I am also a drop out. It took a long time after dropping out to feel more comfortable and confident in myself after intelligence wasnāt my #1 personality trait anymore. Here are some things I have done to help:
-Get really, really good at a hobby. I make jewelry and I keep pushing myself to do bigger and more elaborate things. I know I am becoming an expert on my craft and that makes me pretty damn smart! I have seen myself grow from doing simple patterned string necklaces to now making elaborate, chunky beaded chainmail pieces. I have also gotten good at drawing up my own patterns which just adds another layer to knowing about my craft that I didnāt even dream of doing in the beginning.
-Take a class, any class. I recently took a writing class, and it was so rewarding. I felt very out of place being the only one without a degree amongst my classmates, but it was a very accepting group, and I walked away with so much valuable critique. It was also nice to connect with people I wouldnāt have run into in my day to day, and hear what they had to say about the world, my classmates writing, and how they could see improvement for everything. I found it through a bookstore/ teaching center type place in my city, but I know many many many community centers offer classes, or you can find online classes/ follow along with videos for plenty of other crafts/ skills.
-Read random shit. Go to fun shops, or little free libraries, or ask around and pick something that sounds silly or crazy to read. Even if you donāt end up liking it or donāt end up finishing it, you can still learn something from this experience. Itās just a path that you donāt want to expand into, which can point you some other way instead.
-Read Essays. This, I think, is the easiest way to start āfollowing the schemasā like I saw someone else recommend. The essay is such a broad category of writing that takes countless forms, and can cover any topic. I like the Best American Essay anthology, but there are plenty of other collections sorted by topic, author, year, region, etc. I also like the site Brevity.com for super impactful flash essays. I could go on and on about specific essays if you wanted some more recs, feel free to reach out if you do!
-Remind yourself you arenāt dumb, because you arenāt. This may be more projection than anything, but I constantly have to remind myself that Iām not stupid, I just made a mistake. I donāt need to prove anything to anyone: all I need to do is live my life and be cool š
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Iāve learned almost everything I know from a book (checking out library books for my hobbies) but also YouTube and friends.books and friends are nice when I feel simply overwhelmed with how much information exists on the internet about how to do literally anyrhing
YouTube can help you with sillypractical skillsā¦ learning how to unjam my lock, unclog my drains, etc etc
For other skills, befriend older ppl or friends that āhave their shit togetherā
Most friends are happy to teach you something or even walk alongside you while you do taxes, apartment hunt, or cook a steak :) i love when my friends teach me stuff
And b patient with yourself. You canāt know everything and youāre not gonna learn it all overnight. Take small steps and stay learnin š«”
Jul 5, 2024
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Doing the same exercises at the same level at the same time and place with people who are interested in the same thing as you is like, one of lifeās cheat codes after school (whether itās compulsory or collegiate) especially if youāre in a new city and donāt have an existing support network / friend group (added benefit is keeping your mind active and learning and getting better at new skills š)
Iāve taken filmmaking, comedy writing, and DJing classes and after each one Iāve picked up at least one new friend I could hit up for a coffee, dinner, or in the best case, to collaborate on a project Iām excited about but am struggling to find the motivation to get started on.
Mar 19, 2024
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Find something that tickles ur brain and dive in, ideally sitting at a desk and having some kind of place to take notes, write questions you have, and note down resources.
I think it can really improve your relationship to yourself to see that ur capable of not just scrolling mindlessly for hours, but for caring deeply about a topic, treating it seriously and with curiosity.
Doesnāt need to be an intellectual topic at all! Iāve just started lap swimming so am āstudyingā freestyle technique, what drills to do, the swimming styles of various Olympians etc
Jan 27, 2024
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Why not go through the process of blending those images yourself? Why not use process as an experiment? Why AI? What part are you playing? What makes it yours?
I think AI is impersonal. I think it is unethical when it has relied on the theft of actual peopleās actual physical (and because of the nature of art, often time emotional) labor. I also think it is unnecessary in creating art. I also think the environmental impacts are atrocious. I also think AIās biggest supporters are being maliciously ignorant because itās a fun new toy.
Is it ease? Is it efficiency? People talk about accessibility as if children donāt use crayons and stickers! As if graffiti artists donāt use postal labels as sticker, as if sand mandalas donāt exist, as if cardboard and tape arenāt in over abundance.
Apr 15, 2025
Mar 1, 2025
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Maybe this isnāt so much a fix for staff, but I feel like the reposting of things has gotten a bit lame. I donāt want the āEveryoneā feed to be the same post 20 times with nothing added, especially when the thing being re-recād isnāt even a real reccomendation in the first place. I like this app because it is different than Instagram and Twitter and tumblr and the like. I feel like people are trying to interact similarly to those other apps here. I feel like we are all drifting back into creating the same social media AGAIN.
My vote would be to remove the feature entirely, but I see how it can be used thoughtfully
Mar 3, 2025