Thread by @sweatystartup

A career is like a series of games.

The key to winning is taking a step back early on and figuring out which game is worth playing and which one isn’t.

Too many people play the wrong games with stiff competition and shitty prizes and wonder why it’s hard af to get ahead.

How do you assess what games are worth playing?

Is your goal to make money and so you can quit trading your time for money as soon as possible?

Then ask yourself a series of questions:

Is this game fun to play?

If so, you’ll get a lot of people playing the game for fun and not for money.

And it likely adds value to you and doesn’t add much value to others.

People play it for selfish reasons.

How good do you need to be to win?

What percentage of the players accomplish your goal of financial freedom?

Pro sports are one extreme. .5% of folks get paid well.

Sweaty startups are on the other end.

A lot of dumb people make a lot of money starting service companies.

What does winning look like?

A corner office and good-enough pay but no life and 70 hour work weeks?

Look at your boss and their boss.

Do they enjoy their lives?

That’s where you’re headed if you win.

Who are you trying to impress?

Are you going a direction because others think you should or society idolizes it, or because it makes you more likely to accomplish your goal?

Your ego is the enemy when it comes to choosing your game.

Does the game reward the right kind of action?

Too many folks get burnt out in many fields because they’re more about politics and less about adding real value.

If you’re a politician play the game. If you want to be rewarded monetarily for value, avoid the bureaucracy.

Do you want it all right now?

You’re destined to fail no matter what game you choose.

The folks who win think 5 years ahead.

They delay gratification. They do the sucky work now so they can do the fun work later.

Can you avoid the golden handcuffs?

Because when you start earning more (and working more) most folks spend more.

And they become addicted to the paycheck. Totally dependent.

If it stops, even for a little while, they’re under water.

Are you buying fun stuff or stuff that gets you closer to your goal?

99% of folks spend their cash on consumables. The stuff that gives them temporary joy and that next dopamine hit.

The winners buy assets that pay them back day in and day out forever.

The big problem is that people don’t even think about this stuff.

They are encouraged to pick a field when they’re 17 and “stick to it” and “stay the course”.

So they either win or fail based on sheer luck.

And what you “want” to do when you’re 17 is almost always competitive.

Because most 17 year olds want the same thing. Good college -> good office job -> you name it.

The real winners are like water.

Changing course when a path of least resistance becomes available.

They’re opportunist.

They quit when the odds suck.

And double down when the odds are good.

The folks with 100k in student loans and a liberal arts degree picked the wrong game.

And it’s a hole that’s tough to recover from.

The winners of their games are few and far between.

The winners took a few steps up 20 different mountains.

Took a look at what life at the top was like and how hard it would be to get there.

And then picked the one that was worth climbing.

One last thing:

If you’re half way up a really tough mountain with smart unhappy people at the top...

It takes a lot of courage and a lot of guts...

But find a different mountain.

If this thread hit you and you'd like to hear a few more of my thoughts on the subject, check out this video: