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The annoying habits of highly effective people

economist.com

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Re: The annoying habits of highly effective people

#131

Post by Rainymood »

data_spy wrote: post #116
DecayingOrganic wrote: post #115

"The largely dominant meritocratic paradigm of highly competitive Western cultures is rooted on the belief that success is due mainly, if not exclusively, to personal qualities such as talent, intelligence, skills, smartness, efforts, willfulness, hard work or risk taking. Sometimes, we are willing to admit that a certain degree of luck could also play a role in achieving significant material success. But, as a matte…

I understand what you are saying to a degree, however I've had more success than many colleagues due to me spending time every day to improve myself (usually technically). What you are saying is like saying some people are thin due to genetics, which can be true, but also many people are thin because they workout.

>I understand what you are saying to a degree, however I've had more success than many colleagues due to me spending time every day to improve myself (usually technically). What you are saying is like saying some people are thin due to genetics, which can be true, but also many people are thin because they workout.

Then there always is the argument that you have access to a gym and markets with healthy food. You can always under/over exaggerate personal responsibilities.

Just like Brett Kavanaugh worked his ass off to get in Yale, which he probably did, is this negated by his family's connections? Difficult.

Re: The annoying habits of highly effective people

#132

Post by schnitzelstoat »

apatters wrote: post #108
bicubic wrote: post #76

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You can't bet on an opportunity if you don't have any money to bet. I've lost count of how many ambitious and talented people I know who had ideas they wanted to bet on, but couldn't because of lack of disposable funds. Having the resources to take risks is the number one factor to succeeding, I think. Being able to identify good opportunities comes after that.

Even if you have no money you can bet your personal time and effort. I agree that having financial resources is a huge leg up, but I don't believe it's mandatory. My beliefs are formed from personal experience. I came from a working class family that lived below the poverty line. My parents kicked me out at 18 with a warning that if I ever wanted to come back I'd better be ready to pay them rent. (Resolved that I wou…

> Being broke certainly limits the type of opportunity you can invest in, but there's always something.

Always? It's not a law of physics...

Re: The annoying habits of highly effective people

#133

Post by yayana »

jleask wrote: post #129
data_spy wrote: post #116

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I understand what you are saying to a degree, however I've had more success than many colleagues due to me spending time every day to improve myself (usually technically). What you are saying is like saying some people are thin due to genetics, which can be true, but also many people are thin because they workout.

Just as anecdotally, I know many people who have put that work and it has made no difference, or they've been made redundant etc. Equally I know drifters who happened to be in the right place at the right time. Hard work buys you more tickets in the game of life, but luck is always there to some degree. How much is luck, who knows :)

I've seen more of the paradox effect than hardwork paying off.

For example, when a large company collapses, being the very worst can be an asset to get out and into new companies earlier and through less critical processes (that then end up overly critical of the people trusted to shut off the lights).

Re: The annoying habits of highly effective people

#134

Post by coldtea »

113 wrote: post #117
data_spy wrote: post #116

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I understand what you are saying to a degree, however I've had more success than many colleagues due to me spending time every day to improve myself (usually technically). What you are saying is like saying some people are thin due to genetics, which can be true, but also many people are thin because they workout.

What you're saying is anecdotal.

Yes, so? We're not automatons that only speak with citations and meta-studies, nor it is prudent to do so.

Empirical personal observation will always be very important.

Re: The annoying habits of highly effective people

#135

Post by a_imho »

manigandham wrote: post #92
a_imho wrote: post #91

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Land a major deal or create a new product line that doubles revenue? You're getting to the top. From my experience this does not happen at all. Not to underclass developers at least.

At all? I don't know what you mean by "underclass" developers but it is common to see many devs who spearhead projects get higher titles and progress faster. There are many such examples just in SV companies. Part of it is making sure contributions are measured and noticed. People can't act on what they don't know.

I mean the blue collars sitting with other developers at lunch. We can pretend there is a meritocracy out there, but that's simply not true.

Sure, in theory it might be possible to progress as a developer but in practice the roi of putting in enormous effort is simply laughable compared to the alternatives. A few percent raise realistically. Getting to the top? Not a chance.

