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Does the local economy really need someone with brains?
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john p



Joined: 10 Mar 2006
Posts: 1820

PostPosted: Fri Aug 10, 2007 2:58 pm GMT    Post subject: Reply with quote

Housing is a long term investment which locks you into a certain location. Whether or not that environment will bear fruit for you or not is germane to the decision process and thus fundamental to the asset. The feedback is interesting because it almost reflects what people might think of a house that has sat on the market too long. It’s a logical pattern.

People make projections of their future earning potential in an area like a company's decision to how much product they will produce based on last year's sales. They need to step back and look at the product life cycle to see if it is in early growth, growth, late growth, maturity or decline. Just like a professional athlete, has Boston seen its best years and lost a step or is it going to go up. This is fundamental to where people see their future earnings and their ability to service their mortgage. If you’re a young buyer and you see that some older folks are losing their jobs due to age discrimination and for cost savings, you know that is going to send shock waves out and scare the hell out of some so if they are thinking about retirement or being laid off that might put a fire under them to sell their homes now before the market corrects further and get to their retirement destination. If they view things as being turbulent and mercenary, they people with the option might rent and save to hedge the bet. The mentality and environment surrounding buyers and sellers affect their viscosity. If you heat up something that feels solid, it might melt and deform; that’s what a bad realtor will try on you, heat you up and manipulate you. This all goes into play on a deeper level. We had a salary spike at the end of the 1990’s and I think that led to people feeling optimistic about their earnings which made them feel comfortable about going over the traditional price of the house over household earnings ratio. That creep into that risky zone is fundamentally based on this optimism. If you take away that optimism, that range is a shooting gallery. Lenders have pulled back, and whether or not buyers get it, the money won’t be available for them to borrow. The big question is how deep does this run? The smartest economists don’t even have a clue, but the rest of us have to step up and make our own assessment.

This story got a lot of play because it spoke about: an aging population, possible age discrimination, intellectual diversity, a corporate culture creating turbulence in careers and thus creating a mercenary culture in Boston, a question as to the saturation point of biotech in Boston, etc. This was a real example, a real benchmark. People will try to claim that he must have been a head case because they don’t want people to pause and think that earning potential in Boston isn’t there because if that was the case housing prices would surely come down.

The people who ask the questions "What does this have to do with the subject" often times are the ones who get hit with a hook. If you've been the hammer and never felt being the nail you won't know what I'm talking about. Once you've been the nail you keep your eyes wide open. A little extra effort to do so is advisable in these turbulent times. If you find that a realtor is playing you like the consultant as I mentioned, this might come to mind. If you do go into the ring you’ll find that you’ll be in a heightened state, the realtors will know that and either try to amplify that to take advantage or to bring you to a calm rational state. I would advise the latter. Knowing this will help you when you interview them. Ask some questions to determine whether they will play you on emotions etc.
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Boston ITer
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PostPosted: Fri Aug 10, 2007 3:10 pm GMT    Post subject: Reply with quote

JCK, one of the reasons why I don't have more postgrad degrees is because I know how it looks to employers so I simply opt to be a special student, from time to time, to learn something interesting. Otherwise, I'd have 2.5 masters degrees, instead, I have none because most companies aren't threatened by a BS only holder.

As for specialization, that's the key to high contract billing rates because it's hard for the less experienced to opt for your key projects. Unfortunately, what that does is make everyone, who's "tech", a student of one area and I suspect this person likes to branch out but in a greater capacity than just a special student.

The MBA types, however, appear to me to be more social climbers than real business leaders as John had stated in his management consulting deconstruction. All and all, it doesn't really give me the warm and fuzzies. I think this person should accept reality, finish his IM certification, and see patient perhaps ~50% of the time (earning $65K-$70K/yr) and then spend the remaining time following his interests as hobbies.
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john p



Joined: 10 Mar 2006
Posts: 1820

PostPosted: Fri Aug 10, 2007 3:21 pm GMT    Post subject: Reply with quote

Was this guy a canary in the mine or was he a special case?

Miners had little cages with canaries because if there was carbon monoxide the canary would die and be a signal for the miners to get out.

http://www.conspec-controls.com/cc001%20pages/CC001~Article~CCL~01.htm

Is this guy's fate, the fact that a guy like this can't live here emblematic of the property of the air quality in Boston?

To everyone:

What the god dam hell is it with getting multiple degrees? I mean does your brain stop working after 4 or 5 years of college? If you finish your college degree at age what, 22 or 23 what the frigging god dam hell is wrong with say learning something between 23 and say 42????? I mean your best athletic years are most likely 5 or 6 years away but mentally, hell, I think you forge forward and learn and learn and learn and learn. Why the hell not? For people to look down on this is ridiculous!!!!!!! When someone does push forward it is a sign that they see their best days ahead of them and that is exactly the type of person who you want to invest in.
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JCK



Joined: 15 Feb 2007
Posts: 559

PostPosted: Fri Aug 10, 2007 6:02 pm GMT    Post subject: Reply with quote

Boston ITer wrote:
JCK, one of the reasons why I don't have more postgrad degrees is because I know how it looks to employers so I simply opt to be a special student, from time to time, to learn something interesting. Otherwise, I'd have 2.5 masters degrees, instead, I have none because most companies aren't threatened by a BS only holder.


Fair enough. But that makes sense, and you realize what you're doing. You're not about to get yourself an MPH, for example, if you had no interest in pursuing a public health job/career.

Quote:
As for specialization, that's the key to high contract billing rates because it's hard for the less experienced to opt for your key projects. Unfortunately, what that does is make everyone, who's "tech", a student of one area and I suspect this person likes to branch out but in a greater capacity than just a special student.


