What I would do if I was 18 now
29 comments
·April 2, 2025fancyfredbot
jvanderbot
This guy is entirely supported at the moment by a rabid fan base and a vibe coded flight sim with expensive DLC. https://fly.pieter.com/
kinglawrence
Yeah, everyone knows who Levels is.
It's a silly example to use. There's basically no one else like him, and the product only got this much traction because he's already an influencer. He's such an outlier.
jvanderbot
I guess I was today's 1/ 10,000
I had seen him on Twitter but took a second to connect this blog to that account.
financltravsty
Careers are not looking good long-term. Add in the exorbitant cost of uni in the US and dwindling entry level opportunities-- it's hard to see how going through the gauntlet of building a business (including learning valuable, tangible skills and building ones network out) could be much worse than... spending $40k-1m+ to roll the dice in hypercompetitive, saturated job markets.
If you're of modest or lower means, what other choice do you have? Continue taking the advice of a bygone era and hope it works out? Foolish, really.
fancyfredbot
University may not be the right choice for everyone but blanket advice against a degree is not well thought out.
There are medical, legal, financial, engineering, and educational jobs out there which require a degree.
Yes the job market is competitive, but all the evidence I've seen suggests building a business is even harder.
keiferski
A person of modest or lower means should probably go into the trades. Electricians aren’t getting replaced by ChatGPT anytime soon.
financltravsty
The market is as competitive, the pay much worse, and the conditions -- barring the good grace of ability to getting into a union -- much worse!
jvanderbot
Software probably isn't the ticket to life changing riches it once was, but it's still a good enough career with good working conditions regular demand and broad appeal. Importantly I feel that general software dev is just levelling out around the career options for other similarly educated career tracks. Why we expected this track to always be a millionaire maker is beyond me.
Go into surveying? You can fly drones around, be outside, use cool software, do real work, and have a decent middle class lifestyle.
keiferski
I wouldn’t go to university...[instead just learn to code and build a business online making $5k a month.](paraphrased.)
This is bad advice if you're truly seeking to be educated, rather than merely be trained for a job. The problem with self-education is that you'll only ever gravitate toward things that you find interesting or useful. Which is probably just fine if all you care about is making a basic living doing something you enjoy.
But, if you're interesting in learning, there is a lot of value in basically being forced to do difficult things that you don't necessarily enjoy doing in the moment. I might even call this skill a requirement for adulthood, which is full of such situations.
Of course, don't go into serious debt for it, but that's a different question. The value of an education shouldn't be primarily financial in the first place.
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gmuslera
This was written in 2016. 10 years later a lot of things changed, and a lot of back then seemingly good ideas could had turned bad by now.
But there are some things that are valid. Learning, understanding, try to fit it all together, as broad as you can, that keeps working. Being mindful, not overspend, don't get pulled by social trends, and train critical thinking also goes for most times.
But I would give some space to make some (not critical) mistakes. If you survive to them and they don't add a bad weight in your future they work as learning too.
dasil003
How old was this guy in 2016, because it kinda reads like advice from a 25 year old. Not terrible advice by any means but definitely reflective of a specific influencer type of mindset that may or may not apply to other young people. Not everyone is cut out to build online businesses, and while it’s never been more accessible to young people, it’s never been more competitive and hard to get attention.
the_real_cher
Keep in mind, this person lives with their parents.
namaljayathunga
What do you do (Study/ Job) if you were a 16 now (Gen AI Era).
pjc50
> "In terms of income, I’d try to set up some little online business that gets you about $5k/m"
Ah yes, simple easy life advice that every citizen can follow.
The rest of this .. some is pretty good, especially about not just focusing on computers but on people, but even now I think the "don't go to university" is hugely controversial because a lot of employers do look at qualifications.
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zabzonk
Actually:
> if I was 18 in 2016.
but I suppose equally (or more?) applicable now.
jgyter
This could literally ruin your life. He's lucky he's not 18 now.
roflmaostc
> capitalist slave system.
Half of the article is based around making money and saving money. This is exactly the capitalist system you are playing.
What about doing a job which brings joy and pays the costs while living a nice life. There is many of those jobs.
"Advice is like mushrooms. The wrong kind can prove fatal."
This advice is bright red with white spots on it.
The wisdom includes: Don't go to university. Set up an online business that makes 5k/month without requiring you to work too much. Oh, and visit a strip club for some reason.