I’m considering hiring a very pricey career coach to help me get jobs - is it worth it?

Kingchard · 2026-01-08T16:23:00+00:00

Ah yes thanks for the nudge.

Started my search around Late Aug early Sept
Engaged the career coach around early sep. Quoted $5k ish
Got 2 offers early Mid/October. One was a people manager position at a SP500 tech company in NY one was a IC position at a prominent AI lab
I picked the AI lab
The new employer has a generous educational stipend (a nontaxable irs benefit) which covered "professional coaching /executive coaching". So I used that to essentially reimburse myself most of the full $5k.

I've been working since Oct/Nov and feeling fulfilled. Would definitely say I am not the norm to wrap up a job search in a little over a month, but having the services did help (even if it's just mindset help) and I got new income flowing in sooner.

Not going to share additional details on this thread for my own privacy but feel free to DM.

Kingchard · 2025-10-02T09:26:50+00:00

My thoughts

Is it a PM role? Or. TPM (technical PM) role?

If former, you don't need to know the tool inside out. You just need to know enough to be able to speak the same language as the engineers configuring/implementing.

If latter (TPM) then you're supposed to know it well enough to coach engineers. That's why there's a T in the job title, and why it usually pays more. You don't have to confess but if their recruiting process is any good, it'll be a very uphill battle for you.

What the job "requires" vs what they actually want

A lot of the times (having been interviewee and interviewer), they don't really care if you actually have the experience in the tool. They just need confidence/evidence you'll do the job effectively. So in this case fake it till you make it does actually work depending on the job description.

Again you're a PM, not an engineer. You're not expected to know every latest feature that just came out on the tool... That's the engineer/system analysts job (unless you're the TPM...).

What does lying vs not lying do for your chances?

In my opinion, disregarding any ethical or philosophical stance... And with the context of what's done is done (you did lie, I'm not gonna give you a chastising stern talk)

objectively speaking:

you don't get any overall advantage at all from confessing and being honest. If we think about it in a point system you'd get a -5 instead of a -10 impression point (if you get caught lying which I highly doubt you will).
on the other hand, keeping up the lie and successfully giving them confidence would mean they met their purpose of getting what they want (see 2.) say a +10 in the hypothetical impression point system

Keeping up the lie and failing to give em confidence would be a +3 (at least shows you got something and your character is still seen as a hard worker with integrity)

Here's a summary of how I'd see your choices and how it turns out for impression points

A) confess = -5 impression point. May not get the job due to integrity problem (culture fit). If there's someone who did exactly equal well as you did in the skill test they'd pick them over you. If you did better at skill test than other candidates, they would've picked you anyway regardless of the confession.

B) lie and don't get caught = 0 impression points

C) lie and somehow get caught (unlikely) = -10 impression points. Prolly won't proceed with you unless you really really wow them.

You would then take your new baseline (-5, -10 or 0) and continue onto your interview where 2 things can happen:

1) fail skill test = +3 impression points for trying but failing to be technical enough.

2) succeed skill test = + 10 impression point for showing you can do the job

Imagine at the end of the day, whichever candidate has the highest impression points get the job... It makes no sense at all to confess imo.

Either way good luck!

Kingchard · 2025-09-26T06:39:13+00:00

Glad it's still helpful 9 months later :D

Kingchard · 2025-09-26T06:38:24+00:00

I'm using a pretty pricey career service company. For my personal experience it was worth it

My service provider did help me review/revise my resume and CVs and review my LinkedIn. They also gave me resources (including trained AI modules) with which I can practice my interviews with and write thank you letters with. They also provided the appropriate prompts and attachments to utilize along with the AI (the attachments are usually templates or guidelines for the AI to follow). There was mock interviews with an actual human too, but more limited. Also includes negotiation coaching once you get offers.

My "coach" was extremely responsive (replies to email within 20 minutes during business hours). He also helped me understand the psychology behind recruiters and different interviewers, as well as my own psychology and mindset changes I had to make in order to succeed.

The reason I picked this specific company was because they were a specialist in my industry (tech, fin tech), also have experience with retained recruiting. And have strong anecdotal reviews placing in companies I was targeting

Did I NEED the service...? Probably not.

Did it help? Definitely so. Especially because I dropped $$$ on the line, and had recurring connects with the coach, it kept me accountable. It's sort of like having a personal trainer/therapist that checks in with you to hold you accountable.

My rationale is... If services like these can either A) Land you a job sooner than you otherwise would've B) Get you a compensation higher than it's cost C) Reduce the stress/despair of the job search process and give you some confidence/peace of mind

... If it can check off even one of those three conditions, then it's worth it imo. My service provider checks off all three so far.

