Dear TEENA,
I am feeling like I shouldn’t raise my hand in class, ask questions during a discussion or stay after class to get help from my teachers. When others do this they are judged and labeled the teachers pet or geek. I am pretty popular but I also care about my grades but fear being labeled with a negative status from my peers. What should I do?
First of all, it is really awesome that you care about your grades. Your grades determine college acceptance and let’s face it, that’s why we go to school…to learn. There’s a fine line when it comes to fitting in while being smart. My advice on this subject is pretty straight forward. Hang out with people who respect your values of making good grades. Because you are popular you have an opportunity to make positive change that will affect more students than you might realize. If you stand up and promote smart is cool, you just might inspire your friends to lighten up on judging others for caring about their grades. Your friends or followers won’t be able to help you get accepted to your dream college and honestly, many of those friends will take different paths and you might not even be friends with them after graduation.
Next time you know the answer, raise your hand. Even if you aren’t sure of the answer, be brave enough to raise your hand and try. Being wrong doesn’t mean you have failed, it means you are learning. ALSO, If you need to speak to the teacher after class, do it. When you make the A, let that be your reminder to always keep focus on your GPA. If your friends or followers want to judge you for that then it’s time to re-evaluate your friendships. Are they genuine? Are they friends with you for the right reasons? The pressures are tough, I’ve been there and it’s not a quick and easy fix but all it takes is one person to be courageous enough to start a new trend. You could be that person and your real friends will thank you for it!
XOXO
TEENA
