Posts by Richard Lewis16

Look, we’ve all had our fair share of misses, whether it was messing up the planning or just lacking the guts to take that next big leap when it mattered most...
folks, we really

boldnomad45, and it wasn't even just about that—it was about signing up for those advanced graduate courses later on (which is what happened with those guys), because those extra credits can really give you an edge...
I mean, honestly, those guys actually wanted to build something meaningful; there was even a group that tried to optimize some industrial machinery (students, too) but they spent an entire month just trying to get eyes on the equipment because, well, the paperwork and bureaucracy in this country can slow everything down...
but hey, they can always put on their resumes that they lived and worked on a project out in Bolivia, which definitely jumps off the page and gives them a leg up...

The biggest upside for me, though, is that people get to see the world and experience different cultures without having to blow through a massive amount of cash...

boldnomad45 said:Parents? Or maybe some of those European Union handouts meant for eternal students. Massive bureaucracies need things to do, and "lifelong learning" is one of their favorite distractions—study, travel, blah, blah. If you're young, have a decent family, and aren't exactly run-of-the-mill, you can live like this on weird scholarships for projects like studying dam impacts on frogs in Bolivia, or smog effects on butterfly communities in Peru, or just riding horses in Mongolia.http://www.chicagotribune.com/us/news/researching-bolivia-945808Some lucky souls get to research stuff in Switzerland or London and actually live well off it.

🤣🤣🤣
You're honestly spot on, though it wasn't Americans I was hanging out with, just three French guys I used to run with
They were basically living off European Union funds and various grants for six months down in Bolivia, working on this program about frog breeding—which basically meant they spent their time trying to get certain types of frogs to mate
And when I say "working," well, in Bolivia that usually meant showing up maybe three days a week if they weren't stuck being glued to a lab bench, but even then, they wouldn't be starting anything before 10 in the morning
Man, if only I were young and still a student again, and if only I had known these kinds of opportunities existed back then...
I really hope students here in the States are taking full advantage of these projects and exchange programs nowadays, because while I know plenty of examples where they do, it still feels pretty negligible compared to the total student population as a whole...

Michael Fisher2 said:In the headline 😁

American journalism👍

when the headline mentions something that isn't even in the actual story...
it’s just what happens when an author can't be bothered to actually write a title...

Look, I think the real issue here is that you actually need to practice some reading comprehension
Could you maybe point out the specific part where it says anything about them being a rock star?

And honestly, just looking at how you write, it’s pretty obvious you aren't an entrepreneur or running your own business... if you actually tried to build something of your own, you might understand why certain people deserve those positive profiles in the press

So you still haven't pointed out what exactly is untrue about the article?

It’s definitely polished up, though I don't think even the New York Times Company doesn't have its fair share of articles that are a bit... embellished...
Or take that story on some US news site one day about how this woman was dumped right before her wedding, and because of that, she ended up traveling the world, found true love with the journalist who wrote about her, and ended up pregnant...
It's all technically "true," it's just that there's a massive lack of detail regarding the darker parts of those few years...
But hey, that's just editorial discretion, deciding what makes the cut and what stays on the cutting room floor...
It's the same way any reporter could have completely flipped the script on someone like Elon Musk...
Painting him as some criminal who was just cutting corners...
Like how he might have secured a $10,000 loan as a young guy—which, honestly, how does that even happen when getting credit back then was such a nightmare? I know people who remember how impossible it used to be...
Maybe his parents pulled some strings to help him out...
Or how he exploited employees or used their assets, like driving someone else's car...
And so on...
See how much negativity there is? A skilled writer could have twisted this entire article into something totally different...

goldenhound32, are you an entrepreneur or something?
Look, speaking as someone who lived in America, I honestly feel like we should be seeing daily articles about people who manage to run a business successfully here for more than a couple of years...
Because if you ask me, that's a genuine miracle, and those people deserve all the credit in the world...