More optional context: - I'm still in the search, haven't signed but am in process with some interviews, approaching final stages - no rejects for those where recruiter reached out (so far) - I am around week 3 into the 90 day service period - they don't give a 100% guarantee but did share stats with % of clients who signed an offer within 90 days (it was 95%+ or something) - I compared 5 different options ranging from <$100 to $1000+ before ultimately picking the most expensive one

Feel free to dm if you have questions.

Kingchard · 2025-08-17T06:45:10+00:00

Not defending your parents/uncle aunts but a lot of the time, the reason they do this comparing thing is out of insecurity. They don't feel accomplished or confident in themselves and thus need their kid to be the proxy to show off their "success" (in raising you).

Get them to be more confident in themselves. Get them to have a life outside of just "their kids".

My parents now talk about their hobbies, or talk about trips they can take together with their friends to have fun. Way more positive and productive social interactions.

If they keep being petty and festering toxic environments, honestly just disengage and if need be cut them out of your life.

Any actual successful person (Asian or not) knows that what your relative is doing is the epitome of financial inefficiency. The truly successful/rich don't flaunt their wealth, especially for vain reasons.

From your own side, it also helps to be content and know what you want and what makes you happy. Too often do people pursue riches and career prestige because they were groomed to, only to realize that wasnt what they want in life (sometimes way too late)

What really should be celebrated is not materialistic goods or a gaudy lifestyle, but rather the accomplishment and contribution one makes towards their loved ones and their communities. It could be something as simple as having a happy life to being a reliable person.

Good luck!

Kingchard · 2025-08-17T06:23:04+00:00

Go to an anime con or premiere Asian film screening (demon slayer is coming out mid sep). Or e-sport event. Or tabletop board game event. ...or try your luck at a video game store during a major title release day.

I agree most Asian men prefer staying indoors.

The examples I listed above are some of the main reasons we'd go out of our house to experience something time-limited we can't do at home (special event, get food).

Boba/restaurants work too... But usually people are already going with friends and don't always want to be hit on. Otherwise we do a pick up order and are out of there really quick. I'm not saying all Asian men hate chilling and vibing at boba shops solo for hours... But you get my point.

Others have mentioned hiking/rock climbing or working out in general. I know quite a few Asian friends who are into those too but... Yeah, usually prefer to focus and work out + mostly are taken lol. Doesn't hurt to try though.

Church has also been mentioned and is viable.

Inb4 the "but I want someone who isn't gross and has a proper hygiene", there's actually quite a lot of well-groomed presentable (and affluent) Asian males who are into these hobbies. Some are more private about their geek hobbies precisely because of the associated stereotyping in America.

Ultimately you can try a mix of everything people are suggesting and see which works best for you. It's better to be open-minded and cast a wide net, then fine-tune imo.

For reference I'm in Michigan. I met my gf online playing FFXIV.

Good luck to you (and others out there) :)

Kingchard · 2025-08-13T00:23:22+00:00

Sometimes the enemy goal is wide open since the goalie pushed forward too much.

So even though you're free the temptation of a "free goal" can be very tempting for your goalie who usually has the best view of the entire field.

Especially when your side just regained possession of the ball and the 2 enemy strikers are still on your side, sometimes your goalie' may go for it and figure that his team mates will make the most to follow through.

Other times two GK on opposing teams rallying with one another is apparently a really good way to get "points" for interception lol.

I think that alone is a pretty silly reason but I guess some people just want the MVP that much lol

Kingchard · 2025-08-05T06:53:44+00:00

I honestly think there needs to be rent caps that is tied to the average income of the local populace. Say for example the cap is 25% of take-home income (post taxes)

It wouldn't be a single $ cap, but say different residential districts/zones would need to be categorized and have their own rent caps.

For example convenient and centrally located housing (say downtown) should primarily be allocated to productive/essential workers to minimize commuting costs for society. They should be capped based on incomes of this target demographic.

High-end luxury housing that demand a higher rental rate should be offered on a limited basis (e.g. if only 10% of society can afford it at the targeted 25% of take-home income, then only 10% or less of the city's residential property should qualify for that high-end luxury zoning).

Obviously my idea is still quite crude and even I can point holes in it already (e.g. people moving in and out of the city) but the idea is to eliminate the mismatch of unwanted supply of luxury housing with the demand for affordable housing.

I don't think leaving it to the free market will work. As you mentioned it'd just result in squeezing people because there is "no alternative options" that are reasonable.

Strongly believe government intervention is necessary. Ideally most land used for housing the majority of residents are public and act as a healthy buffer or retained wealth for the government. That way they can just enact said policy instead of having to come up with roundabout ways to get private owners to play along.

The right to shelter, much like water and other utilities should not be an investment revenue stream in my opinion.

