🤫Semi-Controversial Career Advice U Don't Want to Admit But Should🤫
How many cute fortune cookie aphorisms do u tell urself to feel better: "no pain, no gain" "it's the journey that counts!" And by now, how much progress have u sacrificed just to feel better?
Let's dig in👇
How many cute fortune cookie aphorisms do u tell urself to feel better: "no pain, no gain" "it's the journey that counts!" And by now, how much progress have u sacrificed just to feel better?
Let's dig in👇
1/ Close doors early.
Stop putting life on the back burner just to "preserve optionality." Some ppl go into banking/consulting b/c it keeps doors open. It's a 2yr deferred ticket to HBS where u can then continue to preserve optionality! Hooray! Ur gonna be a generalist forever!
Stop putting life on the back burner just to "preserve optionality." Some ppl go into banking/consulting b/c it keeps doors open. It's a 2yr deferred ticket to HBS where u can then continue to preserve optionality! Hooray! Ur gonna be a generalist forever!
2/ Stop being a generalist.
"I'm good @ everything!"
Well for everything ur good at Billy/Sally is AMAZING at. Don't drink the liberal arts marketing kool-aid. They need admission money so they feed you b*shit. Been there done that. I wasted too many years of life. Save urself.
"I'm good @ everything!"
Well for everything ur good at Billy/Sally is AMAZING at. Don't drink the liberal arts marketing kool-aid. They need admission money so they feed you b*shit. Been there done that. I wasted too many years of life. Save urself.
Why u need to specialize:
Wanna be a founder? Step #1 is u gotta find a problem where u have unique unfair advantage or insight. Pretty hard to do if ur just the same as everybody else. Can't build a cannabis ERP if u don't know the bottlenecks @ each step in the supply chain.
Wanna be a founder? Step #1 is u gotta find a problem where u have unique unfair advantage or insight. Pretty hard to do if ur just the same as everybody else. Can't build a cannabis ERP if u don't know the bottlenecks @ each step in the supply chain.
3/ 90% of what u do, u do to signal.
Bankers, did u flick off ur F1 key? Ok I kept mine on for 1y & only hit F1 like.. twice?
Signaling is not bad. In fact it's necessary. In fact prioritize doing things that MAXIMIZE signaling power. B/c truth is what u convince ppl to believe.
Bankers, did u flick off ur F1 key? Ok I kept mine on for 1y & only hit F1 like.. twice?
Signaling is not bad. In fact it's necessary. In fact prioritize doing things that MAXIMIZE signaling power. B/c truth is what u convince ppl to believe.
4/ U work hard? Stop it.
I'm an immigrant. My parents too. Each day they run on a hamster wheel & tell themselves they're transcending the doldrums of the middle class. Hamster-wheeling makes them happy b/c they can return home at end of day & smile abt being upper middle class.
I'm an immigrant. My parents too. Each day they run on a hamster wheel & tell themselves they're transcending the doldrums of the middle class. Hamster-wheeling makes them happy b/c they can return home at end of day & smile abt being upper middle class.
In every market, every transaction: someone overpays, someone underpays. Labor market is no different. Doctors overpay so clinic owners underpay.
Hey maybe "hard work is the key to success" is just a marketing trope told by the underpayer class to keep up supply of overpayers.
Hey maybe "hard work is the key to success" is just a marketing trope told by the underpayer class to keep up supply of overpayers.
Not saying u should be lazy. Rather ur time is limited & u should consciously bucket every engagement into asset vs. liability before actually doing it. If ur life is a balance sheet, maximize bringing assets onto ur book; that way you'll keep reaping future cash flow passively.
5/ Don't maximize learning
When u picked XYZ path (despite it paying less) b/c u'd learn more, that was 100% a feel-good b*shit self-lie. What does maximizing learning actually look like? Spend 6m in banking. Piss off everyone w/ way too many questions. Go to PE for 6m. Repeat.
When u picked XYZ path (despite it paying less) b/c u'd learn more, that was 100% a feel-good b*shit self-lie. What does maximizing learning actually look like? Spend 6m in banking. Piss off everyone w/ way too many questions. Go to PE for 6m. Repeat.
Go to a hedge fund or prop trading for 6m. Repeat. Jet off to SF. Join a startup as devops engineer #2. Blow up prod by spinning up way too many cron jobs. Jet off to NM, join Los Alamos. Learn how Iranian nuclear centrifuges work. Pull a Kevin Mitnick. Go to jail. Join the NSA.
If ur life is not that, ur not maximizing learning. And frankly u shouldn't. Most people's careers continually transition btw 2 phases: explore & exploit. Exploit is where u gain ($$, social capital, etc.) but it depends on explore. Maximize the long-run exploit/explore ratio.
6/ Don't be humble.
Ok don’t go around strutting & bragging either. That's also a low-class thing to do. This point is highly related to #3 (signaling).
Basically proper society has beaten into each of us a f*cked up definition of humility. Be "down-to-earth" says convention.
Ok don’t go around strutting & bragging either. That's also a low-class thing to do. This point is highly related to #3 (signaling).
Basically proper society has beaten into each of us a f*cked up definition of humility. Be "down-to-earth" says convention.
They say u shouldn't think ur hot shit.
But u should absolutely think ur hot shit.
In fact ur so hot shit that u don't need to tell ppl u are; u just exude it.
Proper society taught u to rationalize ur insecurity by calling it humility. WTF.
No leader of man is humble.
But u should absolutely think ur hot shit.
In fact ur so hot shit that u don't need to tell ppl u are; u just exude it.
Proper society taught u to rationalize ur insecurity by calling it humility. WTF.
No leader of man is humble.
7/ Missions are stupid. Just go to church.
Don't join a startup b/c its mission resonates w/ u. That's just a gimmick the founders + VCs said to underpay u. But then u internalized it like a fool to caress ur own ego.
Ur soul never lacks a mission; it lacks a religion.
Don't join a startup b/c its mission resonates w/ u. That's just a gimmick the founders + VCs said to underpay u. But then u internalized it like a fool to caress ur own ego.
Ur soul never lacks a mission; it lacks a religion.
No coincidence that depression spiked as religion faltered in the west. Not saying u should turn Christian or whatever but u need to find ur sustainable source of hope.
Nature abhors a vacuum so when Jesus faded, Elon stepped in. In 90% of SF, Elon is ur God & Asimov is ur Bible.
Nature abhors a vacuum so when Jesus faded, Elon stepped in. In 90% of SF, Elon is ur God & Asimov is ur Bible.
8/ 95% of you won't listen to me.
U'll be like cool story bro & get on with ur Saturday.
Or maybe u'll be like bro I knew all that & ur not controversial 1 bit. Great! In that case, help me counteract polite society's feel-good crap that inundates our ears by retweeting this 🧵.
U'll be like cool story bro & get on with ur Saturday.
Or maybe u'll be like bro I knew all that & ur not controversial 1 bit. Great! In that case, help me counteract polite society's feel-good crap that inundates our ears by retweeting this 🧵.
• • •
Missing some Tweet in this thread? You can try to
force a refresh
