Michael VanAdams was a archetypal apprentice in aerial school--president of his chief class, captain of the varsity tennis team, and a straight-A student. So aback he accustomed an bookish scholarship to the University of Maine in Orono, cipher was surprised--especially not VanAdams. Having excelled both academically and socially at his baby aerial academy in rural New Hampshire, VanAdams accepted added of the aforementioned in college. He was wrong.

VanAdams did ailing on his aboriginal brace of exams and alike accustomed a declining brand on his aboriginal appellation paper. Instead of allurement his advisers or classmates for help, VanAdams began to abstract himself, spending hours abandoned in his abode allowance area he would comedy video amateur or accelerate e-mails to accompany aback home. To accomplish affairs worse, he became alone during his aboriginal weeks of college, anxious for his aerial academy accompany and sweetheart, who was accessory a association academy in New Hampshire.

"I did all the amiss things," says VanAdams. "Instead of seeing my aboriginal brace of failures as wake-up calls, I became depressed and anon started casual the accusation assimilate others. I told my parents that the advisers were abominable and didn't like me; I told my adherent that the kids who went there were snobs and no fun at all. Basically, I abhorrent anybody but myself."

VanAdams additionally told himself that the University of Maine wasn't for him. He alone out a brace of weeks afore commutual his aboriginal semester. "Frankly, I wasn't appropriately able for college," he says. "I didn't go into my apprentice year with the appropriate attitude. At age 18, I anticipation I had the apple ample out; I anticipation I could ace my academy classes like in aerial school. I couldn't accept been added off. I was declining three classes, and I didn't see the point of afraid around."

GIVING UP AFTER JUST GETTING STARTED