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Choose your status game wisely

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Re: Choose your status game wisely

#341

Post by borroka »

lliamander wrote: post #340
borroka wrote: post #338

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I go with a " spezzato", which is pants and blazer of different fabric and/or color. Less formal than a suit and allows for more creativity. Neapolitan blazers look especially good on fit people. If tailored or made to measure, don't forget to unbutton the last button on the sleeve, a top player move. Most, if not all, of my colleagues dress in sweatshirts and ill-fitting jeans. I'm sure some of them see me as "eccen…

Interesting! I still try to keep things fairly casual. If I do some sort of "jacket", it usually a pretty casual sport coat with a crewneck underneath, paired with dark jeans or chinos.

Assuming you're not showing up in something undeniably "dressy," like a dark-colored suit with a white shirt with French cuffs, being "casual" is more about your attitude with your clothes, how you wear them, than the clothes themselves.

Assuming you're wearing the same clothes in both situations, does it look like you're ready for a wedding or that you found the first few clothes in your closet with your eyes half closed and somewhat magically the color and fabric combination is eye-catching?

Re: Choose your status game wisely

#342

Post by ca98am79 »

I like and can relate to the first part of this article a lot, but the solution ("Outsmarting the Status Game") just seems to be doing more of the same. Doesn't feel like a real solution. I think the real solution is to drop out of the status game and not play at all. Forget what the others think. I've come to realize that all I really care about is what I think of myself, and what my wife and kids think of me.

Another goal, and the ultimate root of all goals, is Peace of Mind. This is the one and only game to play - status is just a mirage when what the person is really trying to get is Peace of Mind. I think this is the most important thing in life and I try to teach my kids this.

Re: Choose your status game wisely

#343

Post by sacrosancty »

lambdasquirrel wrote: post #159
sacrosancty wrote: post #37

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Status usually represents having done some social good. The more good you do, the higher your status. If you look at it as a measure of how much good a person has done, then it might not seem so contemptable. Who did more good for more people - a hermit or Bill Gates?

For sure. But have you worked at any non-profits? Most of the folks I know who do have a hard time, to put it mildly. I've done my share of social-good tech companies, as well as engineer's dream-job stuff. After reflecting on this article, I realized that: 1. I finally enjoy my tech job after I stopped chasing the status game in tech. 2. I finally enjoy my hobbies after I stopped chasing the status game in those hob…

Probably most of the social good you do is the paid work for your tech job. Unless you work at some social-harm-causing company. Giving to charity is nothing compared to giving up most of your life's limited capacity to do high-value productive work. It's easy to forget that work is mostly really really good for the people you're doing the work for or their customers or someone down the chain who's ultimately paying you.

Re: Choose your status game wisely

#344

Post by throwaway_1928 »

7373737373 wrote: post #197
xenocratus wrote: post #186

> Choose money and you’ll end up working all the time. Choose beauty and you’ll always want to look better. Choose fame and you’ll constantly be seeking attention. This is straight-up paraphrasing David Foster Wallace in This Is Water, just that DFW was talking about these things as de-facto personal religions that we're usually unconscious of. So the "choose" part isn't nearly that explicit in his view. The bit in T…

The speech: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8CrOL-ydFMI

fantastic talk, thank you.
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