Things I Wish I Would Have Learned in School

School: Just the word alone brings up negative thoughts and feelings for many people. 

School is tough.  School is difficult.  School takes discipline.

Many teenagers today struggle with school. 

This may seem like common sense; but there is more to it than that. 

Our young people are failing at the one area where we really wanted them to succeed.

During the industrial revolution, our young people would often work long, stressful, dangerous hours; having adult roles and adult responsibilities in society. 

This created issues. 

Many people decided that it was time to get these young children away from these adult responsibilities.

So they created child labor laws. 

And this created a lot of free time for these young people. 

Many people did not like this free time. 

Because they did not trust the teens to have that much empty time on their hands. 

And they wanted to fill this empty time with something more productive. 

So they made a huge push for education.

Education was going to be the answer that they have been looking for. 

Western Culture began to emphasize the importance of education, and really push for a generation of young people who would begin to succeed academically. 

Education was the one major thing that they wanted the young people to do right.

Unfortunately, things did not turn out as planned. 

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I try not to live with regrets.

But that does not mean that I do not have any. 

One of my few regrets that still bothers me to this day is the fact that I did not take my education seriously as a young person. 

If I could go back, I would do so many things differently. 

I really hope that future generations can succeed where I failed.

If there were three things that I could tell every young person… three values that I could help instill… I firmly believe that these three things would change the trajectory of their life. 

3 things that I would tell every young person:

1.       Your education is important-

I wish that I would have realized this when I was younger.  When we are in high school, we feel like- A) we do not need to know any of the stuff we learn and- B) we already know all that we need to know.  It isn’t until we get out of high school that we realize how much we actually don’t know. 

2.       If you don’t build good habits now, it will be very hard to break them later-

There are many, many, MANY very poor habits that I built in high school. 

And I am still struggling to change many of them. 

And it is HARD to change bad habits. 

Very, very hard. 

It is possible- but it does not come easy.

Don’t wait until you’re old to grow up. 

Learn responsibility.

Learn discipline. 

Discipline yourself to read.

Discipline yourself to be good with money. 

It isn’t fun; but it is worth it. 

3.       Your willingness to learn will help determine your future-

Being a student does not end after high school. 

In high school, people tell you what you need to learn. 

When you get out into the real world; it isn’t always that simple. 

The people who are most successful in life are lifelong students. 

And some of them didn’t even go to college.

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Life is hard- but you can help make it easier. 

Get ahead in life now, so that you will not be behind in life later.  





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resources: OMG Youth Ministry by Kenda Dean
Hurt 2.0 by Chap Clark
Wrecked by Jeff Goins