At the end of primary school in the 1900s they gave us IQ tests to place us in highschool classes. Based solely on those results I was placed in the top tier, which probably explains why they take a more holistic approach these days. I of course struggled in these high level classes with concentration, homework etc. I received report cards informing my parents that I was a bright child who just needed to apply himself, which was code for lazy troublemaker.

As the years progressed I was slowly demoted through the year ranks from 1a to the class they won’t let use scissors without supervision. Apparently no amount of punitive measures was capable of making me a good student. My report cards shifted to A for achievement and D for effort because no matter how little attention I paid in the class the work was so simple I could do it all in five minutes before class.

Occasionally I would have a teacher that tried to help, but the system didn’t really allow for it. Occasionally I would do something annoying like get the second highest score in the area in a state science test, but that just reinforced the clever but lazy label. I passed most exams based solely on multiple choice questions, which would have been great if life solely consisted of selecting A B or C.

I of course hated school because the smart kids thought I was lazy, the dumb kids thought I was weird, and the weird kids were struggling with their own problems. Everyday I was exhausted from just existing in a school environment, it hilarious to think they expected me to do homework afterwards. I left school as soon as could because why wouldn’t I?

Following which I found a bunch of jobs I could excel at for about 3-6 months before I learned everything and got bored, and then quit. Attempts at uni were much the same, a few months of last minute efforts and decent exam scores thanks to multiple choice kept me going for a while, but eventually I couldn’t keep it together.

Rinse and repeat for 30 years. I suspect once the novelty of the newly enhanced introspection and clarity wears off there may be a hell of crash.