Don’t Go To College

17 Jun 2014 • marco.org

But my GPA was so bad that no big tech company — not Microsoft, not Apple, not Amazon, and definitely not Google — would even consider hiring me. (I tried.)

I was a C student because I was (and am) a slacker and lacked the self-discipline to do better, not because it’s the smartest path to take. Performing better opens more doors.

Wise words.  I'm a college drop out myself, but I've done alright for myself - better even than almost all of my friends with college degrees.  Talent has a lot to do with it, mixed with a bit of luck... but knowing the right people early in your career also helps to get the ball rolling.  If you're considering skipping college, dropping out, or just blowing most of it off and skating by first consider where you want to go later in life.  

College is by no means a requirement - and less and less so as time goes on IMHO - but there are still some doors that only a degree and impressive GPA will open.  Although with everything the exceptions prove the rule.  Write a faster compiler that produces better machine code than Apple's latest LLVM and you might just find those doors don't really care about your GPA at all.

Ultimately - do your best work and find people who appreciate your best work.  Easy, right?