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In Silicon Valley, some men say cosmetic procedures are essential to a career

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Re: In Silicon Valley, some men say cosmetic procedures are essential to a career

#121
post #100

80% of male attractiveness comes down having a good haircut and clothes that fit you. Assuming you're in SF and have a high-paying software job. Find a hair stylist in a mid-range salon who you can actually talk to, show them some pictures of haircuts you like, and let them find something that works. If you find a professional and are OK paying them a bit extra, you'll get good results. As for "clothes that fit", I h…

Physical attractiveness. The majority comes from personality and being genuinely nice of which being interested in other people is the key. Even w/o being a hole, most dudes in tech don’t ask questions about other people. Self centered man babies.

Sure, but attractive people with shitty personalities have to lose things, whereas unattractive people with good personalities need to earn. And when there are many attractive people around, there isn't much left to earn.

Re: In Silicon Valley, some men say cosmetic procedures are essential to a career

#122
When I lived and worked in SF it was hilarious to me how rapidly the culture shifted. In only 6 years, it went from a lot of competent, interesting, varied personalities, to an army of chrome backpacks, folding bikes, and brown leather boots.

Due to the vast wealth flooding there from VC coffers, people drank the Koolaid and drank it fast. I've watched people change their whole personality over night as if they constantly have their finger on the changing winds of cult personality.

Needless to say I ran for the hills. Best of luck Bay Area, you'll always have a place in my heart.

Re: In Silicon Valley, some men say cosmetic procedures are essential to a career

#123
post #110

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Not bad news- I accept that by default, I'm going to lose the game. That's the "give me death" part. Still that don't mean I won't try the other part, removing everything that could stand between me and my objective. No kids = no college fund = more money to spend on life extending treatments if they become available I trust the human creativity will hack death someday. The only question is whether I will be alive to…

The question you will need to answer is what you are living for. I do have children and their college fund is a rounding error on a lifetime of expenses, if I had to live life again and could choose to add another 100 years to the life I have or have children I would definitely have children again.

I don’t have children. DNA is too random. I might if I can design my own progeny.

Or clone myself. It is also ‘technically’ ..theoretically possible to clone oneself. That’s a different discussion.

Ideally I would like different ‘skins’ that I can step in and out of ..and keep all my memories and thoughts and ‘self’.

Re: In Silicon Valley, some men say cosmetic procedures are essential to a career

#124

I'm pretty convinced that the most important thing you can do for your career after achieving basic technical competence is to be more attractive, both physically and socially. The reality is that you're going to have an easier time making connections and getting access to opportunities if you're well-mannered, sociable, and attractive.

I wonder how this all fits in with the recent trend towards Stoicism in Silicon Valley: From Epictetus, a father of Stoicism >1. Some things are in our control and others not. Things in our control are opinion, pursuit, desire, aversion, and, in a word, whatever are our own actions. Things not in our control are body, property, reputation, command, and, in one word, whatever are not our own actions. >The things in ou…

It seems rather disempowering to include “body” in the list of things not under your control. That control is not complete, but it exists to an extent.

Re: In Silicon Valley, some men say cosmetic procedures are essential to a career

#125
post #110

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I've got bad news for both of you: you're going to die, and you won't be resurrected. So better live your lives as if every day matters.

Not bad news- I accept that by default, I'm going to lose the game. That's the "give me death" part. Still that don't mean I won't try the other part, removing everything that could stand between me and my objective. No kids = no college fund = more money to spend on life extending treatments if they become available I trust the human creativity will hack death someday. The only question is whether I will be alive to…

life extension is not immortality.

Do you want to extend the life of your body or be mind-immortal? Two entirely different things.

Right now consciousness needs the physical shell to exist. What a Faustian bargain!

FWIW, I believe uploading consciousness will happen in the next 20-30 years.

Re: In Silicon Valley, some men say cosmetic procedures are essential to a career

#126
I wonder if this depends on what language you develop in. I've been working on C++ teams for the past few years, and I don't witness any age bias. If there is an age bias, it's against younger engineers, because usually older engineers are much better at C++. The classical image of a programmer is still highly respected on every team I've worked on.

Also, I am an ex division 1 wrestler, and pretty muscular, and I always felt my physique actually worked to my detriment in interviews; I take a lot of steps to not come off as a jock/meathead. I wear glasses to make myself look more like a programmer, than an athlete. Maybe there is a difference though between being in shape, and being a division 1 wrestler.

Or maybe this is mostly a west coast/silicon valley thing. I've been working out of NYC mostly. Regardless though, this article really does not resonate with my experience as a software engineer.

Re: In Silicon Valley, some men say cosmetic procedures are essential to a career

#127

I'm pretty convinced that the most important thing you can do for your career after achieving basic technical competence is to be more attractive, both physically and socially. The reality is that you're going to have an easier time making connections and getting access to opportunities if you're well-mannered, sociable, and attractive.

[deleted]

Re: In Silicon Valley, some men say cosmetic procedures are essential to a career

#128

I'm pretty convinced that the most important thing you can do for your career after achieving basic technical competence is to be more attractive, both physically and socially. The reality is that you're going to have an easier time making connections and getting access to opportunities if you're well-mannered, sociable, and attractive.

It follows that in any group of people equally advanced in their career, the worst dressed most socially awkward person likely has the highest skill. After all they need to balance the deficit with something to get equally far.

If you're choosing a doctor, choose the one who looks like a butcher instead of the one that looks like a doctor. He's more likely to be good at what he does.

Nassim Taleb talks about this concept in his books.[0]

Edit: Here it is – https://medium.com/incerto/surgeons-should-notlook-like-surg...

Re: In Silicon Valley, some men say cosmetic procedures are essential to a career

#129
post #16

I'm pretty convinced that the most important thing you can do for your career after achieving basic technical competence is to be more attractive, both physically and socially. The reality is that you're going to have an easier time making connections and getting access to opportunities if you're well-mannered, sociable, and attractive.

Also, be tall, that doesn't hurt.

https://news.yahoo.com/men-paying-76-000-limb-155514396.html : just read this..what a coincidence!

[..] Some men and a few women are getting plastic surgery to lengthen their limbs and grow up to six inches taller.

Dr. Kevin Debiparshad, founding surgeon at The LimbplastX Institute in Las Vegas, Nevada, has performed this procedure on more than 30 people since opening his practice in 2018.

The two-hour, $76,000 procedure involves minor breaks in the leg bones, nails and screws, and physical therapy. It takes a full year to see the end results.

Some patients may lose some athletic ability, and a psychologist previously told Insider "cosmetic procedures don't have a lasting effect on people's positive body images nor their general well-being." [..]

Re: In Silicon Valley, some men say cosmetic procedures are essential to a career

#130
post #98

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's also not a bad idea to be rich, and whatever the most desirable gender and ethnicity are for your area, but those things are less actionable than social skills, fitness, and beauty.

beauty is not achievable.

As I get older, I am more interested in what’s achievable with ‘beauty’(a loaded term).

There is a lot we take for granted when young. And things we don’t notice. Like gravity, for example..

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