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For some, graduating from high school makes their life exponentially better. Once they move away from everyone they know and are free to chase their dreams, they would never choose to go back. However, for others, life beyond high school years doesn’t get any better.
Recently, one redditor posed a question wondering which is more common for the cool kids who seemed to have peaked in high school. Did they become successful, rich, and famous, or did they get stuck reminiscing about their younger years? Fortunately, people had a lot to say on the matter, so we curated their top answers for you to check out below.
While you're scrolling through, don't forget to check out a conversation with Reddit user Embarrassed_Menu5704, who started the conversation in the first place and kindly agreed to chat with us more about it.
This post may include affiliate links.
#1
I haven’t kept in contact with a single person I went to school with and I like it that way.
RELATED:
#2
She’s a librarian.
Was aiming to be a big shot lawyer, it that didn’t pan out. Which was because, along the way, she learned she didn’t *actually* like the profession, just the ‘cool factor’ and deep down cared much more about books and literature.
Good for her, I say.
#3
Dead. Really sucks as the reason he peaked in high school is because not long after he started a family and then got cancer shortly after. He was that super popular star football player that got along with everyone and never bullied anyone and always tried to lift others up. The guy was genuinely one of the best dudes I've ever met.
PeepPeep the duck 5 months ago (edited)
The only way I dealt with losing someone to cancer, was repeating in my head - if it happened to bad people we wouldn’t care. Messed up but brains aren’t too smart when they hit the emotional quicksand pit.
Reddit user Embarrassed_Menu5704 tells Bored Panda that what led him to start this discussion was his curiosity about whether the people who peaked in high school were able to leverage the strong social skills and networks they usually have.
Unfortunately, not all of them have, and even the Redditor had some stories to share about that. "A lot in my high school got caught in the opioid epidemic and sadly did not reach their potential. Had the [substances] not moved into our neighborhood, I wonder if their lives would have been different."
#4
This post reeks of insecurity. The popular kid who you were always jealous of got cancer three times, divorced four times, and is now living in a crackhouse. Does that make you happy now?
Just let it go. Holding onto a grudge is like swallowing poison and expecting the other person to die.
Nota Robot 5 months ago (edited)
Poster has a point. I had finally moved on - and also moved far away. When my mom told me that one of my former bullies finally got their comeuppance, which is the talk of the town, I found the basterd living rent free in my head again.
#5
Having multiple babies by multiple daddies and then marrying a different guy entirely, all while going to church and saying being gay is wrong.
ॐBoyGanesh 5 months ago (edited)
Religion is all about creating the monster-like “ other” then vilifying them. Creating false sense of superiority that blinds members to just how oppressed & ridiculous they look. If you really don’t understand how the world works & you cannot function without having an omnipotent magic sky man give your life meaning or if you need antiquated scripture to have a sense of morals, that’s understandable. But don’t project your bullshít onto others & definitely don’t judge them as being less worthy. It’s gross & unkind.
#6
I mean me. I lost my fiance right before COVID, dropped out of college, was a wreck for about 2-3 years. Finally started losing weight again and have a steady job that i like. Nothing fancy but im proud of how far ive come.
Edit: Some people misunderstood what i meant by "lost", she passed away.
Despite this, the Redditor doesn't think that peaking in high school is an entirely bad thing. "I don’t think it’s a bad thing at all. It comes with a lot of traits that can get them far in life."
The Reddit user doesn't believe he peaked in high school but rather continues to slowly improve on himself.
"Just a slow grind up in life. And no, I don’t believe I peaked in HS. I think I’m at my peak now as a 37-year-old male. Based on stats, these are the years when men start to become more stable."
#7
I have no idea since I deleted my Facebook account in the 2010s. The only one I recall is the pretty girl that I had a crush on became a Buddhist running a non-profit that feeds the homeless and poor. She's in her late 40s and still looks like an absolute model. Plus she has that spiritual glow about her, the direct opposite of serial killers with dead eyes. Her eyes are full of life.
#8
A good friend of mine peaked in high school. He wasn't a bad dude, he just peaked, lost his footing after high school. He dropped out of college, went into car sales, didn't do great in that, got fat, married a girl that objectively had very little to offer.... we lost touch... but last I peaked in on his social media, He is remarried, lost a bit of weight, has a kid, "runs" some kind of blue collar business - i think he manages a portion of a chain. He seems happy, im happy for him.
#9
Still riding that peak. Reminds me of my cousin. Still acts the same as she did in highschool. Still drinks the same. She's 40 now 🤣🤣.
#10
A surprising number are stuck in the past, still talking about "glory days" over cheap beer.
#11
He's a warehouse supervisor who still wears his letterman jacket.
