High school taught me a lot, and not all of it came from the front of a classroom.
Some lessons were obvious only after the fact. For example: if you struggle with Algebra, signing up for Math Analysis is less an act of courage and more an invitation to prolonged suffering. Somewhere along the way, I apparently convinced myself that taking a harder math class would somehow magically make me better at math. It mostly just confirmed that numbers and I were never destined for a deep relationship.
Other lessons were more practical. Don’t cheat. Better yet, don’t even put yourself in the position where cheating seems like a clever option, because getting caught usually teaches the lesson in a far more public way than you would prefer. High school has a way of exposing bad decisions quickly.
Some things I learned had nothing to do with grades. Staying home on a Saturday night because you’re afraid someone might say no is a terrible strategy. A no lasts about five seconds. Regret can hang around for years, quietly reminding you that courage would have cost less than hesitation.
I also learned that habits matter more than intentions. If you don’t build discipline in high school, it doesn’t suddenly appear in college like an unexpected scholarship. The same procrastination, the same excuses, and the same bad routines tend to follow you unless you decide to change them.
One lesson that took maturity to appreciate: your friends may think they know everything, but your parents usually see farther down the road than you do. At the time, that can be hard to admit. Years later, it becomes painfully obvious how often they were right.
And yes, applying to colleges because a girl goes there is not the strongest academic strategy. Admissions offices probably prefer other motivations.
But maybe the biggest lesson is this: the real friendships matter. The people who were genuinely there, the memories that still make you laugh decades later, the moments that seemed ordinary then but became precious later — those are worth keeping. High school passes quickly, but some of what it gives you stays for life.
Copyright © 2026 Doug DeBolt.
Very true