@Megan, you make a good point…”are you really enjoying your life now?” When someone tells me they have no interests and they don’t have anything to give, it’s usually got something to do with being stuck in a rut or doing something they don’t like.

Everyone can make the effort if they love what they do. It’s where the magic begins.

@Jay Jay, I’m glad you found your way forward. Whatever the experience in life, sometimes we need that jolt to put things into perspective. Before that, it can feel like nothing matters. Then it’s too late and certain opportunities have been missed.

Hopefully those students you taught will get that jolt before they hit the “real world”, or soon after they reach it!

From being a student myself, and then experiencing a spell as a teaching assistant – it is astonishing how many students are completely unaware of what their next step is.

I went to university when I was really young as an escape from school and “rules” – I then had to take a year out between 3rd and 4th year because I was completely out of my league and not ready for what was coming next. After a stint of working full time in a call centre, I came back and knew exactly what I wanted to NOT do when I graduated. Working with so many “clever” people with degrees but essentially doing braindead information processing, I realised that if I didn’t up my game, I would be resigned to a life of above min wage jobs and wanting to remove my brain out my ears.

Speaking to students as a “teacher” I’ve noticed a few that were like me before a dropped out. A bit arrogant, a bit naive and several were feeding me lines about incomplete coursework or not being able to stand up and give a presentation. There isn’t too much of an age gap between us however I look at them and wonder what will happen to them once they reach the “real world”.

I think everyone needs a stint in a sh*tty job to possibly understand that going to university should be a life experience, not something that gets in the way with partying and staying up late.

I think a great deal of student laziness comes down to peer pressure as you say. We all need to be aware that we are responsible for our own lives and without meaninful direction we are unlikely to reach our full potential and the sublime existence we all deserve.

A key question to consider is: are you really enjoying your life now? If you actually stop to think about this question you may realise you’ve simply slipped into a pattern and that you do want more for yourself, now and in the future. Go get it!

I’ll definately be linking to this one Martin.