If you play your cards right and negotiate properly, you’ll still come out ahead
A smart person would probably pull together something like $165,000—maybe through a mortgage on a condo or a house—to set up representation and secure two solid locations... I’d personally aim for one high-traffic shopping mall in a place like Chicago and then somewhere coastal, maybe a beach town where you could lean into that classic Americana vibe with some local flair (you know, that true soul of the coast)... You’d get two machines, and if all goes according to plan, I’d expect to see a full return on investment within about two years
Just speaking in broad strokes, really

And for anyone else wondering what the actual deal is:

Look, I’m just saying... there’s someone out there who wants to make it big here in the States, be the first one to pull it off, so they can get all those headlines and become the next big thing... basically, I've stumbled onto an idea that’s going to hit the American market like a greasy breakfast burrito at 4 AM hits a hungry guy on a midnight run...

We're talking about 3D printing "photographs" of people, essentially turning portraits into physical objects...
All I'm asking for is a simple 15% cut of the monthly revenue to keep things moving...

Give me a few months, and I fully expect to see a massive feature story in a major outlet like The New York Times, with my name right there in the spotlight...🙂

If you're looking for info on the company she used to work at, you can just find her name on her LinkedIn profile 😉

rustywalker42 said:That’s exactly how I see it. Articles like this just trigger that exact reaction in people. They start wondering—wait, if that's an issue, then where exactly is my problem?

But read him again. Every single paragraph is just a list of "achievements." Seriously? Nobody gets that lucky. Not even the wealthiest people in the country. Look, I don’t mind an article being written, but at least make it realistic. Instead of acting like she's this self-made prodigy when she actually speaks six languages—including various regional dialects and English—and her millionaire parents sent her to school in New York City and have been bankrolling her entire life. That’s my point. This kind of fake PR creates this massive illusion of success that is nowhere near the truth.
That’s like saying you work at Google, then just conveniently forgetting to mention you're actually scrubbing dishes in the Google cafeteria. You didn't lie, per se. You just gave the truth a little makeover.

Yeah, that’s exactly what I was thinking too. 😁 Time to add Mexican to the list too. 😬

Someone actually caught on that those six languages are all from the same area...
it was probably English, Italian, Spanish, Chinese, and Portuguese...
When someone has a knack for languages, it isn't really that shocking, since Italian, Spanish, and Portuguese aren't that far apart... she likely met a ton of people who speak them too (not me, though, I have zero talent for languages and struggle just to pick up something new every few months)...
What do you mean wealthy old folks, when she was living on scholarships?
And as for the "successes," I think she just worked with some people and had a few photos published somewhere...
I mean, my photos get published sometimes too and they get plenty of likes, which might actually get more people to check out her band on YouTube collectively...

She was doing office management for some Chinese company years ago, so you spend money like crazy and naturally, you meet all sorts of people...
Even I, wandering around certain rougher parts of town, had the chance to hang out with two chefs who actually have those silly Michelin stars...
One of them cooked dinner for me a couple of times, so there goes the "success"...

In the American media, it’s either total worship or complete ruin, there’s rarely any middle ground...

Man, I'm defending her like she owes me something...😬
maybe I'll just go crash at her place if I ever head over to China...

I mean, if she’s been pulling gigs from China to New York for five years straight, then she’s clearly playing in a different league... 🙂
I don't really see how much of this is made up, especially since they actually cited specific magazines and names, which gives you plenty of stuff you could just look up yourself—and I’m trying to give her the benefit of the doubt here...
Besides, she’s obviously living her life, and honestly, I'd say she's successful enough, considering she's traveled the world and spent a few years working at some architecture firms that seem to have decent awards and solid portfolios, so I'll give her credit there...
It isn't exactly rocket science to just Google her or check out her Facebook page...
So, go ahead, tell me exactly which part you think is fabricated?

The same goes for her being talented, maybe that's why people noticed her and write about her "more," though if we're talking about an article popping up in an American newspaper once every two or three years, it's hardly breaking news...

