Everyone had such high hopes for me as a kid and I let them down

Growing up I was considered by all of my friends, teachers, family members and friend’s parents to be the smartest kid in my neighborhood. I once scored 131 on an IQ test, just shy of Mensa eligibility. I guess people noticed when I took interest in “adult” concepts like politics, history and read books while most of the kids around me played video games. Don’t get me wrong, I wasn’t a total autist. I was still a teenager who played video games, played sports and chased girls too, but during my alone time I had nerdier hobbies and a mature understanding of the world which I never tried to hide. 

I remember being about 15 years old skateboarding with the boyos when my best friend’s grandma came outside and started going on about how proud she was of me. She was like “you’re going to college, I can see it.” Higher education wasn’t really something valued in my neighborhood, so it would’ve been a big deal. Most people became tradies or went on welfare (srs). Instead, everyone expected me to become a CEO.

Fast forward a decade and some change later, I am now hearing how disappointed this woman is in how I turned out, which hurt my feeling srs. The crazy part is I wasn’t even that big of a fuck up. A lot of our friend group became junkies or ended up in jail, but for me it was worse. I wasted my intelligence and threw away my potential. 

Instead of grabbing life by the balls, I stopped giving a fuck after high school. I skipped college because I didn’t feel like going. I job hopped because no career interested me. I avoided other avenues such as military because I didn’t feel like leaving my hometown. 

And then the clock kept ticking until it was too late, so I settled into some mundane, unfulfilling, average NPC office position.

Instead of being the one who made it, I became the one who everyone thought would make it, but didn’t. Feels bad man. 

/deardiary but anyone know these feels?

Who cares what them nikkas think do you cuz

Could you 360 flip on a skateboard?

GaryRidgway wrote:Could you 360 flip on a skateboard?

You promised us all you would be 300lbs of pure muscle.

Intelligence is a double edged sword

Everyone meets the same end

It's all meaningless

Enjoy the time and be glad you aren't a squirrel

They seem pretty happy don't they

Max_Wren wrote:

GaryRidgway wrote:Could you 360 flip on a skateboard?

You promised us all you would be 300lbs of pure muscle.

Much like OP I let everyone down

Who cares were gonna get old and all have the same fate srs

You are a great dude and still young and you can make it if you want to love you bro.

If anyone tries to call you a disappointment or says that you didn't do anything with your life, show them your 337k+ rep power on the misc. Aw, fuck... nevermind

PM me for new username wrote:If anyone tries to call you a disappointment or says that you didn't do anything with your life, show them your 337k+ rep power on the misc. Aw, fuck... nevermind

Brootal

The problem is you're focusing on the things in life that don't really matter. When I was a kid I had hopes and dreams. We all did. But over time, the daily grind gets in the way and you miss the things that really matter, even though they are right in front of you, staring you in the face. I think the next time you should ask yourself "Am I on the right track here?". I don't mean to be rude but people like you I really pity. So maybe you could use the few brain cells you have and take advantage of the knowledge I have given you now. Good luck.

nigga it ain't over till it's over

you don't sound like you are 50 yet so you can still make it if you choose to

the choice though is yours

you dig?

plenty of kids peak in college and rot the rest of their life. given how unaffordable life is today. i would not give up

How old are you mang? Guessing 30s but could be wrong. If so then I'm surprised your friend's grandma is even still alive in the first place lol, and seemingly coherent to boot.

IDK mang. There's surely been hundreds of thousands if not millions of humans over the last 21+ centuries who squandered their potential for various reasons. They all died btw. Same for those who had very little potential but got super lucky in their lifetimes.

Comparison is the thief of joy. And this entire thread's topic is about comparison.

Self reflection is good but it's never good to dwell. Its purpose is to potentially readjust your trajectory going forward.

IMO, regardless of your IQ or upbringing, if you're making above the median income for your area, you're treating people decently, including yourself, staying away from immoral/illegal activities/addictions/substances, you're doing great in life. Absorb yourself with your hobbies, your relationships, and your chosen career.

You can always get a degree after the fact at any age regardless of the stigma associated with it. But would it even benefit you? If you think yes, then shoot go for it. My uncle is in his 60's and always says if he got another job that offered tuition assistance, he'd take advantage of it and likely wind up with several degrees he thought would be interesting over the course of a decade.

You didn't let me down, OP. You didn't let me down.

GuineaDago585 wrote:Growing up I was considered by all of my friends, teachers, family members and friend’s parents to be the smartest kid in my neighborhood. I once scored 131 on an IQ test, just shy of Mensa eligibility. I guess people noticed when I took interest in “adult” concepts like politics, history and read books while most of the kids around me played video games. Don’t get me wrong, I wasn’t a total autist. I was still a teenager who played video games, played sports and chased girls too, but during my alone time I had nerdier hobbies and a mature understanding of the world which I never tried to hide. 

I remember being about 15 years old skateboarding with the boyos when my best friend’s grandma came outside and started going on about how proud she was of me. She was like “you’re going to college, I can see it.” Higher education wasn’t really something valued in my neighborhood, so it would’ve been a big deal. Most people became tradies or went on welfare (srs). Instead, everyone expected me to become a CEO.

Fast forward a decade and some change later, I am now hearing how disappointed this woman is in how I turned out, which hurt my feeling srs. The crazy part is I wasn’t even that big of a fuck up. A lot of our friend group became junkies or ended up in jail, but for me it was worse. I wasted my intelligence and threw away my potential. 

Instead of grabbing life by the balls, I stopped giving a fuck after high school. I skipped college because I didn’t feel like going. I job hopped because no career interested me. I avoided other avenues such as military because I didn’t feel like leaving my hometown. 

And then the clock kept ticking until it was too late, so I settled into some mundane, unfulfilling, average NPC office position.

Instead of being the one who made it, I became the one who everyone thought would make it, but didn’t. Feels bad man. 

/deardiary but anyone know these feels?

Expectations and assumptions are dream killers.

A good example is the children of many Hollywood stars. They are expected to be just as awesome as their parents and then it destroys them psychologically, they do nothing, and then feel like losers.

As I say about lifting, assume you aren't going to lift a certain amount or do a certain number of reps, and just concentrate on doing one more. That's how you advance at something.

Meanwhile, when I was in my 20s I convinced a coworker of mine to go back and get his degree. He did it and changed his life.

Do what you want to do, now.

Same. But who gives a shit what other people think?

If it makes you feel any better OP, I have exceeded all of my parent's expectations.

With that said, I've never cared about what anyone thinks of me. I do things for me, and no one else. Though that will change soon.

U started bitchin on the misc in ur early 20s and now ur in ur mid 20s

shut the fuk up and do sumthin already with ur geek ass SRS

131 IQ would make you average at a flagship state college so it's not like you fumbled that much.

Unless you have insane social skills, family wealth, or incredible luck, you were always destined to be a white collar drone.

Same op, i failed the expectations too but I’m in a different stage now and i focus on this one instead. You can either try to go back to college if it benefits you but if not just make the best of what you have now. Be a proper man and perform man duties for your family, friends and neighborhood, thats more important to imo

Also get used to the thought of letting most people down. Srs. Because even if you did all the things you thought you should’ve done, somebody would still find a way to be upset in you.