Current Events > C/D: Your success in life depends more on who you know than anything else

(+) Yeah! (+)

From all my life experiences, C

You can be the smartest guy in the world with a STEM degree but still end up working for minimum wage at a gas station if you dont know the right people to lead you to opportunities to success (I actually know this person im describing)

C, but a better way to express the necessary condition, IMO, is just luck.

Was told this by one of the most evil people I know. Seems like it's correct, unfortunately...

I think it depends. I certainly don't think this can be used to justify defeatism for two reasons:

1. It fixates on isolated examples. Like someone who inherited a lot of money or got a good deal on a loan because of connections and became millionaires or better for little effort. Sure, for them, knowing somebody was key. But a lot of people manage to become successful, and most of the time there's a lot of work involved in it regardless. The connections can help, but most successful people don't inherit absurd sums.

2. It's not that hard to know people. I wasn't born with friends in all four corners of the country, some of whom are millionaires or CEOs (one ex-VP, lol). I didn't make them through my parents either. I found communities and conferences that had the kinds of people I wanted to meet, and I made myself important to them.

D, for me success in life is defined by more than just economic/career value. It's about learning which conditions can create a lifestyle which keeps yourself both happy and fulfilled. Material success can be a part of that, but is not necessarily dependent on who you know

There's truth to it, and there probably always will be. Humans are emotional creatures.

C

lord the amount of overlooked people I met in my jobs in the past was wild. im convinced some of them could have been more successful if opportunities presented themselves to them but it never happened for some of them

Knowing the right people will open a lot of doors for you, but not as many as obscene wealth will. Of course, there is often a relationship between the two.

You can a good start on your own. But eventually you will need connections to continue to grow.

https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/a/forum/8/8464e3f5.jpg

Just looking at all the talentless hacks in the entertainment industry, that's a big C.

C for sure, it is extremely hard to get ahead in life by yourself.

D

Capacity for success precedes opportunity. A lot of smart, healthy people have become successful on their own. Nobody with a profound disability becomes successful because of who they know, if you're defining success by achievement.

It's one factor, and it can help a lot.

But it's not the be all and and all.

C

Also the same in my experience

It's pretty much how rich White men have gamed the system to heavily favor themselves.

D

you can know the right people and still be insufferable to where they wont want to help you

bump

obviously C. connections are how you succeed or fail. if you're born into them you're running life on easy mode.