[Closed] Anyone wish they had tried harder at school?

I sometimes wish I'd went to uni instead of becoming an apprentice.

I regret not having more confidence at school to follow and explore my abilities. IMO 'working hard' is a part of someone's success, but it isn't the be all and end all as many seem to think.

Having seen some of the more intelligent posters here imposing their views on and judging us lesser mortals, I'm glad I had fun.

Wish I'd tried less, not bothered with the academic route and the world of peer reviewed journals and geekery that I'm now expected to be part of and actually followed what I enjoyed regardless of being told that it would be a "waste of talents and brain". I wanted to be blacksmith and farrier. 😕

also very funny to observe the kind of reverse bullying that goes in academia and some forums where the geeks try to impose how very terribly cleaver they are to everyone and take delight in abusing those who do more manual labour. Bit like the abused becoming the abuser. Some of the most truly hideous behaviour to another human being I have seen has been from someone with multiple doctorates and more professional qualifications than you could shake a stick at. a truly vile little man out to get the world for one wedgy too many when he was 10.

I'm very glad I worked hard at school. Others may have had a laugh sitting at the back throwing scissors at us geeks but we are the one laughing now.

Yes, I fit the the first part of the description - at secondary school I gave up and did very little for the last few years. I don't believe I mocked those that did though, I just stopped and thought that I was so clever. I would like to have a word with my 17-year old self now.

I can now see how frustrating that must have been, but to have been told on the day that I left by my year tutor that I was worthless and would "be lucky to ever get a job sweeping the streets" was I think excessively harsh and still rankles to this day.

hmmmm. As one of those "egg-heads" that did study quite a bit I'd say that putting your nose to the stone neednt mean selling your soul or life. In fact working hard and doing well during those earlyish years (say 12 to 28) now allows me to enjoy all the other things I want to that might not necessarily have been affordable or fund a collection of unnecessary bicycles if I hadnt 🙂

I;ve enjoyed my education (all GCSEs, A Levels, Bachelors and Masters degrees) and I enjoy the work that they prepared me for. I also now enjoy coppicing and tinkering and bodging and plumbing that they didnt but I can afford to spend time doing.

I'm glad I didn't work any harder - I did OK but I'm a lazy git at heart. I suspect if I did I'd have ended up in a busier job, spending more money on stuff I'd see less of.

I think you have to be either very lucky or amazingly clever to make a shitload and even then some of those daft bastards just seem to need to make even more rather than stop and smell the flowers

No, I wouldn't have become an apprentice agricultural mechanic (which i don't regret) which would have meant not going to uni in my late 20s and really enjoying the whole learning thing when i was ready for it.

I sometimes wish I'd went to uni instead of becoming an apprentice.

I'm glad every day that I did an apprenticeship instead of uni. Though I think apprenticeships are better suited to 18 year olds than 16 year olds. I also think 17 is too young an age to choose a qualification which will effect your entire career.

I could have got slightly better A-Level grades if I'd pushed myself, I still made it onto the course I thought I wanted to do (Chemical Engineering) but I realise now that I had no idea what that would have lead to a lot of fighting for a decreasing pool of good jobs.

I'm sure I'd have enjoyed to social side of uni ferociously and much to the detriment of my studies. Living at home and starting a 7am every morning was a great way to save money..

Not at school but I wish I'd tried a bit harder at uni, I passed and all but I could've done better. TBF it wouldn't have needed [i]that[/i] much effort

Do wish I'd paid some attention in french though, I feel like a right dobber only speaking one language sometimes. On the bright side I can order a Magnum in a french cafe.

I had no interest in school but some how seem to have stumbled through ok.

On the positive side though all those hours i spent out on various different types of bikes when i should have been studying don't seem to have done me any harm.
Maybe it's my parents fault for letting me bunk off school to train on my MX bike.

