I’m not saying ability doesn’t matter. It certainly helps. But there’s something powerful about realizing that you’ve undersold yourself — that someh… - JD Vance

whenever people ask me what I’d most like to change about the white working class, I say, “The feeling that our choices don’t matter.

But there’s something powerful about realizing that you’ve undersold yourself — that somehow your mind confused lack of effort for inability.

I'm not saying ability doesn't matter. It certainly helps. But there's something powerful about realizing that you've undersold yourself-that somehow your mind confused lack of effort for inability.

I want people to know what it feels like to nearly give up on yourself and why you might do it.

Our large group left an awful mess...I couldn't imagine leaving it all for some poor guy to clean up, so I stayed behind. Of a dozen classmates, only one person helped me: my buddy Jamil...I told Jamil that we were probably the only people in the school who'd ever had to clean up someone else's mess.

Whenever something bad happens — even a hint of disagreement — you withdraw completely. It’s like you have a shell that you hide in.