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Y Combinator’s New Head

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Re: Y Combinator’s New Head

#51

Post by 001sky »

soneca wrote: post #34
yid wrote: post #4

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You run the risk of making this a self-fulfilling prophecy. An (economically, educationally, etc.) privileged background increases the ODDS of being successful; it is not a REQUIREMENT for success by any measure. If this is getting you down, I suggest you read some stories about people from the other end of the spectrum ending up at the same place. I don't have any links, but perhaps other people here do.

Well, if you learn about successfull people through Hollywood you would have the exactly opposite bias, that all successfull people came from a tough childhood. Latest example, James Brown: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0F_pxMmOG4I (looks like a nice movie) But you may add others such as Truman Capote, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Truman_Capote#Early_life ; Dian Fossey, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dian_Fossey#Life…

Executives are waaaaaaay more succussful than actors in hollywood. And you have none in your list. It might be enlightening to do a demographic study of industry executives and their lobbyists in Washington. And then report back with your findings. =D

Re: Y Combinator’s New Head

#52

Post by wz3chen »

soneca wrote: post #34
yid wrote: post #4

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You run the risk of making this a self-fulfilling prophecy. An (economically, educationally, etc.) privileged background increases the ODDS of being successful; it is not a REQUIREMENT for success by any measure. If this is getting you down, I suggest you read some stories about people from the other end of the spectrum ending up at the same place. I don't have any links, but perhaps other people here do.

Well, if you learn about successfull people through Hollywood you would have the exactly opposite bias, that all successfull people came from a tough childhood. Latest example, James Brown: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0F_pxMmOG4I (looks like a nice movie) But you may add others such as Truman Capote, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Truman_Capote#Early_life ; Dian Fossey, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dian_Fossey#Life…

+1.

50 Cent is my #1 role model since he has achieved success despite adversity (Both of his parents were dead by the time he was 8 & he grew up in a rough neighborhood).

Re: Y Combinator’s New Head

#53

Post by Iftheshoefits »

brown9-2 wrote: post #10
reason wrote: post #2

No disrespect to Sam in any way -- he truly seems like a brilliant guy with a chorus of influential people behind him -- but I've been on a successful-person wikipedia binge as of late, and it's become very, very clear that a person's upbringing almost determines whether or not they're going to be successfull, which saddens me. I grew up to some very close-minded parents who severely limited my growth, forced me to f…

Look at the current President of the United States. Did he have the type of upbringing you are envisioning here?

Yes, actually. His parents were a Harvard alumnus and a mother who was both gifted and accomplished in Anthropology (with a wide network) and the people who raised him from age 10, his grandparents, were hardly "middle class" in the one-breadwinner-midwestern-auto-worker sense of the word. They were at minimum on the affluent side of middle-class.

So, Obama's childhood is not even close to being typical. He started with a leg-up that only got better as time went along. About the only true obstacle in his way has been his race--which is decidedly a huge one to have overcome, especially in America, where racism is still deeply embedded in our society in a number of ways, and was much much worse during his formative years. But his economic and family environment put him way, way ahead of even the typical American's.

Re: Y Combinator’s New Head

#54

Post by larrys »

reason wrote: post #25
larrys wrote: post #21

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm always fascinated how it's necessary to preface one's point by first saying something like this: "No disrespect to Sam in any way -- he truly seems like a brilliant guy with a chorus of influential people behind him -- but I've been on a successful-person wikipedia binge as of late, and"

Fascinating in what way? The guy is smart, successful, and he deserves what he's achieved. That he's found the opportunities he's capitalized on isn't his fault.

Because you said "No disrespect to Sam in any way" trying to head off (I speculate) people's immediate negative reaction in interpreting to quickly what you said as in some way being disrespectful.

As if someone that is held in high respect by the group (or PG) can't ever be questioned as deserving of something by someone else.

As far as this "I've always held onto a bit of hope that maybe one day I'll be as great or as brilliant or intelligent as Sam" have you ever met Sam? Are are you merely going with what others on HN seem to think about him?

I've taken issue for example with some of the things he says in his essays as being simplistic and overly general. One example might be his categorization of business based on his relatively short and very narrow experience in the business world.

Re: Y Combinator’s New Head

#55

Post by hartie »

reason wrote: post #2

No disrespect to Sam in any way -- he truly seems like a brilliant guy with a chorus of influential people behind him -- but I've been on a successful-person wikipedia binge as of late, and it's become very, very clear that a person's upbringing almost determines whether or not they're going to be successfull, which saddens me. I grew up to some very close-minded parents who severely limited my growth, forced me to f…

Point your wikipedia perusal to internet millionaires and you'll see not much correlation at all.

