Our Best Posts on Career Development

Networking doesn't have to be icky and transcational. Here's how to do it from a place of generosity and connection.

If you're a first-time manager, this guide is for you. It covers communication, leadership, 1:1s, training and more.

Here’s an embarrassing little confession. I’ve been using Rogaine since I was 22. Well, while that is true, what I really wanted to share was that I was a Computer Science major in college. A really sh*tty one, racking up mostly Cs and a few Bs. I did not embrace the suck and have never […]

I like streaks. Here are a few of my favorites: 15 years of exercising 5 days a week. 1,700 days of surfing since 2018. And then there’s one that’s about to end. 400 weekly essays. Yup, I’ve run out of things to write about. Well, sort of. New to RadReads? Hi, I’m Khe Hy. Nearly […]

Is it just me or does adulthood seem backwards? You work extremely hard to buy that house and load up your 401k and 529s. There’s an obvious trade-off — your youthful energy. You put hobbies aside. Your blood pressure goes up. You miss a lot of bath times and weekday snuggles. You miss the Magic […]

When I was 21 years old I had two finance jobs. Well, technically I had one job – but two incomes. I was working as a trading assistant at Fisher Investments. And my investment banking job had paid me (ahem, deferred me) to take the year off. It was 2001 and I was making close […]

Why is making time for hobbies so tough? Uncover the secrets of an "Octopus Day" and finding balance between work and personal interests.

There are some time-tested career trajectories that you don’t want to mess with. Getting a Computer Science degree from Harvard and then a job at a top-tier Venture Capital firm is one of them. (Not to mention, Division 1 rowing.) But sometimes you feel a pull. Something awakens in your soul. You need to do […]

I’ve worked with many folks who have left 7-figure W-2 jobs. First, they were greeted with a blast of euphoria. The euphoria then fades into a messy middle. Then you’re left at a crossroads. There’s a lesson for all of us at this juncture. New to RadReads? Hi, I’m Khe Hy. Nearly a decade ago […]

Meet Dr. Goobie. He’s a sweet (MIT-educated) neurosurgeon in his 30s. And he just quit his job. The decision was the byproduct of poor health, broken incentives, the lack of time freedom and career-driven existential angst. Goobie quit without a plan, overcoming the “sunk cost fallacy” of med school and residency. And in this viral […]

I turned 45 on Monday. If you believe actuarial estimates, I’ve lived 60.3% of my life. A solid (but daunting) 39.7% remains. I’ve worked my butt off. Taken big risks. Tinkered with what’s possible. And smiled a lot. Here are 45 things I’ve learned along the way. New to RadReads? Hi, I’m Khe Hy. Nearly […]

I used to be a very busy boy. Jacked up on Dunkin’ Donuts Hazelnut coffee and a mini-fridge full of Diet Coke, I would plow through jam-packed days. I dug up an old calendar. 5:30 am wake up. Double breakfast. A hard Crossfit workout on 6 hours of sleep. Meetings galore. And usually a work-related […]

People hate the term networking. They hate it so much that they want to take a shower after participating in the activity. In one study, networkers were more likely to complete a sentence with “cleansing” words like “shower”, “wash”, and “soap.” And in another, people who considered attending a business networking event rated cleansing products […]

“You Americans are just wired differently.” I was with one of my French cousins, reminiscing about our summer trips to the South of France. Our families would spend two weeks together for nearly 20 years. My cousin remembered how he wanted to do 13-year-old kid stuff. Like sleep in, play Gameboy and read a few […]

“Everyone knows that if a child’s parents dies, the child will suffer with sadness and loss. No one thinks about this being the case when a child loses a parent to success.“ These two sentences hit like a ton of bricks. Success is usually paired with accolades, promotions and a financially “good life.” Things that […]

Two merchants are competing at a market. An angel comes and offers the first merchant any outcome he wants. But there’s one caveat. The competitor gets double. The angel explains: “You earn 5 gold bars; they get 10.” “You own one ship; they’ll own two.” “You live to be 100; they live to 200.” The […]

My stomach felt nauseous. My temples were throbbing. Sweat beads were forming. “I can’t believe I’m going to do this,” I muttered to myself. I handed the cashier my two items. A half gallon of milk and a bar of dark chocolate. “That’ll be nine dollars and thirty-three cents,” he said politely – completely unaware […]

