When I was ten years old, I convinced my parents to let me have rastas. I wanted to look different and make a statement. And my new look at such a young age was quite controversial in our little village.

I was happy about that, even if I got teased and a bit mocked by my classmates. I would have done anything not to conform to the society’s standards.

How I wish I would not have lost this rebellious side of mine, but as time went by, I went from little Bob Marley to teacher’s pet who skipped a grade.

I worked my butt off in high school and 4 years after graduating, I know it was not worth it.

Why?

Studying cost me a lot of money

“The grades you receive now, determine how much money you will earn in your life.” This was my English teacher’s favorite sentence and he would recite it over and over again.

I was stupid enough to believe him.

But he was a teacher, so surely he would know what he was talking about, right? Well, no, obviously he didn’t.

First of all, we know plenty of enormously rich people, who were not that great in school.

Secondly, I could have started earning money in high school, instead of sitting in my room studying 12 hours a day.

Instead of helping  out at my uncle’s winery every once in a while, I could have gotten a more regular job or an internship to learn skills I would really need in life.

Thirdly, I could have done what I do now with or without having a perfect diploma.

I had no leisure time

Getting straight As is hard work if you’re not a genius. I wasn’t, so I studied for hours, on the weekends, during vacations, when I was sick in bed, until the wee hours of the morning when my eyes would get so tired that I had to stop.

I studied vocabularies while eating breakfast driving my family crazy. I studied during lunch breaks, in between the lessons, on the way to school and on the way back home.

This workload on top of the few other commitments I had, resulted in me not having any leisure time to just be a kid.

I missed out on making life-long friends

My sister met her best friend on the first day of high school. Not everybody is that lucky, but I missed out on making life-long friends altogether.

Sure, I had a few acquaintances, but I could not develop deep relationships with them because I needed to study for that next exam. I was never able to simply let go and have a girls’ night out or go to a party.

I strongly believe that I could have worked less than half the time for school and I still could have had good report cards at the end of the years.

And by saving so much time, I could have had much more fun. No grade in the world can make up for being a teenager and sharing this experience with others.

I have forgotten most of what I learned

Most of what I learned was nothing but bullshit.

Instead of learning relevant life-altering skills, all they teach us in the last years of high school is theories you will never use again.

Who needs matrices in their daily lives? Who needs all the technical terms you learn in language classes? Who wants to learn about the development of cities with all the boring administrative terms and laws?

Most of what we learn is the same stuff our parents and grandparents learned and never needed. I will never understand why the government makes children waste so much of their time.

Real life is not about grades

I have never met anybody who asked me about my grades in high school. Nobody cares whether I had straight As in eleventh grade, not even potential employers.

Sure, your diploma should look decent to make a good impression and to not be rejected right away, but I am certain that most employers would have rather seen me list more activities outside of school.

Having been part of certain clubs or having been politically involved in our town would certainly impress more.

Studying crushed my creativity

I used to be a very creative child. I loved to act, invented plays with my friends, organized a circus, danced, sang and loved to paint (except with all the restrictions in school).

Having to focus all my attention on being an A-student, killed my creativity. By conforming to the standards of my teachers, I stopped being able to express myself artistically.

By having to learn unusable theories, I was no longer able to just let my thoughts flow and create something that would be so much more valuable than knowing what “onomatopoeia” means.

I listened to everyone around me tell me how crucial high school is for my life and career, but I know that this is only partially true. It is far more important to engage in other activities, to have fun and to enjoy the teenage years.

Don’t listen to your parents, life will get serious soon enough.