Member-only story
I am clever and love to learn
But people tell me that I’m cocky
‘You’re very opinionated.’
‘You’re very cocky.’
‘You’re not as clever as you think you are.’
‘You’d be great if you used your brain and weren’t so lazy.’
‘You sure you’d be able for that?’ (about furthering my education)
These are all sentences that people (mostly men, if I’m honest) have said to me in the past. I didn’t know where these sentiments came from exactly but it’s possibly because I feel confident enough to voice my opinion on a subject when I know what I’m talking about, and will try to ensure that I am heard.
I know I don’t always put my best foot forward when it comes to using my brain or even presenting myself as someone capable of holding an intelligent conversation — I drink and smoke a fair bit, I’m quite working class and I have quite a lot of brain fog. However, I still wonder why people are so quick to underestimate me or obstinately challenge me about this. Sure, I get drunk and fall over calling people ‘geebags’, say stupid things out loud that I should have thought through before they came out of my mouth and I definitely have done impulsive things in the past, but overall I don’t understand where these assumptions come from considering the experience and accreditations that I have…
