I'm So God-Damned Weak

This is a big part about life, is learning to accept your weaknesses, and build off of them, not just your strengths.

I'm a book guy as well. I pick up subjects easily and on the fly, and I've taught myself everything from web design and programming to engine repair and carpentry. Like you, one of my biggest weaknesses was coordination and strength.

Luckily, strength is easy to work on. You don't have to go full beefcake and haul 40 pound weights daily for 100 reps. Simply finding a heavy object to carry around for a good bit of time helps. Pick it up properly, and carry it around untill your arms REALLY start hurting. Then do that daily for a month. By the end of it, that same weight won't seem as much. It's a slow process, but it can be done.

If you only target and obsess your weaknesses you won't see them as the minor problems that they are but as gaping hull breaches, ready to sink your ship. In the end, they only have as much power as you give them.

The thing about learning your strengths is that it's a process. You honestly never know what you're good at until you try it, and there's a bit of a secret: What your good at isn't necessarily something that you'll enjoy at first glance. When I started in Web Development, I HATED it. The conflicting language standards and the groups who are so stuck up about standards that don't matter really rubbed me the wrong way. I perceived though, and now it's one of the most enjoyable things I do in my spare time, is tinkering with new designs, and challenging myself with what is supposed to be impossible.

And secretly, between you and me - High-school is in no way any representative of life past high-school. College is a massively different monster, and adult life is literally what you make it to be. So don't worry that much, and try to enjoy the journey. All that angst and pain and petty stuff will be over before you know it.

/r/Vent Thread Parent