
Why I regret getting straight A’s in college (2007) - jxub
http://blog.penelopetrunk.com/2007/12/04/twentysomething-why-i-regret-getting-straight-as-in-college/
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gringoDan
I completely agree with the sentiment of this article.

(Caveat that the below advice applies to the type of people who read HN and
probably not the average college student.)

What I value most from my college experience is the close friendships that I
made. At no other time in your life are you able to live within a couple
blocks (or even in the same building) as your best friends and have enough
time to hang out and shoot the shit with them. Spending a lot of time together
is necessary to create bonds for deep friendships. This is a big part of the
reason it is so tough to make friends later in life, when everyone is busy.

I think that it is common for smart, driven people at Ivies and comparable
universities to spend their time optimizing for career success in their first
1-4 years out of college, rather than thinking about optimizing happiness over
their entire lives. My GPA was off of my resume after I got my first job, and
no employer has ever asked about it. However, I'll never forget the fun,
stupid things my friends and I did together, and I have ~5 people that I know
would be there for me at the drop of a hat if I needed them.

Loneliness is a huge problem in society and terrible for an individual's long-
term happiness and health. Given that college is essentially all of the
freedoms of adulthood without any of the responsibilities, it is the perfect
time to make the friendships that you'll view later in life as invaluable.

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WheelsAtLarge
Hard work is hard work no matter where you put in the time. Unfortunately, he
put in the work in only books and not relationships. As you get older you
begin to see that relationships, knowledge and hard work are what determines
success in life. We can't neglect any one point in the triangle, so we need to
balance them. The sooner we learn that the better.

C students can be very successful but not if they're lazy and hermits.

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Firebrand
>3\. I’ve forgotten 95% of it.

>I majored in English Literature and minored in Communication Theory

Suddenly I’m less impressed with what he has to say...

