职场生存：宁当鸡头，还是宁做凤尾？

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Balaji Viswanathan

If you have an option, look to join a place where you are around the 75th-85th percentile. Meaning join a place where you are better than most, but still have some competition at the top.
如果可以选择的话，找一个你的能力水平是介于75%-85%之间的工作环境会比较好。这意味着在公司里，你比大部分人都强，但不会是top1，因为总有人比你更牛。

You don’t want to join as an average because:
你肯定不会只想当个“平均数”：

1. It is very hard to stand out from the crowd when you are in the middle. In most organizations, you would not be taken seriously unless you are a noted performer. Corporations are there to make money & organizations typically focus their grooming energy on the very best.
   如果你的能力在团队中处于中等水平，那想要脱颖而出….呵呵，除非你耀眼似明星，否则谁会愿意搭理你。公司本就以盈利为宗旨，团队更是只绕着能力最优者转圈圈。

2. If you don’t stand out, you don’t get opportunities to prove yourself. You will be designated to do the low priority tasks. This is a vicious circle - no opportunity -> don’t stand out -> no opportunity.
   如果你不出挑，没人愿给你机会证明自身能力，你只能一直接手比较low的项目，然后陷入恶性循环：没机遇→不出众→没机遇。

3. You will never get the confidence to do bold things. Leaders need a mix of judgment and risk taking. They often have to boldly take decisions without knowing about it. If you are at the bottom of the barrel in your population, you would not get the confidence to do the mistakes necessary - you would be too self conscious given your mediocrity.
   这样下去你永远不会有信心去做大事。领导者需要的是选择判断力和风险掌控力，必须在危急关头做出决断。如果你一直庸庸碌碌，甘当炮灰，就锻炼不出运筹帷幄的自信，反倒是能一直“平庸”地清醒着。

4. Not being able to prove yourself when you really want to do so can leave you very stressed that would further lower your productivity - pushing you below average.
   当你想自我表现却始终不得法时，随之而来的焦虑困惑只会进一步降低你工作效率，使你落后更多人。

You don’t want to join at the top because:
你也别总想做top选手：

1. You will quickly get complacent.
   站得太高而洋洋自得

2. You would not have much to learn from.
   无限近顶峰则进步空间有限

3. If you are not challenged for too long, you would get blunt.
   长期安于现状导致止步不前。

4. If you are at the top, there would too many expectations that would prevent you from doing the mistakes that great leaders should.
   高处不胜寒，太多的期望会变成阻碍你的负担。你可能做出决策时不敢贸然变得小心翼翼；

5. You will get overconfident and can lose your judgement.
   也可能太过自负头脑发热，丧失基本判断力。

6. If you don’t have headroom to grow, the only possibilities are being stagnant or falling down. Neither are good.
   如果没有空间让你实现自我增值，唯一的可能就是停滞不前，甚至不断贬值，都是不利情况。

This is true whether you want to join a company or join a college. In short, never join as the average nor at the very top. Join somewhat close to the top, but with enough people above you to keep you hungry and enough opportunities to prove yourself.
不管是要进一个公司，还是去学校念书，这都是不变真理，通用准则。总之，不要泯然众人，也没必要高屋建翎。让自己站得高，却依旧有山外山让你锤炼，人外人让你追随。

Once you climb to the very top from that position.
有朝一日，你最终会当凌绝顶，要做的是：

1. hire people smarter than you
   招募更聪明的员工

2. groom people from your underlings
   尽力培训你的下属

3. look to fight the bigger fish.
   放更长的线，钓更大的鱼。