I give this topic to my speech classes. You can answer one or both questions.
Smartest thing I have done (recently):
Won some money, used it to take some classes at the local university and it helped me get a better job for more money. Has paid me back big time!
Stupidest thing I have ever done:
Years ago I had a cushy, very high-paying job and got together with the (few) others who had the same job. We wrote a nice letter telling the powers-that-be how we could do better work, but that our boss was incompetent. I signed the letter.
They fired every single one of us and kept the idiot boss.
I went from highly paid to unemployed in an instant. Will never sign a group letter like that again in my lifetime.
Cell phones: Went from a monthly plan to a pay as you go plan. Cut my bill in half.
Dumbest thing:
Eating some extremely spicey hot wings. A tear rolls down my face. I then proceed to wipe my eye with the spicey goo still stuck to my fingers. Now not only is my mouth in searing pain but so is my F’n eye!!
My brain still hurts from trying to comprehend it’s own stupidity.
Smartest: I took the first step in building a relationship with my Grandmother. I have always known her and had her in my life, but we have never been close. I call her at least once a week now and go see her when I can. Yes, she is still kind of a snob, but she has a wealth of information and knowledge. She also is mellowing now that she is older and has a much better sense of humor. I was always a pain in the ass, hard headed kid as well. This last 3 or 4 years has grown me up tremendously and I guess she and I are meeting somewhere in the middle now. Her husband, (not my Grandfather, he died many years ago), is also a retired lawyer. A retired bankruptcy lawyer, a fact I was unaware of. At the age of 24, I am in debt well over 100, 000 dollars. I need some help, and he offered it freely. I am shocked and extremely grateful.
Stupidest: Quit my good paying and extremely easy job over a stupid nurse that was rude to me. Granted she was REALLY rude, I should have sucked it up and kept working.
Smartest: Got a clue and thought about myself for once. Realized that marrying a man I didn’t love and argued with constantly just for the sake of our daughter wasn’t good for me or her. Broke off the engagement and have been so much happier ever since.
Stupidest: Quit a good job for being ‘too stressful’ with no notice and now nearly two years later, still unemployed. Granted most of this time has been a high risk pregnancy and raising my daughter but it’s making it near impossible to get a job.
Smartest - walked out of a dead end job where my boss was bullying me and not paying me as much as my male counterparts, with no other job to go to. It was scary, but it took just a few months and I found a job I loved - in mental health/substance misuse. That was four years ago, and I’m now earning big bucks, living in the big smoke, studying part time and looking at a bright future. Still love the work I do.
Dumbest - most other stuff I do, other than work
I would say falling in love with the wrong person, but there’s not much you can do about that, so I guess it’s when I got my degree results withheld because of unpaid library fines.
Smartest: Dropping all of my preconceived notions of parenthood and having a child with my second wife. Most rewarding, wonderful, magical, frustrating and/or maddening experience of my life.
Stupidest: Starting a company without thouroughly researching my market first. Ten months after opening our doors we were belly-up.
Smartest – withdrawing from school for close to two years in order to get my act together psychologically. When I returned, I aced the rest of my classes, became an active volunteer in the U.S. and Mexico and graduated With Honors. In short, I got my life back. Or to be more honest, I got a life for the first time.
Stupidest – not withdrawing from school at the first sign of trouble. Because of my stubborn refusal to take medical leave until Junior year, my grades and my attendance took a hit and I have two semesters of medical withdrawals on my transcript. It didn’t have to get that bad before it got better.
Stupidest, in a very weird way.
Having a panic attack because I couldnt remember/find my car/house keys. This went on for a good many seconds. WHILE driving in my car down the highway!
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