This! Is the author immature? Yes but not out of malice. He's simply a novice to the world of people. Labeling this guy as mental, dysfunctional or having a Eve

This! Is the author immature? Yes but not out of malice. He's simply a novice to the world of people. Labeling this guy as mental, dysfunctional or having a Everest sized ego is just petty. The key to understanding the author is at the top of the article. He skipped college, freelanced for much of his life and worked for non-profits (whose lofty goals transcend internal politics.) As someone who recently worked to make the world a better place, he genuinely tried to help his teammates and naively believe they appreciated his help. (I bet he doesn't know how to read body language and fake smiles). They on the other hand felt he was trying to make them look bad, and use them as promotion stepping stones. People who work with compilers for a long time have no qualms being wrong. They take feedback and improve. But for Straight A - straight out of college students and political types, being wrong is a personal insult. Here's what I think: Most of his co-workers had been complaining about his well meaning meddling. He couldn't be fired for making things better. The email was the excuse his boss had been looking for to get rid of him. If he joined Google 10 years ago, he would have been a rock star. My advice: He should find a way to make freelancing work. He should join a startup but freelance / consult on the side to augment his pay. Going to business school - or some management training might also do him a lot of good. Most of all, if he gets another big job, he shouldn't help anyone unless they ask for it. Wish him good luck.