The Myth of the Super-Successful ‘C’ Student

https://greyenlightenment.com/2022/02/08/the-myth-of-the-super-successful-c-student/

by paulpauper • 4 years ago

16 7 4 years ago

rektide• 4 years ago

This caused me to re-read the original article. The one thing i just dont see mentioned is the class warfare of the situation. C students sometimes just dont want to play the game, they see the game as fake & irrelevant. The use of the learning, the pressure to achieve can feel very so what.

I had an elemntary school teacher that very persistently drilled into us the value of school, of trying, of thinking, that opened doors of perception to geekhood & technology, which got me to start to engage, to think about the value. Ehich i had numberous further crisis of faith over, which made it dismaying when i felt like the educational side of the compact was failing, wasnt as real as i'd hoped.

I wouldnt say this is the majority, but there is definitely a whiff of rebellion, & some of it is super smart, edgy, more connected & wise than the A students. Questioning spending time, questioning trying hard, questioning auhority, not seeing it add up in bigger picture. The original article keeps bring like, 'this weakness is actually helpful', taking at face value more or less that C students are probably just lesser than their A colleagues, but that that struggle has upside, which i think masks a far deeper more important truth, of why some C students are C students to start with.

mtc39• 4 years ago

Is the writer so bored they had to invent an imaginary person to condescend to?

stefanba3• 4 years ago

A model that just takes grades and degrees, which is most of the actual data the article presents, as inputs probably does not work. There are so many more attributes to consider: race, tenacity, resilience, etc.

0xy• 4 years ago

That is not to say C students cannot be successful, but as discussed in the article Normies, Status, and Substack, if they are wildly successful financially and or in terms of social status, it’s due to a combination of luck (like inheriting a family business), timing (being early), or connections (such as knowing the right agent who can land you a highly sought after acting role), not due to raw intellectual horsepower or merit like in STEM or finance.

Isn't this just a lie? I didn't know anyone, didn't inherit anything from my lower class family and wasn't early. I was a D/F student, now I manage engineers. I've had reports with PhDs while I barely passed high school.

This post smacks of smug elitism and worship of academia, which is a failing institution with questionable value to society.

jdmoreira• 4 years ago

Humm. I think you feel attacked.

Have you read the whole article though? The author goes on to mention that it's possible to do well in management for example.

And by the way, don't think you are better than the people you manage, you are most likely not. Most of them could do your job they just don't want to nor have the inclination. Could you do theirs?

tannedNerd• 4 years ago

Are you the author? If so thank you so I can avoid ever working with you! Even if you aren't this comment reeks of elitism and smugness so much that I don't know anyone who would put up with a teammate that is so condescending to others.

shaftway• 4 years ago

https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html

Please don't comment on whether someone read an article. "Did you even read the article? It mentions that" can be shortened to "The article mentions that."

The Myth of the Super-Successful ‘C’ Student

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