> had to Nonetheless chose to in the first place, insofar as nobody's forcing anyone to climb the exec ladder, and there are lots of places to do it — in fact,

> had to Nonetheless chose to in the first place, insofar as nobody's forcing anyone to climb the exec ladder, and there are lots of places to do it — in fact, it requires several in a career usually, to reach the highest ranks, unless it's a familial-type affair. “God laughs at those who deplore the effects of which causes they cherish.” (Bossuet) I have this general KPI for myself: if it makes me become a worse human being, then it's bad for me, thus I should either run away the other direction, or buckle up and change things. It can't be ignored or 'endured' for it's the 'bad' kind of pain, the kind that doesn't make you grow but just eats at you. The kind that commands you to fight or flee but certainly not freeze. And you're right, most places aren't like that. I never forget that >90% of businesses in most rich countries employ less than 10 people. Also know that in an average crowd, there are likely between 3% and 15% sociopaths depending on who you ask, 1 in 10, likely much more in achievers' social circles (because sociopaths are fundamentally not average statistically and tend to outperform the rest of us). Now you just have to look at your reality and map these numbers. The mediocrity principle probably applies to most of us.