NetworkMan 5 months ago
Oh, that's kinda sad. Not the job, but the need to still wear the jacket.
#12
Jokes on you. I actually peaked in middle school. Living in my mom's basement is pretty nice.
#15
Trying to recreate highschool, still hanging out with that same ‘popular’ group of friends who all secretly hate each other.
#16
The “Cool” ones ended up losing their hair and getting humbled real quick by how hard the real world doesn’t care about how they peaked as a teenager.
The cool ones that were actually cool are off living their best lives. Upper-middle class in THIS economy, raising wonderful families, and generally being unproblematic and still cool people.
#17
Probably still caring less about you than you do about them.
ॐBoyGanesh 5 months ago (edited)
Jesus. This is a list of those who peaked in high school. Not who was bully or meanie. My brother went to public school junior/senior and was a star quarterback (our private school didn’t have an athletics depth), the homecoming and prom king & had his picture in the yearbook more than anyone else. He’s is 52, living with his longtime gf & dog, went to a trade college out of high school, spends most of his time reading & woodworking, and absolutely isn’t social. He PEAKED in high school. He plateaued and has led a content & joyful low key life since. Literally no major mile stones other than birthday & getting his trade certificate/license. He’s the sweetest, smartest guy you’ll ever meet, just as he was in high school.
#18
A lot of the highschool tropes didn't really apply at my school. There was no "cool kids" group or anything like that everyone just had their own clicks based on their activities. The athletes tended to hangout with each other more simply because they spent a lot of time together at practices but the "nerds" (AP class smart kids) were invited to the parties as well and no one really got bullied? Jocks loved the nerds from what I could tell. They helped them with homework and not in a "do it for me way" but more a tutoring way.
So IDK what you would even define as the "cool kids" in that situation. Some nerds burnout and are bums and some of the jocks are doing very well.
#19
He was the star quarterback, he once threw for four touchdown in a single game. He is now married with children and work as a shoes salesman.
#20
My highschool bully is still selling avocados in a cart... sad, really but a part of me feels like he deserves it.
#21
A lot of the "cool" people from my highschool went on to became administrative assistants, real estate agents, recruiters, sales at car dealerships, and insurance adjusters. we lived in a pretty "high income" neighborhood as well so a lot of them aren't able to afford their lifestyle.
It makes sense, and I think this happens often where your high school life is funded by your parents who "made it" and then you don't have the skills to repeat it. That being said, most of their jobs are very "people" based soft skill jobs.
On the other had we had one that became a founder of a pretty sizable company ~300K ARR
I was a quite social person as well; not the popular kid but the athlete who did computer science so I had an in with the non social kids as well as the social kids, kind of makes sense when I look at my job as a product manager working with business leadership and engineers as my day to day.
#22
Trading forex and telling me to buy their coaching program...
#23
She's still a good friend of mine, still conventionally attractive but too picky and has never settled down, on her fourth fiancee but probably won't actually get married to him either, quit her job in real estate in her 30's and got her teaching certificate, and is much happier as an elementary teacher. All around still a really cool person and I'm happy we've remained friends.
#24
My school didn’t really have cool kids, but one of the standoffish “pretty” girls is now a realtor in my hometown. I actually always liked her, despite never being close. She wasn’t mean, but she also wasn’t friendly; I always thought she was a chill person though. I felt bad for her honestly, since she matured hella early compared to the rest of us and guys were constantly being gross to her because she was “hot” (had big t**s). She gained a lot of weight since then, but I think it suits her- she comes off as much more approachable and she honestly looks happier in her business card photo than she did while in school.
I’m glad she stuck around, honestly. Most people from our school left the area after graduating due to lack of affordable housing options. If I run into her, I’ll definitely see if she’d be open to getting a drink and catching up/s**t talk the a******s who harassed her. I was definitely one of the weird nerdy girls, but we never had any bad blood between us that I know of, so she might be down.
#25
Really nice guy on the football team. He used to be bullied but when that became known people stood up for him. He was voted for prom King. Heart of gold.
Unfortunately things just never worked out for him. Graduated from college. Had s****y jobs to the point where he worked with his dad doing lawn care. Then stopped that.
When we caught up a decade ago he was in despair. About how much of a loser he felt and mentioned the prom King deal.
Unfortunately I had to unfriend him on FB because progressive he kept messaging me weird stuff. He was also... looking at questionable material that would end up getting posted on his FB feed.
