It is speculated that stability in the home environment, i.e., harmony in the home and lack of a migratory lifestyle such as those imposed by military parents or some farm workers may be contributory towards both ends of the performance spectrum.

As for myself, I was an underachiever who did exceptionally well on tests — particularly ‘standardized’ tests — but failed to complete homework assignments. This was the chagrin of my parents and the source of numerous bouts of corporal punishment.

For example….dwarfism in current American society and culture is NOT the stuff of movie stardom which seems to prefer taller people. Yet in other cultures, dwarfism is a sign of a “gifted” member of society….some being labeled as seers, healers, mystics…all perceived to have supernatural power.

Don’t mistake “grades” in school for intelligence. Grades in school indicates good performance …but grade inflation exists and some students get grades for non-academic reasons that might shock many church-goers.

I graduated from high school with a 2.3 GPA…went to university and got my BA with a 2.6 GPA…earned an MA with a 3.6 GPA…and went on for a PhD….which I dropped out of for “political reasons” (conflict with my professor). However, my career has been characterized as very professional, my work superbly competent, and I even was able to retire early to continue enjoying my life in very good health to implement innovative community projects using all of my prior education and work experience.

It isn’t the grades that count. What counts is what you can do with what you have. Talk is cheap. Actions speak louder than words. Personally, I would prefer to fully use a brain that is 1/2 full rather than to have a full brain that isn’t used at all.

But there is truth in what you were told…not everyone is capable of performing exceptionally well. There are many unemployed and under-employed PhDs in the world. There are success dropouts (Buckminster Fuller comes to mind; regarded as one of America’s top inventors and visionaries). William Harrison, a self-educated man, invented an accurate marine chronometer that led to accurate determinations of longitude…and his concept of time measurement is still used with GPS satellite navigation systems today….well, he has NO GPA at all.

Look at life….many PhDs I know can’t fix a leaky faucet. So they call a plumber…who may not have gone to college at all. Take a PhD and drop them in the middle of the outback of Australia and see how long they can survive without any modern equipment….and aboriginal bushmen with no formal education or degree will survive. So what does that tell you?

Try reading through the Kalama Suttra…and I think you can get a better perspective on this matter.

http://web.singnet.com/~sidneys/kalama.htm

Sure hope this helps you. Best wishes…and never give up.

but you can outdo them with hard work!. You may even find out that you are as gifted as they are!.

A man can become as great as any other, if he wants it bad enough!.