Delete comment from: Captain Capitalism
Let me deal with the other end of the career lifeline -
In my profession (which is not in professional athletics, but information technology) once you turn age 45 you are automatically considered functionally obsolete and unable to stay current with technology.
In short, you're washed up regardless of whether you are technically current or not and regardless of whether you can learn new technology or not.
So, assuming the Capn is right, in technology careers your effective career is only 10 years long.
I think the captain's advice needs a bit of a tweak and here it is -
if you are working for a large company, working extremely hard is useful only if you are recognized as a stellar performer e.g. the top 0.5% and put on the fast track. That's the one case where working your backside off pays. Otherwise, working very hard is not a good investment since it doesn't pay off.
The other exception is if you're working for yourself - but be careful that you own your business rather than the other way around.
Sep 5, 2008, 5:21:00 AM
Posted to My Advice to 20 Somethings