On the importance of college in a society

So recently I have been having a revelation that college and school might not be important as they seem. its december of 2021, and high time for me to realise what I have to do with my future. All my life, going to a good college like IIT was obvious, but as I progress through life, I dont want to do it. My goal with life is to be free, being really able to do what I want, to reach to that point, I refuse to spend 60% of my day, studying subjects I hate, just to get into a good college, it seems worthless and suffocating, sitting on your desk, cramming the next chemistry formula, just to fail by a single point, I cant and wont do it period. But then, what will I do without college? Tech, which in itself is a very saturated field, BUT i posses one quality I dont see in many others on this path, and that is persistence, when I cant solve something, and give up, a feeling irks me to get that done, I wont discuss this further as this is not what this page is about.

But is college important? No. thats it. no, Unless it a top notch tier one college, (for which millions are competing) it isnt "necessary" this however only aplies for fields such as, tech, design, filmmaking, as these skills cam be aquired through internet, self study or various other sources, In inida, which is a country of masses, when applying, companies do perfer an IITian as its a benchmark for them to determine that the person is recruitable and not some unqualified bloke. for my intents and purposes, if I dont attend college, I have to network, A LOT, this is to reach out to new people, companies etc twitter seems to be the prime platform to do this, other than that, I have to keep brushing up my skills, as of course, gotta keep up with the fast paced world.

I am writing this as a note, or a brain dump, I have made up my mind, I just cant get into the toxic grindy world of academia and the never ending race to be "better" Luckily I have some dicrection In my life, which is good? I am currently In school, high school to be precise, which, funnily enough, is even more grindy and toxic, I honestly dont care for school work, I am happy eing 70% if that means I am happy.

So as of now, I have no intention of going into a college, and I have done my two cents of research on the topic, and I have come to the conclusion that college is not for me. I have several reasons as to why.

The field I want to get in is software, and according to me, spending a good 6 years (if you start from high school) trying to get into a college, after which in the best case scenario, I might know some theory, and would be at the same stage I could be if I studied by myself. Another reason is also the amount of competition, in India its near impossible getting into top universities, namely IITs and the BITs, and I don't think at the end of they day getting a college degree from these universities is worth 6 years of homework and classes. Job prospects don't magically become guaranteed when you graduate from a decent college (note: decent, not the IITs) When one has to learn stuff on their own anyways, why go to a college at all?

Moving on from that -- if not going to college is such a good thing, why do people go to a college at all? I have pondered over this thought throughout several sleepless nights and showers, The biggest reason as to this, might be two things

1. Lack of a proper plan; Most of the high schoolers are conditioned to believe that high school should be about getting super good grades and aiming for the best college, that is just how it's been, so what ends up happening is, such students, pass with really good grades, but because they were aiming for a good college since their freshman year, they are unable to get the big picture, for them, it is "figured out" Boards -> College -> Job it is usually after or during college do such people realise the bigger picture.
2. Ease of life; A huge part of what college offers, is a "life", you don't have to worry about your future (In a few rare occasions, do students actually start thinking about their life), all you have to do is relax, live out the "college life" party, make friends and have fun. This is such a huge part of what college offers, it shapes YOU, you personality, relationships etc, The FOMO is what a gets a lot of people into college.
3. Job flexibility; The face value of a college degree alone is at times enough to get you started on your career, it might be as a shitty low paying IT guy at a company, but it is an experience nonetheless which one would have missed out upon if they did not have a college degree. Being a graduate carries enough merit to make up for, say a lack of working experience or a few terminations here and there.
4. Contrary to popular belief, theoretical knowledge in a practical field is important, and college provides you with that, but the according to me, when I have the ability to attain the same knowledge on my own, why would I study Science? (and a bunch of other trash college courses you have to take).

So those were the primary reasons most people to a college, it takes a lot of burden off of your shoulders, which is why students compete to get into the best possible uni or college, so that once they are in it, they can relax for a while. This of course, is what the majority does, yes there are a few exceptions where folks keep polishing and sharpening their skills regardless of the fact that they are in a college or not.

But then, the question arises, what will I do to supplement these points I outlined above? well, I mulled over this superficially, I have yet to do an actual section-by-section implementation of this plan.

1. Reading a ton of books; At times experience and a generalized knowledge is better than just having a single field you are expert in, Books are a key to that. Where writer condense their experiences, lessons and tips in a novel of about 600 pages, which you can just read and hopefully, not be at the same position the writer once was when he learnt all that the hard way.
2. Having a solid and proper game-plan; As I mentioned, lack of clarity in future and career is what drives a lot of students to pursue a college, But I have the benefit of realizing this early, and having the time to prepare a proper plan or a roadmap to do things.
3. Supplementing the theoretical knowledge a college offers with free alternatives; Books, lectures, YouTube videos is just a start of how you can easily supplement the college lessons about infrastructures, databases and CS math, on your own. This goes in conjunction with the 2nd point, in the sense having a curriculum to follow is better than just doing and learning stuff on top of your head.
4. The Advantage of time; Not going to college or having to study for it, gives one an immediate advantage, this time can be used to not only study essential topics, but to also attain practical skills such as building actual projects, freelancing, learning industry tools etc.

So according to me, those were the major pros/cons of not going to a college, I have to work on an extensive doc where I actually research into these topics in depth, but as of know, I am sure that this is a good way to move forward.