Mabelbabel 5 months ago
A few years ago (in my 40s), I dated a man for a short time-he was 49. He'd gone to a grammar school, had been head boy, had captained his school's football, rugby and tennis teams, and played football for his university. Since then, he'd done nothing very much. He lived with his elderly parents on and off ("to help them out") although I got the impression it was when he was between jobs, did temporary work here and there (but called himself an independent contractor), and one of our first dates was him asking me to drive round his home town so he could show me the various sports grounds where he'd scored goals. 90% of the conversation was about his school and college days. It was just very sad-he blamed everyone else for him not catching a break, and claimed that people were jealous of his skills which was why he could never settle for long term employment. I know it was probably his personality creating his issues, but I did feel rather sorry for him, it must have been a sad life.
#27
Gonna be honest here.
Most of my former classmates who were considered "cool" and therefore popular have gone on to live moderately successful, if not outright successful, lives.
There are a few who went down an unfortunate path of a*******n or got involved with the wrong people. But, for the most part, the popular kids grew up with a good social life and started adulthood with connections.
I was a quiet, shy, straight-A student. Would've been valedictorian if not for moving at the end of junior year. I had all the book smarts, but none of the connections nor social skills. Once you're out of school, that matters a LOT more than teachers or guidance counselors let on.
While many of my "cool" classmates were starting their careers early, I honestly struggled for years after school. It was only after pushing myself to be more social and placed more importance on connections that things started to get better.
Anyways, reddit is looking more for the unsuccessful stories, so...
One became an a****t and passed of OD.
Three that I know got pregnant during high school. Two of them had a rough time as they raised their children as a single parent. The other got married just after graduation and is still married to the same guy over 20 years later. Funny enough, all three became nurses.
One kid was expelled senior year after streaking through the high school. A dumb decision he made after being pressured to do it as a dare by his "friends." About 10 years later, I hired him as part of the night crew at a tire warehouse. We lost contact after the company was sold to a competitor, and they terminated everyone. Though I've heard he is now in a leadership role at Chewy.
The rest (that I know) are all doing well, all things considered.
#28
Still living in our hometown, spreading the same rumors, eating at the same spots we ate at in hs, still going to hs football games on Friday nights, and then doing lots of coke with their same group of friends in that one friend's garage after the game while their kids run around getting drunk & bullying other kids.
#30
Bro life isn’t some 80s highschool drama movie. Most kids who peak in highschool do perfectly fine in life.
#31
Married a beautiful wife, seems to have a great career, travels all over the country and world and has a lot of hobbies, tons of friends ,and one of the happiest guys I know.
What he’s not doing- sitting in a dark room behind a computer wondering why he’s so unlucky in life, or reveling in the failure of other people who still had higher peaks than half of Reddit.
#32
Living normal lives mostly.
#33
One is dead, one is married to one of our teachers, a lot have lost their marriages, they all became the town joke where im from.
#34
Still talking about their varsity jacket like it’s a personality trait 😂 and Telling their kids, ‘I was kind of a big deal back then. LMAO.
#35
Very few of them actually peaked in highschool. Most of them are still cool and living better lives than the smart/nerd/geek whatever kids from highschool.
Revenge of the nerds is a lie.
Feathered Dinosaur 5 months ago
Not really, I was definitely the nerdy (undiagnosed autistic), weirdo kid with straight As and I went on to become a medical doctor, plus I have a beautiful daughter I love to bits. Working on the owning a house a part as we speak.
#36
Looking down on people you went to HS with now that you're all grown up is some next-level pettiness. We're all just trying to do our best with the hands we've been dealt, whether we're teenagers or adults. Who tf decides who's "cool," anyway? Such a juvenile, imaginary label.
#37
Unless you are from a small town, how do you even know what they are up to?
I live a few towns over from where I grew up and I still rarely run into people from my highschool.
#40
My school was weird.
The "cool kids" were actually just the kids who were well off financially and had parents who loved them. So they were more well-adjusted than the rest of us.
So most of those kids are doing great, doctors, lawyers, authors, etc.
#41
Living the best lives you could even imagine. Wealth, friends, free time, hobbies, travel, exotic cars and designer d***s. Everything just kept going their way, it's the only life they've ever known.
What do you think ?
General Anaesthesia 5 months ago
I threw four intercepts in our final highschool football game. Downhill from there.
Moxitron Jazz 5 months ago
"Let me tell you something, I haven't even begun to peak. And when I do peak, you'll know. Because I'm gonna peak so hard that everybody in Philadelphia's gonna feel it" -Dennis Reynolds...
General Anaesthesia 5 months ago
I threw four intercepts in our final highschool football game. Downhill from there.
Moxitron Jazz 5 months ago
"Let me tell you something, I haven't even begun to peak. And when I do peak, you'll know. Because I'm gonna peak so hard that everybody in Philadelphia's gonna feel it" -Dennis Reynolds...
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