
Envy All the Way Up - glasscube
http://www.gabrielweinberg.com/blog/2012/11/envy-all-the-way-up.html
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chollida1
This is very true for all sorts of careers.

I remember thinking I was pretty successful when I got my first 6 figure bonus
until I realized that my peers had been getting these kinds of bonuses for the
past 8 years and the bonus was small potatoes compared to seeing your
portfolio growing by 35 percent each year.

More success means more successful peers.

~~~
nahname
<https://twitter.com/Humblebrag>

~~~
chollida1
> <https://twitter.com/Humblebrag>

Yes, almost by definition, that is part of the lesson of the article.

It's almost impossible to say, yes I agree and here is my anecdote without
doing so:)

~~~
yegg
I think this exchange is part of the reason no one talks about this stuff,
which is unfortunate.

~~~
arjunnarayan
Yes, and it's why this fantastic post
([http://www.gabrielweinberg.com/blog/2012/02/the-evolution-
of...](http://www.gabrielweinberg.com/blog/2012/02/the-evolution-of-my-
perception-of-money.html)) has never had traction on HN (as far as I know).

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paulsutter
Great post. Media coverage in silicon valley is slanted towards great
financial success. It can aggravate the envy in any of us.

The most successful people I know are remarkably disinterested in money as a
motivator, and mostly view it as a tool. In most cases, a tool to give control
over the work they do more than anything else.

Statistics are a useful reminder of the actual incidence of super high incomes
in the country. Reading about silicon valley it's easy to think that loads of
people are making $100M left and right. But actually it's closer to one in a
million:

[http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:US_Census_income_discrep...](http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:US_Census_income_discrepancies.png)

~~~
michaelochurch
The problem is that:

(1) Yes, idiots are getting rich. But most idiots are still poor, just like
most smart people are poor. No human society has managed to create a lasting
positive correlation between merit and success, because we, as people, are too
fucking stupid and prone to complacency for that to be stable.

(2) People everywhere exaggerate their success and connections to important
people. In finance, you encounter this around bonus time because the bonus is
a performance review, so everyone claims to have received the top bonus
available to their year.

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graeme
I really like the 'level of fearlessness' analogy. That's my main reason for
wanting more money. My actual material needs are pretty low, and my material
'wants' aren't much higher.

~~~
louischatriot
Totally agree. The simple question "do I really fear doing that" is very
useful too. I quit my management consulting job to start a company when I
asked myself this and answered "anyway I'll always be able to live comfortably
so why not"

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ChuckMcM
Money is an attractive nuisance :-) Its too easy to use it as a proxy for
'score'. Kind of silly hearing folks smirk "he's only worth about 50 million."
Its a problem I wouldn't mind having but wouldn't sacrifice my family for.

~~~
davros
Envy is toxic.

There's nothing wrong with ambition or aiming to make lots of money, but when
these are driven by envy you maximise angst on missing a goal and you will
always have someone to still envy no matter how successful (unless you're
literally one in a billion successful).

