Advice I would have given myself in high school.

Much to my annoyance, my brain is most active when I need it not to be, like right now at 3 o'clock in the morning. I spend most of my evenings, when I'm not at my full time job, researching topics including economics, social science, and investment opportunities. My stock market investments have taken a back seat for now while I wait out some market uncertainty and look for some more diversification. I've recently restarted investing in precious metals as an insurance measure for volatility in the world economy and because it's a way to store wealth and diversify my portfolio. It's important to understand that making big money in precious metals is unlikely to happen and only setting aside 5-10% of your portfolio for precious metals is a sensible way to go. But anyway, let's move on.

I turned 30 this year. It didn't mean much to me, quite honestly. I got up that morning, went to work, then had dinner with my girl. Quite a profound difference from my 18th and 21st birthdays, where I skipped work and downed enough alcohol to kill a baby elephant. That's what time, and growth does really. And strangely enough the older you get, the fast time goes by. It's been 13 years since I "graduated" high school. I say "graduated" because somehow they let me pass even though I only handed in maybe 3 assessments during my senior years. In year 11 and 12, school and I did not go together. Year 8 to 10, I always got A's and B's in most of my subjects, without really trying. But during those senior years, I wasn't doing well. Let me delve into a bit of my history, and then I'll wrap it up with the advice I'd give myself.

                                          Lyrics from Grinspoon - More Than You Are


I struggled at home with my parents always fighting and there never being any stability. I fought, often physically with my father, and had many shouting matches with my mother. I had a long term girlfriend, but I was beyond arrogant and couldn't stay faithful to her for long before straying with another girl. I didn't know it at the time, but I was suffering mentally under the strain of my home life, and the expectations I put upon myself to be not only socially recognised, but looked at with endearment from my peers. I played guitar and had my own band. I had the rebellious edge that pissed the right people off, and was certainly popular with the ladies. But I couldn't sit in a classroom and absorb copious amounts of information while my head was already redlining over other shit. All I wanted to do was write music, drink scotch and fuck girls.

Now, I'm sure many of you who are reading this can relate. Whether you're going through it now, or like me went through it a long time ago, angst/sadness/lack of direction are common traits for kids going through puberty and high school. This isn't a unique position for an adolescent to be in at that age. And for the most part, I have turned out pretty well. I make very good money, I still have an above average intelligence level and I have some fantastic people in my world. But you should know, the younger version of you will live on inside your mind and your heart, so it's time to talk to it and put it at ease.

First of all, young Short Alpha, knock it off with the girls. Stop putting pussy on a pedestal. There a 3.7 billion sheilas on the planet, and you will never get a chance to meet them all. But they will always be there. I know I know! Tits, vagina, tits, tits.. I get it. But guess what. These young ladies are human beings too, with their own feelings. Stop being a dick, dude.

Secondly, I think its time to drop out! Go do a trade. Go do plumbing or be an electrician. Or go do an accounting course! You are intelligent, but you're wasting your time, and mum and dad's money at school. You're not thriving here. Go let the real world tear you a new one kiddo.

Lastly, it's not your fault man. Mum and Dad hate each other, and that's their problem. It is not your place to take on their problems as your own, or to take sides. You have your own life to learn and master. You can do it kid. I'll prove it to you in 13 years, but hopefully now, sooner.

- Short Alpha