I also quickly found myself encapsulated and absorbed by the high-brow, shiny gleam of the Consulting/IB/PE/Product Management lifestyle, but a summer spent mostly highlighting PDFs revealed the shine to be mostly veneer. You're definitely not alone in your realizations, but the decision to no longer perform in the play after taking a peek behind the curtain is a difficult choice to make for most of our peers.
Acknowledging how soul-sucking and meaningless the work feels is taboo, and breaks the fantasy most young adults are expecting from their careers. The majority of my friends' perception of a "successful" outcome after attending a stanford/ivy-adjacent institution is so far removed from the reality of 98% of Americans it's difficult to put in words. Trying to explain the significance of graduating from a school like Phillips Exeter (think I spelled that right), spending the summer at an ISD debate camp, or networking with campus recruiters on LI to a neighbor whose family has attended the same state school for generations is a comical experience.
The world would benefit greatly if there was less pressure from these institutions placed on early 20 year olds to "make it", and instead facilitated opportunities for students to arrive at a career aligned with their natural aptitude & goals. It will require a massive overhaul of our existing incentives, and honestly, a serious introspection of what work we, as a society, consider valuable and prestigious. How many of those jobs will require a 22 year old to add borders to text-boxes in powerpoint? Less than mbb might have you think.
Amen to Hope being the ultimate lottery
Seconded! Great read, Kasen!
I also quickly found myself encapsulated and absorbed by the high-brow, shiny gleam of the Consulting/IB/PE/Product Management lifestyle, but a summer spent mostly highlighting PDFs revealed the shine to be mostly veneer. You're definitely not alone in your realizations, but the decision to no longer perform in the play after taking a peek behind the curtain is a difficult choice to make for most of our peers.
Acknowledging how soul-sucking and meaningless the work feels is taboo, and breaks the fantasy most young adults are expecting from their careers. The majority of my friends' perception of a "successful" outcome after attending a stanford/ivy-adjacent institution is so far removed from the reality of 98% of Americans it's difficult to put in words. Trying to explain the significance of graduating from a school like Phillips Exeter (think I spelled that right), spending the summer at an ISD debate camp, or networking with campus recruiters on LI to a neighbor whose family has attended the same state school for generations is a comical experience.
The world would benefit greatly if there was less pressure from these institutions placed on early 20 year olds to "make it", and instead facilitated opportunities for students to arrive at a career aligned with their natural aptitude & goals. It will require a massive overhaul of our existing incentives, and honestly, a serious introspection of what work we, as a society, consider valuable and prestigious. How many of those jobs will require a 22 year old to add borders to text-boxes in powerpoint? Less than mbb might have you think.
Loved this one! Really thoughtful and authentic!
Curious what big dreams you have up your sleeve.
We need to continue the bear hunt.