It’s not just some morning news rag covering this lady, you know...
You can find an article about her on TechCrunch from a few years back, and if you dig even deeper, there’s stuff in the New York Post too...

And honestly, why would anyone feel sorry for her being over in China? If anything, it should be a wake-up call... I mean, if she could make it happen there, who's stopping me?

This whole thing just reeks of heavy pessimism and people constantly selling themselves short...
People like her really ought to be the blueprint for how anyone can actually make it if they give it a shot, which is exactly what that article felt like to me...

P.S. It’s true that there was a much better profile on that guy who started Icon, he was featured on some major business site recently...

I can't help but feel like the news media is just obsessed with those endless, tragic little sagas rather than stories like this one...

I’ve been talking mostly about men here...😬

But then again, I found this old article from 2015 on a news site, and back in 2012 she was listed as a contact person in some magazine...

Honestly, it’s probably just so they have a buddy in the media—you know, someone who might actually write about you if you write about them...
And hey, later on, you can always use that article to sell yourself as some kind of public figure... sort of like a little way to polish up your resume...

I’ve got my own share of TV interviews, a few guest spots on shows, various articles... and yeah, when people Google your name, most don't really dig deep into what's written—mostly because they don't understand half of it anyway—but they *do* see that you have media experience, just like you mentioned... it’s easy enough to verify on Google, which is much simpler than trying to call some HR department at a big corporation in the States...
It just lifts you out of the pile of all those other applications...

Traveling isn't even that big of a deal, really, and anyone can climb Machiavelli... even someone struggling for cash, unlike this guy who won't even pay for his ticket, and then he spends all his time posting photos of himself back home in the States...
https://www.facebook.com/futsaldinam...type=3&theater

Thomas Hernandez11 said:Anthony,
what is even the issue with this girl!?🙂

I honestly don't see why she couldn't pull it all off, especially after she moved abroad...
I mean, she surely had to be out there hustling somehow (since she clearly wasn't doing anything high-brow) in terms of networking and just rubbing elbows with the right people..
and like Richard Lewis16 said,
with a little bit of luck (which people always seem to forget when they succeed—they act like it was all their own selfish drive when, really, God played a part too),
natural talent, and a massive amount of hard work, I don't see a problem with who she is as a person.
Look, it’s not like she earned a PhD at MIT or even an engineering degree in Chicago... she's just one of those indie/artsy types...
Especially considering she probably only ever showed the "sunny side" of her life...😁
It's common knowledge that in the showbiz industry, everything runs on favors and connections, so I don't see any reason why people over there would be immune to that, frankly...

Besides, ending up in China as a pretty foreign woman carries its own price tag... which is obviously where she can maximize her value..😁

And beyond that, why are we even calling this a success story!?
By what metric is she considered "ultra-successful" (though I suppose she is)? There are thousands of girls just like her..
At the end of the day, everyone defines success differently..
I mean, at this rate, someone might declare Emma Dvornik a massive success just because she lives in London... give me a break...🤣
Or someone could have a kid and suddenly be considered successful... 👏

well, there actually is someone from America who ended up in that same generation that earned a PhD at MIT, I think they even teach there now, someone from the States...
back in college, they had issues with their professors, simply because they were too smart (winning all sorts of awards back in high school, etc.)...
I just doubt there will ever be a magazine article about them, even though they built a very successful career...

look, everything mentioned is possible, so why not...
you lose a scholarship, you land a killer internship—it's all just a factor of luck...
because maybe for that specific scholarship, she was the only one from America, and they just decided that particular year to give some underdog from the US a chance...
She probably had failures too, but she just doesn't list them here...
If a journalist were writing a positive profile about me, they’d only talk about my wins, they wouldn't mention the giraffe...
I got lucky, happened to be in the right place at the right time and met that person...
went over there and met the exact person who suggested it to me and I thought, why not...
etc.