Can't spell for shit but can manual a bike out of sight. 😉

I wish I would have been allowed to try harder at school. In all honesty my school was far from a suitable place to learn, its changed hugely now after damming inspections. There are a handful of us still in touch in person and on Facebook who have gone on to do well after leaving, all agreeing on the poor quality of the school. I managed to get a place at art college with my 'natural ability' if I re-took some GCSE's, I excelled with proper teaching and went onto university. I wanted to try hard at school, it wasn't encouraged and there was no discipline, I accept & admit the mistakes I made myself throughout my life, but I was held back during those years. It haunts me still now on application forms my lack of GCSE's.

I wish i had worked harder or maybe been pushed harder. I was not expected to acieve much and didnt. Got more a's at a level than gcse after being kicked out of school. I wanted to be a vet but was laughed at when i mentioned it. Now have a degree, masters and PhD so i dont think it would have been out of the question.

Not so much as tried harder .. just actually tried a little would have been an improvement ..

Then again. Doing better than I ever expected/deserved. And The few times I have met some of the nerds/swots from school they still look as miserable as back then .. and 15yrs older than me .... so ...

Fortunately my sister schooled me well in the art of just doing enough work to achieve the desired results 8)

Fortunately my sister schooled me well in the art of just doing enough work to achieve the desired results

that sounds soooooooooo wrong!

I wish I'd chosen to do what I wanted, rather that what it thought I should...

Yes. Or at the very least, worked harder in my final year at uni in one or two selected exams. That would have made a big difference to me.

Me, well I did ok, nothing fancy, skool led to A Levels led to Uni (after a break) led to work as a middle manager as my first job etc, yadda yadda blah blah to where I am now, I'm happy.

My Lil Sis left skool with nowt, in fact got kicked out in her last year for having an affair with the Drama Teacher (cough) she started a family after meeting her hubby then took an OU Maths degree which she did amazingly well in (top 10 in the country) which led to Uni (Cambridge) where she did a Masters in Advanced Maths (again top 10 in the country) which led to a Doctorate in Maths which led to becoming a Headmistress.. She's happy.

The way I see it is this, most folks have some amazing skill, not everyone is academic, we should cater for that in this world of ours.

The way I see it is this, most folks have some amazing skill, not everyone is academic

Nail hit clean on head. 🙂

Some of the most interesting people i've met have hardly any formal qualifications.

Some of the most interesting people i've met have hardly any formal qualifications.

Do you have many yourself?

I didn't start to grow up until I was at least 30, so what hope did I have at 16? Would like to have gone to uni (not the half arsed mature student bit I attempted upon growing up), but all told, I'm pretty happy with where I've ended up even if job and prospects are pretty dire.

I'm left wondering if people's views depnd to some degree on when they left school and if it is ifact an age thing

I was the class clown, didn't apply myself, got shit GCSE's and spent the next 10 years doing drugs, Wish I'd applied myself!

Could be a Astronaut or Professor?!

Probably not but No doubt I'd be in a better position!

No not really, I was in a group of proper nerds and academic types when I was at skool, I didn't follow that crowd, I just did my own thing. I was at a Grammar Skool, but even that I don't think has any baring on academic ability.

It's been a mad last ten years what with the then Govt ploughing the trough of "your only choice is go to Uni" I've seen 16yr olds freak out over not attaining A* ' s when they've gotten Plain old A's.. That to me isn't healthy.

I wonder what the next ten years will be like, what with the massive cost of going to Uni means to those that would like to go, but can't afford it.

I'm glad I don't have to go to Uni now.

Charlie - that's a good observation. I think it's an age thing.

When you're a kid out of school you do think that you're the bees knees and that you have a great insight into life that no-one else does, but as get older you get more disillusioned and part of that I think gets turned against your younger, naive self. As I get older I feel increasingly more disappointed in what I have failed to do in life (and in my case increasingly bitter about what I must have been to warrant that comment from my teacher).

