Expand Quote
Expand Quote
honestly, its not really worth going to college if you're good enough to make skating a career. as they say, skills pay the bills.
This is a fine example of detachment from reality.
A lot of people skate at their peak or improve drastically from the ages of 18-28 (10 years). Maybe a 2-year associate's is worth it since it's short. But not skating as much for 4/10 years for a BA/BSc during that time if you enjoy it/could potentially go pro IS stupid. Doing homework or college shit does not correlate to a successful career either. Colleges are hella full with confused ass kids who don't know wtf they're doing there and they just graduate and end up unemployed. If you can skate and forsure make a living off it, do it. There's no gaurantee you'll make a living with a college degree anyways, that comes down to picking an employable major and other factors.
I went and studied some niche ass shit and I still can't get my dream career going. If I could go back, I'd hold off on it until I'm 20 just to vibe for a bit. The current education system is stupid and so is pushing all 18 year olds to go to college immediately after high school.
It would be nice if pro's could at least take some classes tho so they aren't looking like morons on IG posting ignorant ass shit or conspiracies.
trying to go PRO skateboarding is a HUGE risk. so easy to get hurt. a lot of being sucessful is about networking imo - its ultimately about your ability to sell clothes. that is how you can earn a good living. being able to sell boards is really not worth too mcuh money. being the best skater in the world doesnt mean you will get paid the omst. just being able to skate 40 hrs a week with no real offseason is very hard on your body. a lot of people go out too hard and then are not able to maintain income stream + then left with no transferrable skills.
I think you have some value in your point though. a lot of people rush to go to school for something they dont even really want to do and then skateboarding becomes less important. I think you should prioritize what is important to you early on. there is nothing wrong with going to school when you are 30 (40 might be too old tho idk)... its a long life ahead. i did not really know what it was i wanted to do til i was about 25. theres just so many poeple shoving stuff down your thraot at every step of the way , its hard to really know what it is you want to do until you have put some actual time into it yourself.
i dont think going PRO should be the end goal of so many peoples skating it should really be lets elevate the skill as mcuh as possible on a personal level - that side of it should always be motivated internally. other people pushing you to do stuff you dont want to do is not good, but it is ok to get encouragement of course for things that are difficult that you WANT to do. when you have this mindset you attract other people of that mentality and i think that is the natural path of networking. try to meet everyone and see whats going on in the wider world of it. touch as many peoples lives as possible and integrate yourself into it. there is a lot more to skateboarding than being a pro. its a big industry with lot of room to grow and it wont run itself. you can make a great career surrounded with poeple you like to be around while still being close to skateboarding and less personal risk involved. maybe you dont even end up working in skateboarding but it led you to work with BIKES or VIDEO GAMES or editing or something else you are interetsed in.
having a positive attitude really goes a long way, the more people you can help boost up along your journey believe me those people often pop back up down the road and give that energy back to you when you need it. also on the flip side, having a shit attitude can burn a lot of bridges and fuck you over down the road. SLAP has actaully taught me a lot about how to conduct myself as a human being and empathsizing towards others ,not being so self-centred. i wish i would have taken more time to film other people or even just travel more in my own province to try and just meet more people but i was very narrow minded and just kept skating with the same people all the time.
Topic: Most Formally Educated Pros (Read 7111 times)