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Re:Things the most successful people I know struggle with to... by t0mmyb0y on Wednesday August 19, 2020 @12:48PM (#24212553)
8. Don't overtly screw people on the way up.

Most 'wealthy & successful' people I have known screwed people and never learned how to not do that and ended up paranoid about everyone since they don't know who they screwed.

Re:Things the most successful people I know struggle with to... by adamredwoods on Wednesday August 19, 2020 @02:28PM (#24214114)
In my opinion, I would maybe rephrase this as exploitation. "Business success" (define as you see fit), accompanies exploitation. "Screwing" people, could fall under exploitation, but feels more malicious, whereas exploitation can take many forms and is commonly accepted. It can be exploiting a rules loop hole, exploiting worker pay, exploiting current wealth status, exploiting someone's social connections, etc.

Exploitation is not necessarily bad, as most companies to be profitable, need to exploit something. Companies want profit so they are exploiting the price they charge, or exploiting the workers they pay, or a combination of many little exploits.

Imagine a company could pay its workers more, but they don't. I believe this is an exploitation of the workers. People don't see it as "bad" in minor cases, and this practice is commonly accepted. Consider how much Apple is making and how much it is paying its workers, versus a locally owned restaurant.

Imagine a company could charge less for a product and still survive. This again, is a minor exploitation, and commonly accepted.

When the exploitation gets large enough, workers sometimes revolt.

Re:Things the most successful people I know struggle with to... by Nasrudith on Wednesday August 19, 2020 @09:23PM (#24218896)
That concept of exploitation makes zero sense on a microeconomic or macroeconomic level. If there is any money available to expand that is charging more money than they need to survive. A company could always pay their workers more unless it brought them to precarity - even the actual workers wouldn't want that and they are the direct beneficaries of said excess! That would be like your drug dealer staging an intervention.
Re:Things the most successful people I know struggle with to... by adamredwoods on Thursday August 20, 2020 @02:31AM (#24220479)
I don't understand your argument. I don't think a business would succeed if it was pushed to precarity, so this is not dealing with exploitation. Exploitation needs to present in many aspects to create business success, it supports the definition of profit. The money made exceeds what it took to make the product or service. To profit is to exploit.

I'm not trying to cast the act of exploitation in business in a judgmental way, but rather to show it exists, because it is universally accepted. It's the other side of the same coin. Yes, it's a weird interpretation of Marxian economics. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Exploitation_of_labour

Re:Things the most successful people I know struggle with to... by inv13 on Wednesday August 19, 2020 @02:44PM (#24214381)
Those are the kind of people that are not going to reach out to this guy to get help. Its a hard step to make as the author mentioned it too.
Re:Things the most successful people I know struggle with to... by fedreserved on Wednesday August 19, 2020 @02:49PM (#24214477)
A slight wrinkle I have found is contractors that discover how profitable you are, can often "feel" screwed over after the deal is struck and the project is on motion despite their position being profitable and exactly what they bargained for.
Re:Things the most successful people I know struggle with to... by xwdv on Wednesday August 19, 2020 @01:41PM (#24213364)
Screwing people is inevitable. The only consolidation you can really take is knowing that the people you screwed at some point probably screwed someone else, and you're just continuing a cycle of karmic justice.
Re:Things the most successful people I know struggle with to... by deadwing0 on Wednesday August 19, 2020 @01:53PM (#24213553)
Could it also be that being screwed is a matter of perspective? I imagine in a non-insignificant number of the she-screwed-me-on-the-way-to-the-top cases that the alleged screwee is sour because he or she missed an opportunity or simply was not the better candidate for the promotion?

I'm not being a contrarian, but I think it's interesting how our biases and perspectives shape the way we understand things and situations. I've noticed people (myself included, no don't) trying to spin a situation to make them look or feel like a victim instead of admitting they were simply not as good as the alleged screwer. Not sure if I'm even stating this correctly, but maybe someone can help me elaborate.

Re:Things the most successful people I know struggle with to... by runeb on Wednesday August 19, 2020 @01:58PM (#24213629)
Wow. Well, your bio isn't lying, I'll give you that.
Re:Things the most successful people I know struggle with to... by asimovfan on Wednesday August 19, 2020 @01:51PM (#24213517)
According to karmic religions him having screwed someone over doesn't let you off the hook for the bad karma you're accruing when you screw them.
Re:Things the most successful people I know struggle with to... by colinmhayes on Wednesday August 19, 2020 @02:05PM (#24213742)
Luckily karmic religions aren't real.
Re:Things the most successful people I know struggle with to... by seigando on Wednesday August 19, 2020 @03:00PM (#24214653)
Maybe not but 'karma' in its original meaning of cause and effect is: if you hurt somebody, they will be hurt.
Re:Things the most successful people I know struggle with to... by coldtea on Wednesday August 19, 2020 @02:25PM (#24214067)
No, but real-life-karma (people you've fucked over will get back on you 10 times as much once they get the chance) often is...
Re:Things the most successful people I know struggle with to... by asimovfan on Saturday August 22, 2020 @08:56AM (#24243805)
luckily?

yeah it would be the worst if everyone got what they deserved.