More a case of wishing my mental illness (Bipolar Disorder) had been diagnosed and treated when my parents first raised concerns. I hated school, despite being pretty bright, and I find learning and education so much fun now as an adult.

Academically- no.

With some of the girls - yes.

I was a girlie swot at school, complete with all the socially awkward nerd stereotypes that go with that.

It was at University where the wheels came off. I grew up a lot in terms of personal development, but academia suffered. There's a lot of things I'd change if I got the opportunity to do over my Uni days, but there's also a lot of things I'm grateful for.

In fact, thinking about it, "right people, wrong course" about sums up my Uni days.

college is more key than school, university is better when you are older, the only thing i instill into my kids is that you do need maths/english and even if you do not have a plan when you leave school do something at college that will give you an employable skill even if its just a jo in the summer and sod of surfing/skiing in the winter... er, like i did.

i don't regeret what i didnt do at school, i think its a shame the school did not care enough to explain things certain better. for instance in pe we got sent running around the field for the first 30mins of the hour session so the teachers could have a fag. if they had explained why that 30min run could benefit your life it would have been more meaningful.

but hell, i left school 30 years ago. from where i am now, it does not matter one bit.

Personally, i wasted every minute of my education. Left school at the age of sixteen with practically nothing. I'm not about to blame anyone else for my failings, but somewhere between my home life / schooling, something went drastically wrong.

Fortunately, i met a good woman at the age of 17 and turned things around! I joined the RAF (that soon makes you grow up) and started a family (that also soon makes you grow up). I'm now trying my best to learn from all the mistakes that were made during my upbringing, and apply those lessons with my own children. It seems to be working, too; they're both wonderful kids!

Me: Children, would you like some Cake?
Children: No thanks, Dad. Can we have some Grapes instead, please?

Do i wish i'd tried harder at school? Definitely. On the upside, i can make a Forkilft dance like a Ballerina!

You can also string a sentence together, unlike a lot of people. I wouldn't say your school days were a complete waste.

I don't wish I'd tried harder, just wish I'd had the balls to stand up for myself when it came to taking my options and done the two subjects I was top of the year in, rather than going for subjects I was assured would be "better" for me in the long run. I only work hard at things that actually interest me, rather than things I "probably need"

There was actually a conversation when my parents and teachers agreed that there was no future in History. 🙄

I do - I might not be back there teaching right now! Same school btw!

You can also string a sentence together, unlike a lot of people. I wouldn't say your school days were a complete waste.

Fanks 4 da complyment!

On a more serious note, i've made the effort over the last few years to try and better educate myself; if i'm expected to educate my children, it's only right.

I've even started reading those... What're they called again...? Papery things, words on them...

Books! That's it!

Some of the most interesting people i've met have hardly any formal qualifications.

I's agree with this whole heartedly. Life creates far more interesting characters than academia.

the other thing I've discovered so far on my bimble through life is that in a lot of parts of the world, those with the least to give are the most willing to share and help strangers. The UK seems have lost it's way somewhere (particularly 80's onwards) where it's more about status and one-upmanship than the appreciation that we're all in this one way ride together, so we may as well just be excellent to each other. Seeing my son at school now and the attempts to bring more people skills empathy for others and communication skills in, hopefully will mean that he'll grow up a bit more appreciative that all people have worth, not just the clever ones, or the ones with loads of money.

Knowing what I do now, no.

I still enjoy making up my GCSE grades on job applications, no actual idea what they are any more. Average iirc. Tediously average.

Bloody school, think of all those years I wasted. Could have been watching telly, gits.

Didn't enjoy school, probably had the ability to do better but hated it. My current job required A-Levels but gave me a firm job offer prior to the exams. I questioned this and they said "all you need to do is take the exams, we are not looking for particular grades". I don't regret it for one minute, granted my natural aptitude for the job has helped massively, and if I were to have to do something else I would be buggered with poor grades and no other formal education. But I am pretty happy in a job that I love and requires little effort and pays good money.

