If you're really struggling with the material and can't get an A after giving it 110%, you're just not at the top of the curve. This was me in my first collegi

If you're really struggling with the material and can't get an A after giving it 110%, you're just not at the top of the curve. This was me in my first collegiate art elective. I put in enormous effort, but there was no there there. It was a valuable and humbling experience. I'd used the author's "technique" in high school by making sure to get As in math and science, and simply not trying in the humanities classes. This plan backfired terribly, and in multiple ways. Backfire #1: I was accepted by my top choice (CS @ CMU), but I wasn't offered any scholarships, and finances pushed me towards a less expensive option. Backfire #2: it delayed recognition of the gaps in my abilities. I thought I was getting 'B's because I wasn't trying, when I actually had (sometimes serious) unaddressed gaps in my skill set. Backfire #3: it delayed the realization that I really enjoy some of the subjects I'd blown off.