An Investment Banker takes a trip down to Mexico where he meets a local fisherman. The banker brings the fresh fish back to his villa and it’s the most delicious fish he’s ever tasted. The banker comes back the next morning with a question. “Why do you only fish 2 hours a day?” he asks. […]

He used to receive knickers in the mail from smitten fans. (Translation: women’s undergarments.) Then it all stopped. The fans started mailing him bullets. They burned an effigy of him in front of his parents’ house. They spit on him in the streets. After a controversial red card in the 1998 World Cup, David Beckham […]

Imagine you could build your identity using Lego bricks. One component at a time. Ivy League degree? Ya smart cookie! Marathon runner? What a resilient fella! Board member? Soooo charitable. TriBeCa apartment? Cha-ching. Now let’s smash it to the ground with sledge hammer. Are you OK? The curious case of Andrew Luck Andrew Luck had […]

At age 50, Ichiro Suzuki just pitched a shutout – against a team of high school girls. The former outfielder (and future hall of famer) took to the mound for an exhibition game. He’s known to be obsessive about baseball – refusing to let go since he first picked up a mitt 47 years ago […]

Where do you go after you slayed the rap game? Sporting a Gucci turtleneck and a cashmere trench coat, Snoop Dogg made his debut on the Big L. We’re talking LinkedIn, baby. “I’m not just an artist. I’m a force to be reckoned with,” says the D-O-double-G. Is this how gangsters roll? Or is it […]

There once was young warrior who had to battle fear. She was nervous. Fear was aggressive and mighty. “How can I defeat you?” she asked. Fear replied: “My weapons are that I talk fast.I get very close to your face.Then you get completely unnerved and do whatever I say.If you don’t do what I tell […]

Ari Emanuel is a Hollywood rainmaker. He reps The Rock, Oprah and Martin Scorcese. He orchestrated mega-deals to acquire the WWE and UFC. In 2021, he earned an eye-popping $300 MM in total compensation. And he’s a notoriously intense networker. He makes up to 300 check-in phone calls each day. While that sounds terrible (and […]

“I took a red-eye to New York for a 45-minute meeting.” Absurd, we both agreed. My friend’s a partner at a “Big 3” consulting firm. 22 people flew from across the country for this meeting. He’s 43 with 3 kids under the age of 7 and lives in LA. (So smack in the middle of […]

Leaving Wall Street cost me $900,000. Yup, the “Golden Handcuffs” are real. Bonuses are deferred. So by definition you leave money on the table. At 35, I said f** it. I want to own my time, surf every day & watch my kids grow up. 8 years later, I’m still standing. I’ve learned a lot […]

“We have no idea what the world will look like when we wake up tomorrow.” It was late Sunday night, September 14, 2008. Lehman Brothers had just filed for bankruptcy. And when the markets re-opened on Monday, it was going to be a bloodbath. And indeed it was. 401ks were eviscerated. 9 million people were […]

Guys, I screwed up. I left Wall Street at 35 without a plan. I was constantly told: “You’re throwing away your Peak Earning years.” The haters were right. I’m now 43 and my net worth is exactly the same as it was at 35. I screwed up my retirement. And that’s great news. It’s time […]

Summers were always a fertile season for productivity. We spent them in France and I came prepared. SAT flash cards.A “Beginner’s Guide to HTML” book.Ankle weights to spice up the workouts. Then at night we’d go get ice cream. But there was a problem. The Ice Cream shop was closed. For the ENTIRE MONTH. Where […]

Are you a green bubble or a blue bubble? You know what I’m talking about. Even if you use WhatsApp. Heck, you’ve probably denied someone entry into your group chat because of the green bubble. (Our surf group has displayed this savage behavior – so I’m not above it.) The green bubble is a red flag […]

“How did you go bankrupt?” Two ways. Gradually, then suddenly.” Life can come atcha pretty quickly. (At least according to Ernest Hemingway.) And while RadReads is far from bankrupt. And I ain’t broke – in January of 2023 our business got hit by a quadruple-whammy. Yes, a mere 55 days after my proudest moment as […]

There’s a special kind of playdate reserved for tiny children. These playdates usually go until age 2. It’s called “parallel play.” The two kids play in the same room, but independently. Parallel Play is an on-ramp for socialization. TIL that a similar concept exists for older men. They’re called Men’s Sheds and according to the […]