Re: The annoying habits of highly effective people

#136

Post by coldtea »

sonnyblarney wrote: post #56
jjoonathan wrote: post #4

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Same appeal as any other type of cargo-culting: it's a lot easier to get up at 5am, shake hands firmly, and dress for success than it is to spot an extreme growth opportunity, bet everything on it, and be correct.

" it's a lot easier to get up at 5am, shake hands firmly, and dress for success" Let's not be superfluous. Being a CEO is hard, even the 5 am rising and 'hand shaking' parts.

>Being a CEO is hard

Much easier than many other jobs, from mining and nursing to jobs that single mothers do in 2 shifts.

And with much more perks, respect, personal influence, and earnings...

Re: The annoying habits of highly effective people

#137

Post by SuoDuanDao »

manigandham wrote: post #62
phakding wrote: post #3

Never understood people's infatuation with reading CEO biographies. I've read a few and never found anything in it that could relate to. May be I am not meant to be one of those people. Even if I worked hard, got in at work at 5 am every day, I don't think I could go from being a lowely team lead to cto or CEO of a multi billion dollar corporation. I don't think it just works that way. I could be very wrong, but that…

You're focused on the actions rather than the results. Common mistake. People become leaders by creating and commanding change that positively affects the company. Land a major deal or create a new product line that doubles revenue? You're getting to the top. Working harder than the others is part of this process, and sometimes that means you come in at 5am, but it's not a requirement nor is it something that anyone…

I would disagree and say that Elon Musk has repeatedly cited working twice as hard as everyone else as the key to his success. But the trick he seems to be following is that if you work flat-out on difficult problems until exhaustion, you spend a lot of time in flow state and consequently learn a lot faster than someone who isn't pushing themselves.

Re: The annoying habits of highly effective people

#138

Post by coldtea »

sonnyblarney wrote: post #67
enraged_camel wrote: post #65

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>>Being a CEO is hard Not necessarily. It completely depends on the company and the industry.

Yeah, some are harder than others but I can't think of a CEO job that isn't hard. It's always fraught with political risk, changing times, etc. etc.. From the 'inside' we might think it looks easy, we get a paycheque, it's all hunky-dory ... but from that top spot it's almost always hard.

>but I can't think of a CEO job that isn't hard. It's always fraught with political risk, changing times, etc. etc

That makes it volatile, not hard. And the stakes are much less for volatility when you already have several cool million in the bank...

Re: The annoying habits of highly effective people

#139

Post by coldtea »

gitgud wrote: post #71
enraged_camel wrote: post #65

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>>Being a CEO is hard Not necessarily. It completely depends on the company and the industry.

Well, regardless of the industry. Most people would consider the tasks of: -leading a company -dealing with finances -constantly making important decisions As a hard job.

Hard to get right is different than hard to do (physiologically, in the way it affects the mind and the body).

And even hard to get right matters little if you have a golden parachute (as many CEOs do). You can drive a company (or an entire sector) to the ground and still get your nice bonus.

Re: The annoying habits of highly effective people

#140

Post by dagw »

manigandham wrote: post #62
phakding wrote: post #3

Never understood people's infatuation with reading CEO biographies. I've read a few and never found anything in it that could relate to. May be I am not meant to be one of those people. Even if I worked hard, got in at work at 5 am every day, I don't think I could go from being a lowely team lead to cto or CEO of a multi billion dollar corporation. I don't think it just works that way. I could be very wrong, but that…

You're focused on the actions rather than the results. Common mistake. People become leaders by creating and commanding change that positively affects the company. Land a major deal or create a new product line that doubles revenue? You're getting to the top. Working harder than the others is part of this process, and sometimes that means you come in at 5am, but it's not a requirement nor is it something that anyone…

Land a major deal or create a new product line that doubles revenue? You're getting to the top.

Be in charge of the department/team that "lands a major deal or create a new product line that doubles revenue" and you're on your way to the top. Being the person who was in the office until 3 am working out the final details of that deal or fixing the show stopping bugs that let you actually launch the product won't get you anywhere.

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