This is true in pretty much all areas, not just tech. Doctors who can stick electrodes into your head get paid more than doctors who take blood samples. But even if the guy taking blood samples has a better overview of health care in general, you don't want him to start putting holes in your head.

Quote:
The MBA types, however, appear to me to be more social climbers than real business leaders as John had stated in his management consulting deconstruction.


I thought john's take on the consulting biz is pretty damning. The MBA path, I think, is largely fluff and connections rather than substance, and there's a lot of hot air in the system.

But these guys do serve a purpose, which is scapegoat. Sometime a company needs to change, and they can't do it on their own. So they hire these guys to make the painful decisions for them. The actual service they provide is 50% buzzwords, 40% common sense, and 10% real value.

Quote:
All and all, it doesn't really give me the warm and fuzzies. I think this person should accept reality, finish his IM certification, and see patient perhaps ~50% of the time (earning $65K-$70K/yr) and then spend the remaining time following his interests as hobbies.


Yeah, me neither. I just think this guy may have his hand in too many pots, but can't do any one of the well enough to land a job. Ultimately, you get paid for doing something, whether it's brain surgery, computer programming, writing, or custodial work. This guy even admits that it's pretty tough for him to describe what he does. That's a real problem, in my view.
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Boston ITer
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PostPosted: Fri Aug 10, 2007 7:47 pm GMT    Post subject: Reply with quote

Quote:
You're not about to get yourself an MPH, for example, if you had no interest in pursuing a public health job/career.


Well, if I were earning let's say half my salary, from a trust fund, I might get those additional fun degrees in law, public health, biomechanical engineering, American literature, however, I'm well aware of the biases out there which is why I separate my money making activities from let's say my academic interests so for me, an MPH would mean that I'm keeping that door open but I wouldn't have more than one of those types of diplomas on my CV. He's already sunk his battleship with that second masters plus PhD.

Quote:
This guy even admits that it's pretty tough for him to describe what he does. That's a real problem, in my view.


I think he has a problem with marketing himself in position-centric interviews where managers ask about his experience with the intent of him selling himself for that intended position. Instead, he probably gives a life's history which is fine and dandy, for an entry level candidate, but for a seasoned professional, there's an expected repertoire which is most likely missing. In my situation, it goes like if I had jobs A, B, C, D, the whole purpose of A&B were for C&D and now, the position I'm applying for, E, is a synthesis of elements of A&B but more C than D but with a leadership angle which is why it's a step up rather than a consolidation or overspecialization.
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AgentGrn



Joined: 28 Sep 2006
Posts: 82

PostPosted: Fri Aug 10, 2007 7:55 pm GMT    Post subject: Reply with quote

One small point I'd like to make here:

Just because you get your degree, doesn't mean you need to put it on your resume ... especially for those who have multiple unrelated masters degrees or higher.

I've got a AS/BS in IT, and about 80% for a BS in CJ which I'm very tempted to work on and finish up. Assuming the next place I work is another IT-related firm, I won't find any particular need to highlight the BS/CJ.

The HR Vortex, as I like to call it, is a royal bitch. The inhabitants of the department, resoursus humanous should not be overly confused if at all possible. It's very important to pick the right weaponry for the mission, in this case, the job interview. Universally confusing them will nearly guarantee that they won't call you back.
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john p



Joined: 10 Mar 2006
Posts: 1820

PostPosted: Fri Aug 10, 2007 8:13 pm GMT    Post subject: Reply with quote

You know, I love Boston because we're a nice balance of being socially liberal and accepting and try to bring along the good traditions. This guy is different because he's an intellectual nomad. Sometimes people project negative things on others that are different. On the surface, I seem very main stream, but my mind is a bit odd, skattered and spread out, so my defensive position here is based on that. I just want all types to feel at home in Boston. That's where I'm coming from. That being said when I look at things though your(s) perspective, I can't argue.

And to the dude that wants to know about how this affects housing, it is about a possible gentrification of the academics for bottom line thinkers. It's kind of like how Greenwich Village isn't a place for artists anymore. I think we do need these mutants in our blood stream.

Hunter Thompson about Karl Lazlo:

"Well I guess if I had to swear one way or another, I'd say Lazlo wasn't insane. He just had very strange rhythms. But he stomped on the terra. Lord Buckley said that. It's hard to say he got what he deserved, because he never really got anything, at least not in this story. And right now, this story is all we have ... It's sad. But what's really sad is it never got weird enough for me. I moved to the country when the boat got too crowded. Then I learned that President Nixon had been eaten by white cannibals on an island near Tijuana for no good reason at all. Golly, you hear a lot of strange and unnatural things about the world these days. Lazlo and Nixon are both gone now, but I don't think I'm going to believe that. Not until I can gnaw on their skull, because it still hasn't gotten weird enough for me."
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JCK



Joined: 15 Feb 2007
Posts: 559

PostPosted: Fri Aug 10, 2007 9:54 pm GMT    Post subject: Reply with quote

john p wrote:
You know, I love Boston because we're a nice balance of being socially liberal and accepting and try to bring along the good traditions. This guy is different because he's an intellectual nomad. Sometimes people project negative things on others that are different. On the surface, I seem very main stream, but my mind is a bit odd, skattered and spread out, so my defensive position here is based on that. I just want all types to feel at home in Boston. That's where I'm coming from. That being said when I look at things though your(s) perspective, I can't argue.


And I agree with this. If everyone fits into a mold, what do we have? Certainly nothing exciting.

This guy's pretty interesting no doubt. Everyone's had a strong reaction to his story.
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