Tell someone how you got in
Careers look like merit from outside and like luck and contacts from inside. Saying so out loud helps someone enormously.
The BeingKind editorsPublished How this is written
Why it lands
People outside a field assume entry is meritocratic and conclude their own struggle reflects inadequacy. Insiders know how much was accident, timing and a specific person who made an introduction, and they rarely say it, because the merit story is more flattering. Telling the real version is genuinely useful information about how to proceed, and it is unusually generous to give.
How
Give the actual chain of events, including the parts that were luck and the person who vouched for you. Name the thing you would not have known to ask for. Then be that person for them if you can.
This is part of
A written list of what else helps in the same situation.
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