God I'm lazy. Proper epic lazy, think I'd quite happily spend my life sitting about scratching.

Every now and then going for a 40 mile run or a blast on the bike. But the rest of it, sitting and scratching.

Do you have many yourself?

No I don't.

How does that have any bearing on things?

You trying to say that people that have done well at non accademic things are somehow non interesting? 😕

Just maybe they were out there doing thier thing instead of studying for something that gave them a peice of paper at the end of it...

Nope.
In some respects I wish I went straight into ecology work from school, but by not doing so, I've gained a much more diverse set of skills that benefit myself and others.
What I do wish, is that the education system works with students strengths, rather than trying to get a broader range of average learning's.
IMO

The ability to consistently work hard is a talent, just like being highly intelligent, or having "common" sense. I have two of those three - I'm not greedy.

No I don't.

How does that have any bearing on things?

You trying to say that people that have done well at non accademic things are somehow non interesting?

No, just saying, you know, water finds its own level.

Not really. I didn't try particularly hard, I hated school and everything about it, including the work. I even dropped a GCSE because I literally couldn't be bothered with the coursework. I'm glad I'm trying now. Two modules to go with the OU until I finish my Degree with hons. That I am much more proud of than some average to poor GCSEs, most of which I can't even recall!

No, just saying, you know, water finds its own level.

😯

Let me give you an example then Charlie.

One of the posters on this thread is very well qualified and you would think an interesting fellow.

Only when you meet him he's as dull as dishwater.

On the other hand another fellow i've met has no qualifications whatsoever but is a multi world champion and could entertain almost anyone.

Just saying like. 😉

Thanks for seeing the implied smilie.

Was it relevant that you had quals? I'm not sure, but I'm wondering if people of similar qualification / academic ability / type / somethng or other, would tend to find each other more interesting. Of course i mean in the general case, not on an individual basis

I would imagine on a general level that yes you do kind of have a small point there.
Of course people that are into the same stuff will have a level of interest in each other.

But you did come across as trying to imply that any interesting people i'd met weren't very interesting and i only thought they were because i have no formal qualifications.

I try not to judge people on there lack of/abundance of qualifications myself...

Anyway.
I'm back off to the bike forum seen as this is a bike web site. 😉

But you did come across as trying to imply that any interesting people i'd met weren't very interesting and i only thought they were because i have no formal qualifications.

I know, but i was only messing. 🙂

Of course we don't judge people on their lack or abundance of quals, butthepoint i was getting at, this time without trying to be rude is that there is probably nomsuch thing as 'interesting people' only people in whom you are interested. And if you are of similar types, be it through academic experience, job, hobby etc. then you would be more likely to find them intersting. So when you say that the most interesting people you know have few qualifications, i wonder if they would be as interesting to some one who wasmorea academic or dare i say intellectual.

I can happily say I have worked hard enough to get, career-wise, to where I want to be.

I do regret not working harder at my postgraduate exams; passed both the ones that matter on the second hit and, by working harder for the first goes, could have saved myself large pots of cash and a total of a year I could have spent doing stuff for interest or CV instead of revising in my spare time. However, them's the breaks.

My brother, who is far more intelligent than me, buggered about at uni rather than knuckling down and is a postman.

Andy

I wish I had worked harder at school. I left with no qualifications at all and became an outdoor instructor/coach, which was a great education in its own right IMO and something which I don't regret. However, in my mid-twenties I went to university after having done an access course. I studied law at a so called 'Russell Group' university and got a 1st.

I'm really glad that I went to university when I was a bit older and when I knew that I was doing it for myself, rather than out of a feeling of it being expected. I gained a lot from doing it on a number of levels but I also feel that my life experience is at least, if not more, valuable

Blimey Charlie.

Your typing's worse than mine.

You sure you're qualified to be on here.

I bet you're dead boring. 😉

*Dodges back to the bike side.*