I never would have let myself get -- seriously and chronically, without remedy -- injured, trying to be nice and helpful to other people. (Who went on with their lives unperturbed; it wasn't necessary.)
(Help people -- sure. I find it very rewarding. But trust your intuition, know that what you are doing has true value (again, trust your intuition, in addition to your intellect and empathy), and don't sacrifice yourself doing it.)
I wouldn't have listened to people who told me I needed to do this, for now -- what they wanted -- with the idea that there would be some vague payoff or switch to what I wanted, in the future.
E.g. We don't offer this at the undergraduate level. Do this, instead, for four years, and then transfer at the graduate level.
(Oh, and the future of work is "collaborative". Enjoy the incessant "group study" theme we're promoting, in manifold ways including those shared spaces in the redesigned library, and all the talking and distraction and time-wasting they promote.)
Um, fuck you.
P.S. Another way of putting this? Most self-identified "experts", aren't. And "authority" does not indicated wisdom, nor even sometimes much intelligence.
P.P.S. See the above P.S., with regard to this comment. Think and evaluate for yourself. If it resonates, explore that further, for yourself.