I love the "getting things done" message and think it applies to so many endeavors. A good GPA and "getting things done" are not mutually exclusive.
I worked hard to produce stuff at school (good grades and projects). I tried to establish respectful and mutually beneficial relationships with professors and other students. I gambled on hard (for me) classes when I realized they would sound impressive to others. I went on co-ops and internships. Then, at the end, I realized schools would pay stipends for you to go to grad school (a revelation to me, a first generation college student). Awesome, off I went.
I'm a little too rant-y with this, but what I'm really trying to get across is that a good GPA only happens by getting shit done. I agree that we could all use a little more resourcefulness these days but hope hackers remember that there so many ways to demonstrate that trait. I hope I'm never unimpressed by either the great github of profile of the self-taught hacker or the perfect GPA of the math/CS double major.
I agree, they're definitely not mutually exclusive. Sadly only one seems to be emphasizes in the current education system (for obvious reasons) and for two years of college I was victim to it as well -- obsessing over my GPA lest I not get into a good law school.
I just dropped out of school a week ago. I prefer doing things. I'd find myself dozing off in class learning material that hasn't been altered since the 90's, taught by a guy who can just barely scrape some English together that was born in China, raised in India, studied in Glasgow, and lived in Russia. That, combined with the absolute lack of spirit of every single student in my program, the lack of females, the lack of care.
I'd find myself coming home, ditching all of this pointless schoolwork and working on my own projects every day, all day for hours upon hours.
About your second paragraph, I was the same. Tried to do everything perfectly. Worked out to get that body, cared about looks, falsely socialized under the pretense of "networking", went to gatherings, ceremonies, parties, get togethers, did all of my school work and more. Studied, made friends with profs, offered extra help. The whole 9 yards a perfect student would take... None of that truly mattered. In the end, what did I develop, what did I do? Nothing. What should I have done? Sat down and immersed myself.
Realizing that I just wasted 3 years of my life in combination with releasing the burden of that previous life along with all of its strings.... is the most liberating feeling on earth.
I don't believe school is a good system for us entrepreneurs, or even CS majors and engineers in general to be honest. The way I see developers, is we are the trades workers of the internet world. I see jobs such as database management, development, server administrations, as the "trades" of the internet.
You don't need school to learn unless you are extremely passionate about your curriculum, your school, your program, and have a final goal you want to attain. The majority of students I've dealt with have no idea what they want to do, are only in school to get "a job", and are generally miserable.
I've run into so many grades in such specialized programs that really don't know anything. They know a bit, but not remotely enough to be a good candidate for any specialized task.
tl;dr - School kills passion and time. You're much better off studying yourself and immersing yourself in something you absolutely love. Sorry if this was a bit ranty but it felt good to type.
I worked hard to produce stuff at school (good grades and projects). I tried to establish respectful and mutually beneficial relationships with professors and other students. I gambled on hard (for me) classes when I realized they would sound impressive to others. I went on co-ops and internships. Then, at the end, I realized schools would pay stipends for you to go to grad school (a revelation to me, a first generation college student). Awesome, off I went.
I'm a little too rant-y with this, but what I'm really trying to get across is that a good GPA only happens by getting shit done. I agree that we could all use a little more resourcefulness these days but hope hackers remember that there so many ways to demonstrate that trait. I hope I'm never unimpressed by either the great github of profile of the self-taught hacker or the perfect GPA of the math/CS double major.