I was never the popular kid in school. But I was always the kid who could draw. And my drawing ability was consistently in demand among the other students. I made my first money as an artist charging classmates for “commissions” by adding custom drawings to their paper bag book covers. I charged about a buck for each drawing, but that was enough for a comic book in those days, so it was great way to fuel my Marvel/DC addiction. In the first week of 7th grade in September of 1985 this entrepreneurship gained me the attention of one of the most popular girls in my junior high class, and I soon found myself interacting with her posse…
Good choice. The " popular " crowd were usually airheads.