Post by Ben Lazaroff

i think one of the most interesting ways for people to become entirely lost in this life is by succumbing to what i can only call "social currency careers". people who just seem to move, with a very deliberate slipperiness, from it-place to it-place, though never fully staking a claim to making anything work anywhere. when they see something is working and they're not yet on board, they're quick to ask for an invite and make their way to the party. when something stops working, they slip out the back. they talk a big game on events or associations they had only the lightest involvement with (if all went well), yet have a perfect alibi for anything or anyone they ever crossed paths with that went south. they've never owned a P&L (not their own, nor a piece of their employers'). they've never really had to sell anything to make ends meet. they've never had to build something of their own to sustain. in closer proximity, when you observe them in conversation, they never seem to have an opinion of their own. nothing horrifies them more than their realizing they've been disagreed with. they weren't trained in the art of real debate, the school of ideas. they were trained in the mold of social gamesmanship--where every interaction is theatre. the post-conversation-debrief is where the real conversation takes place. you'll find these career creatures are often highly educated, some from the absolute best schools out there. they'll likely have started their careers at the goldmans of the world. they'll seem like they have a million friends. but they never stick around anywhere. they seem to gravitate towards the latest political or social or commercial trends, speaking confidently about them without really knowing much of substance. many friendships of theirs turn out as transient as their opinions. i've tried to live my life in the opposite way, admitting openly (especially with topics like state-of-the-art technology or emerging geopolitics or business decisions where information is far from complete), that i'm a semi-skilled amateur at best. that even the things i "coach" or "teach" or "impart ~expert~ advice" on are changing and that my point of view is biased and flawed. but i'll also have a take. you'll know where i stand. humility isn't lacking an opinion: it's a willingness to update it at as soon as new, better information comes in. but keep one eye open for these "social currency careerists", especially in your more elitist circles. because they'll exchange you the moment it's convenient for them. they're bribeable, influencable. their values of social acceptance and being well-liked trump all other values of theirs. at bottom, there's no way to ever fully trust them.