I guess I fit that description. My district had sporadic enrichment programs some years while I was growing up. There was some talk of me skipping from 2nd to 3rd grade, but I was in a multi-age class anyway, and I couldn't catch a ball. My perception as a child was that the ball was the deciding factor, but who knows? In 4th grade, I was all out of multi-age classrooms and got stuck in elementary when all my friends moved on to the middle school.
Later, when we actually had a gifted program and I was in 6th grade, they decided that the 6th grade gifted class would not be stimulating enough for me, so they put me in the 8th grade gifted class, but left me in all my 6th grade classes the rest of the week!
Even as a child, I knew this was too little, too late. My schoolwork had never been challenging, my work habits were abysmal, and I struggled unsuccessfully to fit in for years. My situation was made slightly worse by living in rural Appalachia. When I got a scholarship to the selective liberal arts college of my dreams, a relative said she was glad I was up there learning a trade, so I could make something of myself.
In college, I really enjoyed getting average grades and having a social life. I was doing the social and emotional work most kids get to do in high school, and it definitely impacted my GPA. In graduate school, my grades were much better.
Work has been difficult, since I often find that I am much better educated than my bosses. I do get bored with jobs easily, and have rarely held the same job for more than a couple of years. Several years ago, I left a job with high pay and prestige to become a teacher. There are plenty of intellectual challenges in this field, but I do tend to let the boring tasks--like grading--pile up. After several years, I finally got to teach the subject I love in a functional school, and they are starting to give me leadership positions like department chair.
That's been my experience.
