Return of the Geeks, Have Their Fun Later in Life

In usa by Michael MicheliniLeave a Comment

I consider myself always as semi geek, semi cool…..I played on both sides when in high school, and learned to be flexible and deal with many personalities. I am not afraid to make fun of myself, maybe its a sign I’m getting old! I also blogged about how us “social media” online people are a bunch of nerds! There have been social media prom nights – and the idea was made to give those “nerds” in high school that maybe didn’t have such a great high school prom to be able to get another chance. And now, nerds are cool! Geeks are multi millionaires. I wonder if they are still getting picked on in high school?

Sad, but probably they still are.

Lately I am more with the techies….maybe they are the guys that felt awkward in school, or even in America, and moved out to China for new surroundings…..

But again and again i will be exhausted at a nightclub wanting to leave and get some much needed zzzzzzz’s, and these geeks turned rockstars (not going to name names) will push me to keep on rocking.

For those who know me, i dont have much patience and get annoyed easily….but it was interesting to get a hwart to heart from one techie friend here in hong kong

He mentioned how he ws outcasted when in his teens and feels he missed out on so long of the fun that now that he’s in his mid 20s he can finally catch up to the cool kids.

Isn’t that true! The cool kids in high school aren’t here in Asia building up businesses and web projects.

I’m not going to put names to people here, maybe some of the readers who know me can figure out who these people are, but another example is an American who is brilliant. He did an exchange program in China when he was younger, and studied HARD. He explained to me how all his fellow American exchange students would party at the bars and date each other, while he would sacrafice and do the homework, and actually work hard to learn Chinese language and other culture courses he was taking.

I didn’t know him at that time, but now in his mid to late 20s he is getting it off his chest to me. Talking over beers in a bar, he would mention how his classmates would make jokes towards him for not going out and partying or enjoying life. He laughs outloud to me now, saying he wonders where those party guys are now, as he is reaping the rewards of having a good education and strong grasp of the Chinese language and culture.

I’m not so bitter, I think we all make decisions in life, choose at what point in our life to “enjoy” and which parts of our life to “invest” or “sacrifice”.

Maybe laid out like this:

  • Invest Early / Reward Later – Geek? Business person?
  • Reward First / Invest Later – Worker?

I can already imagine the possible comments on this post coming, BALANCE Life and Work, do your homework, and still go out on a Friday night to have drinks with friends. I do understand this, but I think in order to be a master at a skill, we need to kinda be a crazy nerd / geek. Or a social networker, dedicate time to dealing with people.

Related Posts

Leave a Comment