Comment by mcv
5 years ago
There are also old companies who manage to keep up and innovate, and care about competence. Not as much as tiny startups, but enough to survive and do well.
One problem with the British upperclass, is that they tend to be educated at private schools like Eton, where they primarily learn confidence. So tons of British politicians and managers know how to appear to know what they're doing, without actually knowing what they're doing. As long as things are going well, this works fine, especially since the people they do business with come from the same schools. But when the shit hits the fan, it turns into a fumbling circus. Like it did with Tories and Brexit.
>One problem with the British upperclass, is that they tend to be educated at private schools like Eton, where they primarily learn confidence.
Not limited to the British upper class. It's astounding how far someone can go in life by simply being confident, charismatic, and articulate (and tall) despite being completely full of shit.
And from what I understand, those are exactly the skills they teach you at schools like Eton. Well, maybe not being tall, but certainly the other ones.
I think the world would do well to try to inoculate itself against this sort of superficial confidence. It's way too effective, with frequently harmful results.
As examples please see Elizabeth Holmes/Theranos or Adam Neumann/WeWork neither of whom were Eton educated.
I don't think it is an issue just with people educated in certain schools.
2 replies →
As basketball analysts like to say, you can’t teach height.
2 replies →
> Not limited to the British upper class. It's astounding how far someone can go in life by simply being confident, charismatic, and articulate (and tall) despite being completely full of shit.
I've gotten a similar vibe from a lot of graduates of prestigious US schools. Very confident, fairly confrontational style of conversation. I'd actually kinda like it if I hadn't learned through feedback and midwesterness to do basically the exact opposite. I'd guess it's especially strong in those who've been through seminar-style prep schools (which is most of the "good" ones, as I understand it) before going to university.
> It's astounding how far someone can go in life by simply being confident, charismatic, and articulate (and tall)
That's funny how much it describe my brother, even if he's not upper class and went to a not particularly prestigious school (called ESTP). In his case, he was already quite confident and charismatic before leaving high school.
> despite being completely full of shit
he's not completely full of shit, but I wouldn't in a thousand years work for him.
This is not limited to the UK
I dont even know where to start with this comment.
> One problem with the British upperclass, is that they tend to be educated at private schools like Eton, where they primarily learn confidence. So tons of British politicians and managers know how to appear to know what they're doing, without actually knowing what they're doing.
Having worked with certain interested underwriters from Lloyd's, it was an easy upvote for me.
I agree that in politics that type of idiot is particularly over-represented, however it is unfair to assume this is the case with most managers in the UK. Perhaps it is because I have worked for and with competent UK managers who have no public school background, so the generalisation that this applies to tons of people is inaccurate. I am not defending the Eton educated upperclass just saying that they hardly represent the majority of managers employed in the UK.
1 reply →
You can start by agreeing with it. It's not just true, it's the fundamental reason the UK is in the mess it's currently in.
The statement may be correct if it was limited only to Eton educated politicians. As it isn't it is an unfair generalisation on mangers, many of whom are not Eton educated
Could you try? As a (maybe naive, not upperclass) British citizen it seems pretty reasonable.
I just think it could be applied to UK politicians who are predominantly privately educated and incredibly out of touch, but it is a stretch to think that most company managers are privately educated. Particularly because in the car of Thomas Cook the CEO is a German educated Swiss man.
Prior to that is was run by a woman, who was not Eton educated. So basically the comment is a generalisation that cannot even be applied to this specific instance.
The only thing it can be applied to fairly is the British political class, who in general would adhere to it.
Its quite true look at the Mess Cameron and Johnson have created and all the other PPE Oxbridge grads.
I don't disagree with that, British political class certainly fits the generalisation made by the GP, but it can't be fairly applied to business managers. Thomas Cook was run by a Swiss guy educated in Germany.