FORMER GIFTED KID BURNOUT PROFESSIONAL

It’s hard to be motivated when you have no purpose, and it’s hard to have a purpose when you’re unmotivated. With the anxious perfectionism and loss of purpose, the gifted kid has also experienced extreme losses of motivation. Stop pushing yourself to be the “hero” and just be okay living a life you can be happy in. You don’t have to be anything other than exactly who you are. Here’s an important note for everyone to remember though, and a daily affirmation to remind yourself: you don’t have to be perfect. It’s only after you’ve burnt out of the “gifted kid” character type that you have the opportunity to understand who you actually are and what it is you really want to do. But I think part of the answer is lots of therapy and self-reflection. How do you handle the realization that you may never be exceptional when you’ve been taught that being exceptional was what made you important? Honestly, I’m not sure, and if you figure that out soon, please let me know. But achieving these dreams is exceptionally difficult, and that painful realization leads to a lost sense of purpose down the road.

FORMER GIFTED KID BURNOUT PROFESSIONAL

When your options are limitless, you want so badly to be something amazing and continue that image of being “special.” That idea is what creates entire classes of elementary schoolers that want to be professional athletes, or pop stars, or even the President. Absolute teacher’s pet, the lot of them.īecause the “gifted kid” was told their choices were limitless, the overwhelming need to be “amazing” or “perfect” quickly burnt out that early sense of purpose. Gifted kids knew exactly what they wanted to be when they grew up, and were always the first to raise their hands in class. They probably had a subscription to NatGeoKids or owned a telescope, and they never left their house without a book. Gifted kids were the ones who were academically advanced and always looking to expand their knowledge through books, clubs, and after-school activities. If you’re not sure about whether you were a “gifted kid” growing up, consider this: were you in the “advanced” or enrichment program throughout school, especially in elementary school? Were you an avid reader with a reading level well above your age? Were you considered the top of your class and called the “smart” kid? If you answered yes to any of these problems, then you can definitely count yourself into the ranks of the “gifted kid” club.

Have you ever seen the posts about the burnt-out gifted kid and thought “Hey, that’s me”? Well, then you’ve come to the right place! We’re happy to invite you into the club of “used to be the smart kid, but now we’ve lost our purpose.” For those who have experienced the burnout experience, here is our list of real-world truths about what it’s like to be a previously gifted kid.

Former gifted kid burnout