anyway, personally, I believe...
and if you're even moderately attractive, you have about 130% more luck than I do...
ps + clearly she has a knack for languages (which I certainly don't), which makes things move a lot faster and easier for her...
I mean, her six months in Brazil and that writing about climbing Machu Picchu is nothing, that's purely touristy stuff; I once led an expedition to the southernmost point of South America, and there'll probably be an American flag with my greatness on it in a documentary airing in Australia...
and honestly, I didn't plan it, it just happened because I was working at a hostel where they were staying, and since they were waiting around, we hit it off and I just tagged along...
and of course, I'm not going to tell the newspapers that six months later my feet were absolutely destroyed and all that...

rustywalker42 said:Every other day there's some story about these super-mega-hyper-genius young prodigies who "made it." I usually just tune them out—honestly, I’ve always felt the same way about this stuff—but this one actually made me want to start a thread. 😁

http://www.nytimes.com/life/lifestyle-success-stories/5480043/

So, here's the deal: this woman speaks six languages, she's lived in every major cosmopolitan hub on the planet, she's got two master's degrees, and a PhD—all fully funded, mind you. Everyone just hands her stuff for free. The world's top designers and photographers are all begging to work with her; everything just lands in her lap without her even breaking a sweat. they just call her. On top of that, she sings in two massive Chinese pop bands and now, in her late 30s, she's performing with a symphony orchestra.

Oh, wait, forgot to mention: she's launching a luxury jewelry line because, you guessed it, they called her.

And again, totally slipped my mind: she's also designing a high-end furniture collection because, surprise, surprise, she was invited.

What I want to know is: what do you guys think of these stories? How much of this is actually real, and what's the point of them besides pure self-promotion and selling this illusion of success?

Or am I just some bitter loser who didn't "make it" and is now just here to spread envy on a forum? 😁

Well, she's 33, so she isn't exactly old (though I'm in those "old" years myself, so maybe I'm biased)

but look, she had talent, she had luck, and then she had the guts to go for it, and things just aligned...
I mean, it can definitely happen where someone offers you a great opportunity, and it happened to me once too; you just have to be lucky enough to be in the right place at the right time, and then have the balls to take the risk (kind of like how she describes it, an "informal interview," which basically means grabbing coffee to see if they like your vibe)
As for the singing thing, she’s white over there, so it’s kind of like how people in Hollywood are obsessed with certain stars, or how Chinese icons are huge in Colombia (heaven knows why)...
those Chinese stars literally get stopped on the street by people wanting photos, even the cops🤣🤣
but when we poor, miserable white guys ask to snap a photo, it's a no-go because we're "on duty," you see the badges and all that...
as for why they can do it, the answer is simply that they look like their colleagues🤣🤣
honestly, he couldn't have been any stupider

Honestly, why doesn't everyone just open accounts in Mexico, like so many people I know actually do, and then just run their whole operation through those cards instead?
Plus, if you happen to be in a tight spot, you could always just hit an ATM over in Canada to grab some cash since the exchange rates are easy... and that's really it.

It’s honestly so much more straightforward than dealing with all the headaches and red tape from American banks.

Karen Young said:Could someone please drop the lyrics and the melody for that new song they were singing on Friday?? I don't mind if you just shoot me a DM... thanks in advance

Well, you can actually find the melody over on their official Facebook page

Kudos to them for doing that, honestly... it really makes it so much easier to actually learn the songs and get them stuck in your head👍

I’ve been thinking about joining one of those solid sub-groups... where can I actually find the entrance to one?
What kind of membership fee are we talking about here?
And honestly, what do I actually get out of it?

I’m honestly convinced that yesterday's lackluster performance and that weird lack of energy from the crowd were all down to chemical interference... I swear I saw more planes flying over Yankee Stadium during the match than usual, and even that article seems to back up my theory

So, what did I miss?🍿 🍿🍿

I've been out of the loop for about six months or so, so I'm pretty much clueless regarding anything new...