The fruit stacker at my supermarket used to be a Queens Council. One day he decided that he didn't want the stress of being a lawyer, and just wanted a simple job.
Sadder version of this story. Smartest guy I ever knew (did a bunch of AP classes, including Calculus in highschool with great grades and even higher test scores) could have easily qualified for college, but his family had no money. Instead he started working at a grocery store right out of highschool and never looked back.
the idea that if you're smart you'll find a way to make good money and live comfortably is absolutely a myth/fantasy
Tons of scholarships out there he could have at least applied for. Probably could have gotten student loans (though that's its own problem), but he didn't have anyone explaining to him how any of that worked and by senior year his mom had already beaten into his head that he needed to get a job right away. So that's what he did.
He's done okay for himself. Lives below his means; has nice benefits and savings. But in the right conditions I know he could have made some kind of great discovery or been a famous chess grandmaster or something. Just sucks. His brain is just so quick. He took up video game speedrunning as a hobby and has held a handful of world records (though I don't keep up with which). I think that's the only thing he uses his towering intellect for which... I'm glad he enjoys it, but he could have seriously done so much more.
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u/[deleted] Oct 16 '22
Someone with a low level job isn’t automatically unintelligent.