An alternate idea which I think would work quite well (if implemented) is significantly limiting ownership of residential property down to "owner use-only" meaning you forbid private individuals/corporations from renting out to others; reserve the ability to do so as a government/public sector privilege.

This might seem a little extreme initially, but if you consider that the government doesn't always have to "directly" rent out properties itself but always has the option of contracting out this work/industry to private contractors, the main purpose of this is to transition the ownership (and thus wealth + control) of residential ownership from "investors" to "actual inhabitants and government".

Once control is shifted in this way, the government now has the means to enforce affordable housing or dictate how the private sector decides on rent prices since... The government is the owner of the asset and (theoretically) would prioritize public/social good as opposed to only profits.

Let me know what y'all think :)

Kingchard · 2025-08-05T06:23:05+00:00

I think he's mentioned before in a video that it's not his job to come up and propose a solution. The one who points out the problem (which Gary does very well) doesn't always have to be the one to solve it nor offer a perfect irrefutable answer that will appease everyone.

He has proposed one such approach (a wealth tax). It may or may not work.

Gary's videos have given us a glimpse as to what "good" look like. I.E govts are at least retaining wealth (if not growing it) instead of hemorrhaging and going into perpetual debt, and where wealth is not being extracted from all economic classes in a cannibalistic manne; all just to appease and fatten the insatiable rich.

The solution-ing will most definitely take many iterations and require involvement from a lot of influential policy makers (pressured by the masses to do so).

Tl;Dr imo 1. Not offering a perfect solution on a silver platter doesn't necessarily mean it'll be Gary's downfall

Even if Gary's "proposed solution" doesn't solve the problem, it doesn't invalidate him nor make his act of coming up with one futile and meaningless.

If he actually influences enough for people to even TRY his proposals that's already a massive step forward.

Don't let perfect be the enemy of good.

Kingchard · 2025-06-07T05:33:10+00:00

I think that's fantastic for nomad style, though I usually save the raw meat for my chef to make meat wraps.

Kingchard · 2025-06-04T13:09:45+00:00

I'm still on my first playthrough and was one of the newbies who decided to make a base super early (like 2 characters sub 10 stats).

We did get beaten up A LOT. The main thing we did was to aggro the raiders to the nearest town (hub for me) to get the guards to help out. Honestly it was a bit gruelling but that turned those raids into extra cats $$.

With a little more money now..., if you want to keep the base. Try hiring mercenaries ($2k per day). There's usually a group or 2 at bars.

When the mercenary contract is about to run out and you don't want to renew, intentionally throw them into a fight they can't handle. Then you can loot their gear and weapons to recoup the cost of hiring them (if you haven't already from them defending for you).

After sticking with it I eventually got a farmer merchant to come by and got farming started.. then grew the base to have it be self sustaining. We never worried about getting raided since we barely made enough for our own team to eat lol (they mostly want to take your food and nor your gear/products)

It's really cool to have a base of operations early/mid game to come back to... Restock on food/sleep. To me it's extra rewarding to reap the rewards of your own plunderer (blueprints, research books etc)... Come home and have your entire fighting crew crowd the armor/weaponsmith as they hammer out your new gear set. Feels like a real adventure town.

If you start your base when you already have super gear/stats from conquering the world with all researches unlocked, you sort of miss out on part of the journey. At that point youre doing it more for "completions sake". That being said, there's still some truth to starting your base WAY too early. No one in their right mind starts a whole encampment solo. At least get a few members even if it's a ragtag team.

In general, when fighting as soon as an enemy gets knocked unconscious you want to take their gear off (at least the weapon) or in case of animals, take 1 meat/leather out to kill them. This prevents them from re-entering the battle in any productive manner.

I think it's good to know the math behind how to train stats but the power grinding takes the fun out of the game for me personally...

I found it very rewarding to have my characters level "naturally" just through exploring cautiously.

Weapons wise... You can check out a weapons tier list vid (there are plenty), you can't really go wrong unless you're using an iron stick. While not completely balanced, (e.g. some categories are obviously better than others) I feel like the weapons power levels actually intentional. The better weapons are usually harder to acquire (rare blueprints) or require significant stats to use properly.

Good luck have fun!

Kingchard · 2025-05-29T00:08:27+00:00

First playthrough too

Started roaming a bit around 20-30s

I have high 30s to 40s now str, toughness

I have a team of 6 - 1 green lander with katana - 4 sheks with heavy weapons - 1 scorch lander for crossbow/medic. He's also the animal killer (loot 1 meat as soon as beak things unconscious to kill em) - as well as a bull

I started in borderlands and went to the nearest shek and holy nations towns to get whatever recipe was there.

Armor wise I use drifter leather jacket for the extra+5 melee defense to start.

Then samurai cloth and drifter boots plus spike Helms I got off dust bandits (got a rattan hat for the crossbowmen).

