you decide to do at 18 is gonna be what you do for life
I studied photogrpahy, dropped out of university after a year due to health problems and spent seven years learning to manage them all.Ā
At 27 Iām now back in school, taking A-Levels in Film Studies and English Language and Literature (Iāll be 29 before I can start university again) and aiming for a career as a screenwriter or author (or both, who knows).
Itās human nature to change, donāt fight it, go with the flow. You might end up somewhere completely different than your original destination, but itāll be where youāre supposed to be.
