Chase Scarred Masters, Not Titles or Perks

"Students seek out the best professors on the best projects when getting their master’s or PhD, but when they look for jobs, they focus on money, perks, and titles. However, the only thing that can make a job truly amazing or a complete waste of time is the people. Focus on understanding your field and use that knowledge to create connections with the best of the best, people you truly respect. Your heroes. Those (typically humble) rock stars will lead you to the career you want."

"When you get a chance to work with legends and heroes and gods, you realize they’re none of the things that you’ve fabricated in your brain. They can be geniuses in one area and clueless in another. They can raise you up by praising your work, but you can also help them, catch things they miss, and build a relationship based not on starry-eyed hero worship but mutual respect."

"I needed to learn. And the best way to do that was to surround myself with people who knew exactly how hard it was to make something great—who had the scars to prove it. And if it turned out to be the wrong move, well, making a mistake is the best way to not make that mistake again. Do, fail, learn."