I was told I’m not smart
I can’t spell very well, English is my worst language (and it’s the only one I speak), I procrastinate A LOT, I have a hard time focusing on things, and I’m really just not good at school in general. For these reasons I was deemed unable to amount to any type of success in my life. How well we do in school determines everything, what your GPA is will show how far you are going because school and the real world are the exact same thing, that’s a joke, feel free to laugh.
I am here to tell you that you’re not smart too and by that, you’re not good at everything. You, like myself, have pros and cons, ups and downs, and strengths and weaknesses. My weaknesses just happen to be what society determines to be stupid, therefore I was labeled as someone who wouldn’t make it off the ground. My weaknesses are like football and my strengths are like soccer, I might be really good at playing soccer, but no one cares because if you’re not good at football in America you’re a fu*king loser.
Enough about my weaknesses, I don’t really care about those and you shouldn’t either. My strengths can’t be measured by the ACT, by the way I got a 23 on that test and for those of you keeping track at home, that would put me in the 68th percentiles, which is slightly above average. What I am good at is talking to people and analyzing them. My communication skills are high, I understand how to relate people, and I am good at public speaking. Again, like you, I learned my skill by practicing and doing.
Like I said before, that doesn’t make me smart by school standards and I am totally ok with that, because my favorite thing in the world is proving people wrong, it’s something I try to do on a daily basis, it’s my drug of choice. Some people have booze, some people smoke illegal methamphetamine, I have the satisfaction of seeing someone’s face when they find out they’re wrong. The reason I get such a high off that is because I’ve been dealing with it all my life, people don’t believe in me then I show them what I can do.
Now, you’re probably thinking “I get it Kenny, you suck at school and you have no friends, but why are you telling me this?” Great question, I am telling you this because I want you to get aggressive and go all in on your strengths. In my eyes and in others as well, I am a success. Because it turns out that my strengths are just what you need to start your own business, you need to be outgoing and not afraid to talk to people (check), you need to be able to understand your market and what people want (check), you have to make people want to work with you by not being a complete asshole (check) and you have to get up in front of large crowds and talk about your business (check). While everyone else was doing their homework and studying for an upcoming test, I was out talking to people and trying to dive deeper into their lives, which now helps me sell to people.
For me, it all stems from me wanting to know more. It could be about how things are made, why the flag has stars and stripes on it, or why the f*ck Santa didn’t bring me exactly what I wanted for Christmas. I wanted to find out everything I could about people because they are the ultimate puzzle that I want to solve.
Now, I do have secret on how to find your strengths like I did and it super simple. You have to experience things, you’re not going to find out what you are amazing at by sitting on the couch and stuffing your face with ice cream while watching other people achieve their dreams. You have to be aggressive and get out of your comfort zone and find what you’re good at, and listen to what people have to say, adsorb every last bit of information you can. That’s how I found mine and that’s how you’ll find your’s.
Like I said before I am not smart, but I don’t care, because I am a success.
