Personal capital

This is one of those blog entries that is about a specific person, and one that is VERY unlikely to ever read it. But it helps me.

I was in grad school in Houston and this smart guy named Tom was talking to my other friend Cath and I over beers at the hotel on campus. He noted how few grad students and profs understood the concept of personal capital, especially when they were dealing with the underpaid and overworked office staff. Those women put up with all sorts of egos and idiots, and the smart people were those who recognized their work and treated them with respect and care. They may not be able to pass your thesis, or get you published, but they could certainly make your life miserable. Most of the grad students and profs, concluded Tom, were deficit spenders.

Tom was right and continues to be right. Some people continue to act as if they have a lot of capital when they are in deep deficit. That may be the real definition of jackass.