Is Peaking in High School the Worst Thing for Your Future?

If you’re in your late 20s or 30s, you probably already know the person who began peaking in high school. She dominated the yearbook superlatives, but now? She’s stuck in some time warp where 2007 was the pinnacle of human civilization. Don’t be her.

On The World’s First Podcast, Sara and Erin Foster delivered an unofficial survival guide for how not to peak in high school—whether you’re still haunted by prom, currently raising teenagers, or just trying to make your 30s better than your MySpace era.

But first, Leighton Meester

But first, yes, we have to talk about Leighton Meester, who the sisters took a moment to gush about in the episode.

Apparently, Leighton (or Leighton Brody, as they now lovingly call her) is a comedic genius, hiding Larry David-level skills behind that Blair Waldorf exterior. “We were in video village dying,” said Sara. “I’m sorry, I’m confused. Is she Larry David?”

Erin added that Leighton “needs her own spin-off now.” And you know what? We believe it. Her improv game is strong, her timing impeccable, and the girls are completely obsessed. As Sara put it, “She is so funny. You are going to die.”

How to ensure you’re not that person at the reunion

But back to business—the kind of business that helps you raise emotionally sound, fully formed humans (or become one yourself). The sisters got into the hard truth about adolescence—namely, that struggling early might be the best thing ever happening to you. According to Erin, it’s not only okay to be awkward and messy as a teen—it’s necessary.

“It is so much better to have these character-building years when you’re really young,” Erin said, talking about her daughter Valentina’s school rejections. “You don’t wanna peak at 15. You wanna peak at 30.” 

Sarah chimed in with a liberating piece of advice their mom gave her as a teenager: “She said something to me on my 15th birthday that, like, freed me—which was: Now is the time to be your essentially worst self… you don’t have to be your best self today. You can be your best self in 15 years.”

In other words, you’re not behind. You’re evolving.

For anyone worried about peaking too soon, the sisters offered these reality checks:

1. Let some failure into your life

This one’s for the parents—but also for your inner child. Rejection isn’t a failure; it’s an opportunity. Erin pointed out how important it was for her daughter to experience disappointment: “She had to stop and take real inventory of who she is as a person… it’s not about the rejection. It’s about how you recover.”

2. Track small wins instead of waiting for the big ones

Inspired by her therapist, Sara started using a nightly journal to write down three things that went well that day, why they went well, and what they meant to her. “It could be as small as ‘I got the kids to school on time,’” she said. “But after 30 days, you’ll see and feel a difference.”

This isn’t just woo-woo self-help fluff. It’s about training your brain to recognize patterns of success, however small. It builds momentum and reminds you that progress isn’t about viral wins but little daily victories.

3. Stop obsessing about what’s not working

Erin was candid: “When you’re obsessing and focusing on the thing that’s not working, you just bang your head against the wall.” Instead? Focus on the things you can control—your career, confidence, and friendships. “If you can fix that stuff around you, then I believe you pull the person [or the life] into your orbit.”

4. Don’t mistake popularity for happiness

This one’s personal. Sara admitted that despite looking like she had it all in high school— good grades, athletic, well-liked—she was actually “dying inside.” External validation is not a substitute for internal peace. “It was a lot easier when you’re younger to mask it when you’re popular,” she said. “But I was not happy.”

Let that be your reminder: The prom queen might’ve looked like she had it all, but the story ended early if she was peaking in high school.

So whether you’re raising teens, reparenting yourself, or just trying to unlearn every weird message you absorbed in middle school (same), The World’s First Podcast wants you to know: Your best years aren’t behind you. They’re not even here yet.

You don’t need to have it all figured out at 18, 25, or even 35. You just need to be willing to grow. And if you’re already looking back more than forward because you’re peaking in high school? It might be time to create some new memories worth posting about.