Wow, so I mean, high school isn’t fun. That’s reality. I’m not going to lie to you. But make the best of it, that’s what matters. I spent nearly all four years of high school caring WAYYYY too much of what other people thought of me, and it became an obsession. I was self-conscious about EVERYTHING. It sucked to live like that, and it was not fun.
But guess what? I stopped caring. You would think that suddenly everyone thought I was a weirdo because I was acting my weird self, but you’d be wrong. I started not caring what others thought and did what made me happy, and my life went from 0-100; I began to have so much fun in what I was doing, I became more genuine and open to people, I made tons of new friends, and I just enjoyed myself. I became a happier, better person overall. So East Hampton High School, if you taught me anything, it was that I will never EVER have to use geometry after high school and not to give a damn about what other people think. It sounds cliché, but dance like nobody is watching, and life will come easy. Life will be more fun that way, and people will appreciate your genuineality (that’s definitely not a word, but it gets my point across) and your confidence. You’ll 100% make new (and probably better) friends.
So that’s what I have to say socially about high school. Academically? Try your hardest, but leave time to be a teenager and hang out with friends and relax. Don’t stress yourself to death because then you’ll just get burnout, and that is no fun. Secondly, become friends with your teachers! They are there to help, and most of them are also super friendly! When you have a teacher as a friend, then you have an extra support system if you’re having trouble in their class. And when it comes time to get your college recommendation letters? Teachers that are your friends and legitimately love you as a student and a person will write GLOWING letters of recommendation that will make any college admissions counselor take a second look at your application. So that’s my advice for high school kids: have fun and don’t screw up.

With love,
Brody Eggert