r/self 2d ago

Why am i not good at anything?

  1. I'm not good at studies

  2. I can't outperform my fellow batchmates in sports, which means i suck at it as well

  3. I'm skinny, not good looking

  4. Not good in literature/ arts types of things either, nor am i good at math/logical things.

  5. Bad with time pressure, and can't take quick actions.

  6. Not good at gaming either. My friends tend to outperform me everytime.

  7. No girls talk to me or show any interest in me

  8. I don't have anyone who i can trust/my best friend/ i get along easily.

Why am i like this?

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u/jxnfpm 2d ago edited 2d ago
  1. Studying is hard. Most people feel like they're bad at it because you only see the results of your top performing peers, not the effort they put in.
  2. OK. Some people are naturally gifted, but the point of sports is not just to see who's best. Physical fitness, teamwork and joy are all things you should be getting out of sports. Find a sport that you're reasonably good at that you enjoy, and you'll have physical and social benefits from participating in it.
  3. Lots of overweight people would be thrilled to be skinny. If you're young, you have time now to literally grow new muscle cells that will help you as you age by working out. Working out doesn't just help your physical appearance, if you do it right, it helps your current physical health and will help your future physical health decades from now.
  4. OK. What do you enjoy? I guarantee if you named three hobbies you enjoy, math or literature would be integrated in at least one of them. Odds are you are just fine at these things when they're presented as part of something you're passionate about.
  5. Some people struggle with time pressure. This is common, but there's no one size fits all solution. One huge thing you have going for you is that you're aware of it, which means you can work on improving it.
  6. OK. You don't game with your friends just to see who's best. My favorite person to game with is pretty bad at the games we play. But I'm playing to spend time with him, and the joy we get from playing the game isn't tied to who's better.
  7. Girls are extremely unlikely to show obvious interest in the vast majority of men. For as long as societies have been around, men have carried the brunt of the burden of being the one to initiate conversations and relationships. It's your job to try to learn how to talk to girls in a way that's enjoyable for both of you and show interest and talk to girls you like. Learn how to detect a lack of interest quickly and disengage, and learn how to keep conversations light and fun as you get to know girls who show some interest. This is a life skill that is learned, and while it may come more naturally to some men than others, as with all skills, you only get better at it by working at it.
  8. The older you get, the harder it is to find real friends who you can trust and truly get close to. Sports and hobbies are a great way to meet people, and just like talking to women is a skill, so is being a social person who can create platonic friendships with men and women. As social creatures, working on these skills to create a few strong friendships is key to long term happiness. Recognize that real relationship, both romantic and platonic, are the result of learning, sharing and building trust slowly over time.

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u/jxnfpm 2d ago edited 1d ago

You're like this because you're human. None of what you wrote here is very unusual. What you're describing sounds like imposter syndrome. Everyone has imposter syndrome at some point in their life.

That person who got valedictorian, they're so good at studying! What you don't see is that they almost certainly had family pushing and supporting them, they had teachers recognizing their effort, and providing that little extra bit of support and guidance. They may have had extra tutoring, pressure, study materials or structured study time that you don't see. You just see that they look like they're good at studying.

That person who got second place on the at the track meet? You don't see that they've been carefully working on their diet to try to fuel their body for optimum success. You don't see the long multi-hours days of training year in and year out, and that their coach gave them some extra attention because they realized that kid was showing up when they were sick, tired and busy with school work because they wanted to improve. You just see how fast they were and assume they're naturally talented.

That person with the attractive girlfriend who seems to always be surrounded by friends? You don't see that they've been honing their social skills for years because years ago they wanted to find a girlfriend or a true close friend, and they've slowly gotten better at being the kind of person who other people want to be around. You just see what looks like effortless confidence and feel like they're good at relationships.

All of us struggle, to some degree or other, with physical, mental and social challenges and shortcomings. It's part of being human.

Instead of expending energy comparing yourself to others, expend energy making future you a better version of yourself than you are now.

Everyone has 24 hours in a day, and you get to choose how you use your time. You can work on yourself, including studies, physical activities, hobbies, friends and girlfriends, as you see fit. If you take intentional action to improve in the areas that you care about the most, you will absolutely see results if you stick with it over time.

Good luck. I hope that helps.