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2 quick stories: 1. My fraternity brother's father (a successful doctor) took the two of us out to dinner. He asked what I was studying. I told him computers.

by edw519 15y ago

2 quick stories: 1. My fraternity brother's father (a successful doctor) took the two of us out to dinner. He asked what I was studying. I told him computers. He said, "Good. As you know, I want John to study medicine. But if he didn't want to, I would want him to pursue computers. But definitely not law. I don't want my son spending the rest of his life chasing dollars." Strange remark. But somehow, it really left an impression on me. I've always wanted to have fun and make a difference, but never wanted to be like so many business people I've encountered whose sole purpose seems to be the pursuit of money for its own sake. 2. My mentor and first co-founder on the subject of money: "It's never about the money. And it's certainly not about us. Our first, second, and third responsibilities are making sure our customers get what they need. That being said, it we earn a lot of money in the process, what's so bad about that?"

swombat 15y ago
If it's only about making money, you've failed, big time. If it's never about making money, you've also failed, just as badly. It is shameful that smart, competent, brilliant people let themselves be fooled into thinking that money is bad. If you're smart, competent and hard-working, in the world we live in, you can be well off and deserve to be. Being broke is not a badge of honour. Making money is not a badge of shame - nor is it an incidental event that just happens while you weren't looking. What you're implying (though you're not saying it directly, so I could be misunderstanding you) with both of your stories is the exact opposite of what I believe. In the first story, you're putting up a straw man of the money-obsessed fool and warding people off the pursuit of money with that. In the second, you're implying that making money is incidental to other pursuits. The reality, which I'm advocating for, is that money is a useful tool that is worth pursuing - not with soul-destroying obsession, sure, but with some portion of your mind. It makes your life better, extends the reach of what you can do for others, enables you to leverage your intelligence to achieve more in life, etc. And since most of the ways of making money that people on this site would consider are honest and value-creating, if you do something clever and make money from it, it's well earned, well deserved. The answer to the second point is, as I've repeated many times, that making money will not happen incidentally while you're looking somewhere else, or at least not in 99.9% of cases. If you like those odds, buy a lottery ticket. I can assure you that your mentor and his business associates spent a lot of time sweating the details of how their business model would make lots of money, before it did. That was no accident, and it was not solely the result of customer focus. It was the result of customer focus and commercial acumen. Both are essential.
deleted 15y ago
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bhousel 15y ago
> But definitely not law. I don't want my son spending the rest of his life chasing dollars." Strange remark. That is a strange remark indeed, but I suppose I could understand that sentiment coming from a doctor whose main interaction with lawyers involves "ambulance chasers" trying to squeeze money out of his practice. Most lawyers don't do that kind of work and aren't in it for the money, although a law degree will mostly guarantee you a comfortable middle class life. I know quite a few who work for the government in tiny crappy offices and who will tell you that going to law school was the biggest mistake of their lives. Law is a surprisingly misunderstood profession.
- efsavage 15y ago
  I don't think he meant chasing dollars as in "make as much money as possible", but as in the fact that many (most?) non-criminal lawyers spend their time starting, defending or trying to prevent disputes that are ultimately just about money. Not that it's a bad thing, but it's foreseeable that people go into it seeking to advance justice and other noble causes and realize 20 or 30 years down the line that it's really all about protecting your clients' bank accounts. Perhaps there's something to be said about the ambulance chasers being at peace with that.

by edw519 15y ago

swombat 15y ago

If it's only about making money, you've failed, big time. If it's never about making money, you've also failed, just as badly. It is shameful that smart, competent, brilliant people let themselves be fooled into thinking that money is bad. If you're smart, competent and hard-working, in the world we live in, you can be well off and deserve to be. Being broke is not a badge of honour. Making money is not a badge of shame - nor is it an incidental event that just happens while you weren't looking. What you're implying (though you're not saying it directly, so I could be misunderstanding you) with both of your stories is the exact opposite of what I believe. In the first story, you're putting up a straw man of the money-obsessed fool and warding people off the pursuit of money with that. In the second, you're implying that making money is incidental to other pursuits. The reality, which I'm advocating for, is that money is a useful tool that is worth pursuing - not with soul-destroying obsession, sure, but with some portion of your mind. It makes your life better, extends the reach of what you can do for others, enables you to leverage your intelligence to achieve more in life, etc. And since most of the ways of making money that people on this site would consider are honest and value-creating, if you do something clever and make money from it, it's well earned, well deserved. The answer to the second point is, as I've repeated many times, that making money will not happen incidentally while you're looking somewhere else, or at least not in 99.9% of cases. If you like those odds, buy a lottery ticket. I can assure you that your mentor and his business associates spent a lot of time sweating the details of how their business model would make lots of money, before it did. That was no accident, and it was not solely the result of customer focus. It was the result of customer focus and commercial acumen. Both are essential.

deleted 15y ago

[deleted]

bhousel 15y ago

> But definitely not law. I don't want my son spending the rest of his life chasing dollars." Strange remark. That is a strange remark indeed, but I suppose I could understand that sentiment coming from a doctor whose main interaction with lawyers involves "ambulance chasers" trying to squeeze money out of his practice. Most lawyers don't do that kind of work and aren't in it for the money, although a law degree will mostly guarantee you a comfortable middle class life. I know quite a few who work for the government in tiny crappy offices and who will tell you that going to law school was the biggest mistake of their lives. Law is a surprisingly misunderstood profession.

efsavage 15y ago
I don't think he meant chasing dollars as in "make as much money as possible", but as in the fact that many (most?) non-criminal lawyers spend their time starting, defending or trying to prevent disputes that are ultimately just about money. Not that it's a bad thing, but it's foreseeable that people go into it seeking to advance justice and other noble causes and realize 20 or 30 years down the line that it's really all about protecting your clients' bank accounts. Perhaps there's something to be said about the ambulance chasers being at peace with that.