All the things you worried about before college that literally don’t matter in the slightest anymore

Junior and senior year of high school are the years when you make some of the most important decisions of your lifetime. Choosing a college and career path are thoughts that once upon a time kept teens up at night.

Fast forward to college and it seems like you were a totally different person back then. The moments you stressed over have come and gone and new, bigger obstacles fill their place. Now finances are an issue and you have to prioritize to ensure you have food to eat (not just EasyMac and frozen pizza every other day).

As a high school junior, I can remember bubbling in the wrong middle initial on my ACT answer sheet. At the time, it seemed like an earth-shattering mistake – one that I’d be more than happy to encounter today. Instead I have to worry about finishing a double major in four years so I’m still eligible for financial aid. Life only gets harder. You learn to appreciate the moments that help you grow and teach you how to properly face adversity.

Fitting in a clique

I don’t talk to any of the people I used to try to impress in high school. We went our separate ways and started over. Most of the cliques fell apart, while a very few still get together on holidays. I wanted certain people to like me, but now I couldn’t care less how they feel about me. College teaches you not to care what people think.

Making As on every test ever

Oh, how I miss the days when a 90 was a bad grade. I’d kill to make the grades I made in high school now. It’s worth celebrating anything above an 80 in college. I don’t remember what it feels like to pout over getting an A-.

Being a teacher’s pet

This is pointless. As long as teachers like you enough to write a nice letter of recommendation, you’re good. College professors do not care enough to even learn your name, so you will be disappointed if you put in that much effort to get to know them. Brown-nosing and grade grubbing is just a waste of time because teachers are only in your life for a short amount of time.

Driving the nicest car

College students are lucky to have enough money to fill the gas tank, let alone have a fancy car. We are truly salty towards high schoolers with nice cars purchased by their parents. Odds are they will get in a bump up in the parking lot, so why give them a brand new car? Eventually you stop caring and are happy just to get from point A to point B.

Everything about prom

Friendships end over this occasion – I can vouch for it. Who cares if two girls have the same dress? So much time was wasted fretting over prom dates and dresses, it’s totally ridiculous. At the time, I wanted everything perfect and matching. Now the thought of how much money was spent is nauseating.

I can’t help but laugh at the trivial things I have stressed over in the past because they’re tiny in comparison to the trials of adulthood. Life never gets easier, but we do get better at dealing with it.