3 ms·

I wonder if this is a Commonwealth thing? The "tall poppy" syndrome is well-known in NZ and AUS, too.

indemnity 9y ago
As a recent immigrant to NZ this annoys the hell out of me. Excellence should be rewarded and strived for, but people prefer comfortable mediocrity, because then they don’t feel like they’re underachieving.
- yazaddaruvala 9y ago
  I'll try to self-analyze and hopefully shed some light: I moved from India (Mumbai) when I was 10, to grow up in Vancouver. I've previously worked in NY, and I now work in Seattle (you can guess where), but think about moving back to Vancouver all the time to live a life of "mediocrity" and "underachieving". In both India and America, the mindset is "If you're not first you're last", but my mindset after growing up in Vancouver: "I don't need to be first, I just need to hold my own and stay with the pack". For some reason (unclear how/when/why I learned this) growing up in Canada: 1. I learned to feel guilty for my successes (lol make it go away!). 2. I learnt very quickly, that getting one rank higher at something competitive keeps getting exponentially harder (i.e. I'd be less happy). To sum it up: Its not just about victory, but the balance of effort to victory, and the happiness from being a part of a community that counts. However, its hard to reconcile. The Indian/American mentalities in me, especially about career, are very much a part of me. I think I compromised on "I don't need to be first, but should be at least 1 or 2 std deviations above median". As a result, I don't work in NY or SF, I live in Seattle, for the money but have a great work life balance, thinking every now and then if its it the right time to move back to Vancouver.
  - acchow 9y ago
    Vancouver sounds quite different from Toronto. I see very little of this mentality among Torontonians. They do however enjoy complaining about lack of opportunities in Toronto.
- 0xADEADBEE 9y ago
  Same situation and your appraisal is completely consistent with my experience. Working at some supposedly leading agencies has only served to horrify, to the point I've started reverse interviewing employers on ComSci fundamentals to ensure I'm not working somewhere totally hopeless. I'm unsure if the New Zealand education system is behind its European counterparts or if I've just been unlucky but I'm curious to find out. I won't be applying for residency.

As a recent immigrant to NZ this annoys the hell out of me. Excellence should be rewarded and strived for, but people prefer comfortable mediocrity, because then they don’t feel like they’re underachieving.

yazaddaruvala 9y ago
I'll try to self-analyze and hopefully shed some light: I moved from India (Mumbai) when I was 10, to grow up in Vancouver. I've previously worked in NY, and I now work in Seattle (you can guess where), but think about moving back to Vancouver all the time to live a life of "mediocrity" and "underachieving". In both India and America, the mindset is "If you're not first you're last", but my mindset after growing up in Vancouver: "I don't need to be first, I just need to hold my own and stay with the pack". For some reason (unclear how/when/why I learned this) growing up in Canada: 1. I learned to feel guilty for my successes (lol make it go away!). 2. I learnt very quickly, that getting one rank higher at something competitive keeps getting exponentially harder (i.e. I'd be less happy). To sum it up: Its not just about victory, but the balance of effort to victory, and the happiness from being a part of a community that counts. However, its hard to reconcile. The Indian/American mentalities in me, especially about career, are very much a part of me. I think I compromised on "I don't need to be first, but should be at least 1 or 2 std deviations above median". As a result, I don't work in NY or SF, I live in Seattle, for the money but have a great work life balance, thinking every now and then if its it the right time to move back to Vancouver.
- acchow 9y ago
  Vancouver sounds quite different from Toronto. I see very little of this mentality among Torontonians. They do however enjoy complaining about lack of opportunities in Toronto.
0xADEADBEE 9y ago
Same situation and your appraisal is completely consistent with my experience. Working at some supposedly leading agencies has only served to horrify, to the point I've started reverse interviewing employers on ComSci fundamentals to ensure I'm not working somewhere totally hopeless. I'm unsure if the New Zealand education system is behind its European counterparts or if I've just been unlucky but I'm curious to find out. I won't be applying for residency.