I had been programming since I was 10, but had decided that I had learned all their was to know (typical adolescent ego) so I decided to go in physics as it was what I thought would be the most challenging thing to do. Did well in undergrad, graduating in 3 years and got a fellowship at a good grad school. Studied theoretical high-energy particle physics. In the background of all this I was programming the whole way, worked in the computer lab, etc. Ultimately I decided to drop out of the Ph.D. program with my M.S. and dive into software engineering, my real love. Haven't really looked back since the choice to drop out. Still program everyday as a VC. Having your favorite hobby as your job I still think is as good as it gets. Even better if it grew up with you and is now lucrative and as exciting as ever.
The Prestige Trap: finance, big tech, and consulting
251–260 of 325 posts
Re: The Prestige Trap: finance, big tech, and consulting
#252I think one point the author misses is that a lot of college grads see these prestigious companies, rightly or wrongly, as being the best places to learn to hone their craft. Yes, there may be some self-selecting and self-perpetuating cycle here where the most ambitious seek out the best, but I do think that there's a higher chance you'll find great or even best-in-the-world [software engineers|investment bankers|consultants] to learn from at these prestigious firms than smaller boutique companies.
Re: The Prestige Trap: finance, big tech, and consulting
#253I find two things to disagree with in this article. First is the premise that equally high compensation is offered elsewhere in each industry. I don't know about finance or consulting, but at least for FAANG it doesn't seem to be true. Second is the overlooked explanation that it's headroom - not prestige - that accounts for the difference. I'll provide an example that illustrates both points: me. When I went from Re…
I don’t know why the article’s author thinks prestige is about anything other than money/power (for the population as a whole). People would rather work at FAANG than Stripe because FAANG will get you a lot more pay and connections. And people know that, so they will value people from FAANG for it. But it comes from the root fact that FAANG makes a ton of net income per employee, same as some finance/consulting firms…
Prestige is definitely not just connected to money/power. I've worked at a scientific institute and worked on satellites. Invariably, this entry on my perceived as prestigious by recruiters, parents, friends, acquaintances et cetera.
Re: The Prestige Trap: finance, big tech, and consulting
#254Earlier quoted context omitted.
Yeah, this is a popular saying, but couldn’t be further from the truth for the most successful people. Generally, they begin with an end in mind. It’s a lot easier to get where you’re going if you know where that is. Or, as the Cheshire Cat says to Alice, “Which way should I go?” “Where do you want to go?” “I don’t much care.” “Then it doesn’t really matter.” (Abridged)
Yea, I'm a big believer in setting goals, and then taking the "most likely" path to get there. My career decision method (disclaimer: it might not work for you) boils down to this: 1. Estimate $X: how much $$$ investment do I need in order for my family to live off interest for Y years so I never work again? For me right now, $X is 5M and Y is 40 years. 2. What do I need to do right now in order to get closer to $X?…
I once read a book that described this line of thinking as the “deferred life plan”.[1]
At some level I think everyone is pushing some part of ‘what I really want to do’ to the future. I know I do. At the same time I think it’s important to remember to enjoy the years leading up to step 4, even if that makes the overall path less efficient.
1: the monk and the riddle
Re: The Prestige Trap: finance, big tech, and consulting
#255The author's examples of places that aren't considered prestigious throughout, such as Stripe and Nvidia, are ridiculous. The article basically takes companies that are considered prestigious to a smaller subset of harvard undergrads and claims that since a larger subset of the population doesn't find them prestigious they are somehow "underrated" and need to be looked at more. At the end of the day, prestige comes w…
yeah anyone within tech or fang finds stripe prestigious. even if some random person on the street hasn’t heard of it. same with HFT. some would even consider them more prestigious than fang. Fang is the backup for harvard grads who can’t work at a unicorn
Agreed. At this point even companies like stripe have been referred to as underrated so many times that they’re bordering on overrated
Re: The Prestige Trap: finance, big tech, and consulting
#256Earlier quoted context omitted.
I have no idea how Stripe became the low paying non prestigious startup job in this conversation. They are a big prestigious company that pays a ton and is soon to IPO. I actually consider Stripe to be FAANG as far as the original acronym was for stocks but in practice is for “high paying prestigious tech companies.” A better pick for “non prestigious but good company “ might be Khan Academy, which has an amazing ser…
Yup, every cs majors I know think super highly of Stripe. I don't know what students the author is talking to. Khan Academy is sought after in the cs student community as well. although won't be first choice for many.
Why? It’s a payment processor so there is little reason to know of it compared to the other FAANG companies.
Facebook has a quarter of the worlds population active on it.
Google has most of the search and is responsible for Android, which is the most popular mobile OS in the world.
Amazon broad cloud computing mainstream and now controls a huge chunk of the world compute because of it.
Apple effectively defined the smartphone era.
Netflix is like 60% of all of the Internet traffic and made legitimate streaming a thing.
Stripe... is an easier to use PayPal?
Re: The Prestige Trap: finance, big tech, and consulting
#257I prefer to sum it up more succinctly with "there's more to life than work".
Re: The Prestige Trap: finance, big tech, and consulting
#258Earlier quoted context omitted.
I think Stripe is one of the few bad examples they could have picked to compare against FAANG. Among late-stage startups, it seems highly regarded and its employees' options are likely to hold real value in the not-so-distant future. But generally I think the OP is correct: working for FAANG has made many, many people far more money over the past decade than they would have otherwise made on average in a startup. I s…
you’re comparing fang to average startup. instead you should compare fang to top tier startup. as that’s the choice people who get fang offers make... in almost all examples i can think of, the top tier startup pays more. furthermore before they were fang companies, google was the top tier startup and IBM was the equivalent to FANG.
> in almost all examples i can think of, the top tier startup pays more.
WeWork and Airbnb want a word.
Re: The Prestige Trap: finance, big tech, and consulting
#259I don't think a lot of people know what they want. There is just as much guessing as to which job to take as employers have choosing who to hire. Taking the most prestigious or most compensation is the safest bet, given that you don't really know what you want to do other than 'I like coding and interesting problems'. Partly I think that Harvard students have been adapted to seek prestige (else they probably wouldn't…
> I don't think a lot of people know what they want. > Just a lack of other goals for which to substitute. Ding ding. I've mentored students/grads from aforementioned prestigious Universities and most of them just genuinely don't know what they want After a few drinks, many have voiced a fear of there being so many options in life and not knowing which would be more fulfilling for them. Many reach a goal (graduation~…
I agree that many people don’t know what they want. However, I think this is less about emulation and more about improving ones options while figuring that out.
Consulting, Finance, and Bigtech offer a combination of rapid salary growth, low career risk, and a resume item that almost ensures that you pass the CV stage at every future interview. If you’re unsure about your path it is a great way to ensure you have many doors to choose from once you do.
Re: The Prestige Trap: finance, big tech, and consulting
#260Earlier quoted context omitted.
IDK for me personally that's the metric I'd use when comparing jobs/careers. From your statements alone, it can mean hundreds of thousands of dollars in difference. That's not something to gloss over.
Right, my point is that if you count it as 0% it is significantly better than money, and even with it at 0% the money is still extremely good.
Not sure what you mean by that. Anyways, if given the choice, I think I'd prefer GAFAM for the lower burnout risk alone. Comp is definitely more than enough, and likely higher than what you'd get in finance. I'm getting offtopic but if I start a company and it fails and I have a burnout then I feel like I've done a meaningful journey. If on the other hand I join a company where tons of people burn out then I burn out... that's just stupidity :).