Re: Y Combinator’s New Head

#56

Post by 001sky »

dampflames wrote: post #39
hnriot wrote: post #37

“Picture a smart person,” said Graham. “You don’t imagine somebody who is really good at talking to people, you picture someone really awkward." I don't at all, in fact I find that kind of thinking highly insulting. Being a smart person in my experience is often highly correlated with being able to effectively communicate and discuss with others.

I don't think there is a correlation between them. Rather, I think that if there are two people who have the same level of intelligence, the one who is a better communicator (and this is more often a trait found in extroverts) comes across as smarter because they can transmit their ideas better.

Contrary view, based on research:

http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/03/10/us-usa-investment-...

http://phys.org/news/2014-03-investors-good-looking-male-ent...

Re: Y Combinator’s New Head

#57

Post by corin_ »

hartie wrote: post #49
corin_ wrote: post #43

Not really of any importance to the article, but: > It’s not crazy for Sam Altman’s phone bill to rack up 6,000 talking minutes in a month. He talks a lot, to a lot of people. Maybe 6000 is above average, but is it even close to 'crazy' for anyone? That's only 3.3 hours a day, I probably hit that on week days for work alone (sure plenty of people will have jobs where less phone calls are needed), and with family and…

Do you work in sales? What do you spend so much time on the phone for? I spend ~1 hr a week on the phone and it's all to my family.

I don't work in sales, but in marketing - probably 70% of my work calls would be to colleagues/clients, the rest to external people (e.g. Companies we spend marketing $ with).

For example, off the top of my head I have 8 hours of normally-scheduled conference calls (before anything ad-hoc) with my main client each week - they're a big company, the people I work with there are based in offices in England, Ireland (2 locations), Holland, France (2)... and then less frequent contact with other offices in the US (mainly) and random regional offices occasionally such as Sweden and Greece in the last couple of weeks. Phone calls are really pretty important in terms of what we do with each other. (I also travel around Europe a fair bit, but that doesn't make up for day to day communications).

But I also spend a fair bit of time talking to friends and family too, I guess that's partly due to needs (I don't have long calls with people who live down the road from me) and partly just a personal preference thing (also use Skype, SMS and email, which and how much of which depends on the person).

Re: Y Combinator’s New Head

#58

Post by [deleted] »

edw519 wrote: post #45
reason wrote: post #2

No disrespect to Sam in any way -- he truly seems like a brilliant guy with a chorus of influential people behind him -- but I've been on a successful-person wikipedia binge as of late, and it's become very, very clear that a person's upbringing almost determines whether or not they're going to be successfull, which saddens me. I grew up to some very close-minded parents who severely limited my growth, forced me to f…

...it's become very, very clear that a person's upbringing almost determines whether or not they're going to be successful... The old town drunk died. His two sons, the bank president and the new town drunk were at his funeral. An onlooker, surprised at how different the two sons were, asked each one how he turned out the way he did. The bank president responded, "With a father like that, how else could I turn out?"…

[deleted]

Re: Y Combinator’s New Head

#59

Post by yarou »

reason wrote: post #2

No disrespect to Sam in any way -- he truly seems like a brilliant guy with a chorus of influential people behind him -- but I've been on a successful-person wikipedia binge as of late, and it's become very, very clear that a person's upbringing almost determines whether or not they're going to be successfull, which saddens me. I grew up to some very close-minded parents who severely limited my growth, forced me to f…

That's reality, though. The past cannot be changed; the future can be.

Re: Y Combinator’s New Head

#60

Post by nilkn »

klochner wrote: post #26
reason wrote: post #2

No disrespect to Sam in any way -- he truly seems like a brilliant guy with a chorus of influential people behind him -- but I've been on a successful-person wikipedia binge as of late, and it's become very, very clear that a person's upbringing almost determines whether or not they're going to be successfull, which saddens me. I grew up to some very close-minded parents who severely limited my growth, forced me to f…

From this week's "Corner Office" in the NYT, about hiring: What I’m mainly listening for is: Does this person believe things are happening for them, for a positive reason, regardless of what actually happened? Or do they believe that things are happening to them and against them? Do they hold a grudge against events, or do they believe they were a gift? I’ll listen for whether they say things like, “I’m so glad that…

Someone once told me that a smile is the greatest sign of wisdom. While I don't agree with that statement literally for various reasons, the idea behind it has stuck with me.
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