“The Career Cheat Code ​ What is an obvious idea you wish you had realized earlier? Here’s mine: Technology is the only area of life your parents ask you for advice. Careers are like exclusive nightclubs. Inside the nightclub is success. The traditional advice given to young people is to spend years waiting in line to get in via the front entrance. Your position in the line is based on: Experience - Time spent in the line Contacts - Who you’ve met in the line The line for the front door is rigged against young people. The older people ahead of you will always have more experience and contacts than you. You have to wait for someone to leave the club (retire) for you to move up the line. However, like all night clubs – there’s a backdoor entrance. In this line, you’re only ranked on your technology skills. The backdoor is the inverse of the front door: It’s rigged for young people. Technology is the only area of life your parents ask you for advice… And the market now values it more than experience and contacts. A common misconception is to assume the technology back door is only open for coders. Coding is an amazing way to get in – but there are so many other ways and the list is growing exponentially every day. The back door is open for: • Anything your parent’s generation is bad at AND the market values. Rule of thumb: The more confusing your parent’s generation finds it, the better. You can spend 20 years trying to become an expert in an old industry. Or you can spend 2 years to become a relative expert in a new industry.” -George Mack