In 2007, they handed me the keys to the castle. Well, not exactly — but at 28 years old I became a manager for the first time. I went from having to worry only about myself as an IC to grooming new college graduates, injecting myself into corporate politics and managing colleagues who were much […]

It’s been a hard year for bankers. The New York Times’ headline: For Many Wall Street Bankers, This Year’s Bonus Season Is a Bust. Reuters reported that bonuses would be down “40-50%.” Yes, life at the Panerai store must be hard in 2023. And while percentages are fun. What do these numbers mean in actual […]

“Nobody works, nobody gives a damn.” These were the words of Bernie Marcus, the co-founder of Home Depot. In a recent interview with the Financial Times, the nonagenarian (yup, “ninety year old”) criticized today’s workers and their risk-taking capabilities. Marcus questioned the broader implications this laissez faire attitude had for capitalism. So, shhhhh, let’s not […]

Would you rather have 5 people or 5,000 people at your funeral? I find this question to be quite problematic. My rational, logic-seeking brain says: “Dude, you’re dead. Who cares?” It then says: “As long as it’s your loved ones, great!” But then my chest gets tense. My heart beats faster. There’s a pit in […]

One of the most savage defensive plays in the NBA is the blocked shot. Better known as the rejection. For the uninitiated, a player (on offense) will try to shoot the basketball. And they wait for that swoosh. Unfortunately, a defensive player is there to greet them. And swat that sh** away from the basket. […]

When the markets tank, I start acting in odd ways. I vividly remember the last time this happened. It was the 3rd quarter of 2020. Day after day, the market would be down. Down 2%. Down 7%. Down 5%. (BTW, even with this drawdown, what a 5 year run!) It didn’t seem like there was […]

Meet Vivek Murthy, the US surgeon general. Aka America’s Doctor. As “the leading spokesperson on matters of public health,” past surgeon generals have opined on safe sex, Zika, COVID-19 and – of course – smoking cigarettes. So I was shocked to see the Surgeon General wade into the debate about work. Well, toxic work specifically. […]

I did something crazy this week. I flew down to Mexico by myself for a 4 day surf trip. No kids. No wife. Fish tacos every day. A $90 a night hotel room with youth hostel vibes. And tons of surfing. Now here’s the crazy part. It’s only the second trip I’ve taken “for fun” […]

“It’s like herding cats.” That’s how a friend recently described being a manager.  Jerry Colonna (aka the CEO Whisperer) has his own pithy take on what makes management tricky:  We’re just bags of chemicals.  Yup. And as a manager we need to get these bags of chemicals to “click.” Now don’t get me wrong. Management is […]

Sneaker heads know all about “the drop.” New Yorkers have watched (with both bewilderment and scorn) as young men lined up outside the Supreme store for the the 2002 Nike SB Dunk collection. Then there’s the Travis Scott x Jordan 1s “drop” that now trade on Sneaker exchanges at the eye-popping price of $1,170. This […]

View this post as a Tweetstorm. There is such thing as a free lunch. A win-win-win situation. All it takes is a 30 second email and poof. When executed correctly, it will unleash a torrent of job opportunities, business partnerships, and consulting work. Heck, maybe even a romantic relationship. But there’s a catch: this magic […]

She’s a 73 year old chain-smoking cat lady with frizzy blonde hair. You’ve never heard of her. And she runs the world from her big empty house in the North Side of Chicago. Her name is Lois Weisberg. You may remember her from Malcolm Gladwell’s The Tipping Point (and Weisberg has since passed away), in which […]

A friend once told me they used set recurring daily reminder to read more. “Come on,” I responded, “that would be like putting having sex on your to-do list.” Paying your rent, filling out school applications and scheduling annual physicals are tasks. Making love, exercising, and sleeping more (maybe the three form a compelling bundle?) are […]

This post first appeared on Instagram over @radreadsco. Ascending the corporate ladder can involve an alphabet soup of options. There’s T vs. I-shaped professionals, a concept pioneered by design guru and IDEO CEO Tim Brown. For the wonkier free-agent types, there’s the semicolon-shaped person coined by blogger Venkatesh Rao. These frameworks all seek to reconcile the perceived trade-off between […]