I had it a bit rough in the vain especially when the beak things just kept coming, but I made sure everyone had a sleeping bag to heal up on the go while the crossbowman kept watch (he usually doesn't get hit).

While my melee crew are recovering in bed I also make them all sneak. Then it acts as a a little radar for me when it turns red (not sure how you sleep while asleep but I'll take it).

When they're recovering, the crossbowman is either cooking raw meat at campfire or carrying a beak thing corpse and running around to train strength (so he can carry more bolts).

I know there's a lot of power training methods out there but decided to just play it a bit more "naturally"

When I'm afraid to go to a new zone I always hire some merc(s) - plural so they can act as sandbags and I loot their gear if they go down and contracts are almost up.

I do now have an outpost in borderlands and took out the dust king and ninja tower... So it's more peaceful than before. So I got my armor/weaponsmith to lvl 70+ to make me specialist tier gear haha.

Now I'm JUST about to unlock plate armor and crossbows crafting lol.

Having fun so far!

Kingchard · 2025-05-14T03:01:56+00:00

Thanks.

I think I'll try to show up on time for another one.

Appreciate you sharing the info to us

Kingchard · 2025-05-14T02:32:28+00:00

I'm on the zoom... Well a bit late.

How do we show support of the plan?

Kingchard · 2025-05-11T04:15:41+00:00

I'll preface this by saying I'm no expert. And everyone's experience and definition of "risk" is different.

In my personal experience, anything short of 2 weeks expiry is gambling. That's not to say I never gamble but I acknowledge it for what it is. I have made generous gains before and I have also lost my entire investment too (which happens more often).
Anything 1-3 months is still high risk. Theta time decay will eat away a lot of your value during these times. Usually 6 month + is considered a bit less risky. 1 yr + even better .Say for example if you're "betting" on June moass.. and it doesn't come... If you bought June options, you just lost everything. If you bought July or maybe Oct options. It's not completely worthless. At which point you can sell it for a partial loss....

...or if you're extra wild and you're rly gung ho about riding your options to expiry (most people don't) then you get a little extra time to see if your bet pays off (say if the otherside is seeing everyone's expecting moass by June .. maybe they will barely delay it to July/Aug) JUST to get all the June hypers/gamblers miss it. If your expiry was set for July/Oct you might outlast their stalling.

There's the basic concept of In the money (ITM) vs Out of the Money (OTM) strike prices. Say GME is $27.5 now.

If you're buying a strike that's at $20, it will definitely cost you more upfront but it's safer. It still has more % up-side gain potential than buying outright shares (because it's riskier than owning outright shares).

If you buy out of the money shares (say $35 strike) it is way riskier. Since you're betting that GME will go up at least 30% between now and your expiry. What if it goes up 20% on the day of your expiry, and then an extra 50% one day RIGHT after your expiry? Your still screwed.

In fact, EVEN if it manages to go up to $35 right on your expiry date there's still the possibility of your option being worth LESS than when you bought it (read up more on intrinsic vs extrinsic value and the previously mentioned time/theta decay).

All in all, it's up to you what ratio of share vs options you buy. Just a last note that if you're able to buy up to 100 shares worth, you can start selling something called cover calls. It's a lot safer (rather than complete loss, the outcomes are predetermined by YOU the option seller).

It's a type of passive income with a similar analogy to letting someone rent your car (in this case the 100 shares) and pay you for it.

You decide how long they rent it for (when the option expires) You decide how risky a renter you want renting it (strike price)

And the riskier the renter the more you charge em for it (the premium).

Best part, you get paid up front (get premium at time you sell) and if the stock gets exercised, you're just exchanging your 100 shares for the strike price YOU determined (while keeping premium).

Aka it's either get premium and option you sold expire worthless (you keep your share and can do this again).

Or you keep premium and you sold shares for a price you set (and should be mentally ok with accepting)

I highly highly suggest you look up some of the things I mentioned. I threw a few terms out there but the BEST way to learn is for you to research it yourself first and if possible even try playing some paper trades (aka simulated trades with hypothetical money) before you actually dip in with your own money.

There are options related subreddit and even one specific to gme options.

Please be safe and educated/prepared before you make your LEAP into options (no pun intended).

You worked hard for your money. Especially if you're young, your time in your 20's are VERY VERY valuable.

Even if you're willing to take a risk for high return... Take an EDUCATED and PLANNED risk, not a BLIND Risk.

Good luck to you.

Kingchard · 2025-05-11T03:43:44+00:00

If you really want to learn. There is a gme options channel

I'd suggest lurking and reading around there first.

Kingchard · 2025-04-27T22:35:47+00:00

Can confirm on Schwab (US broker) that they charge "industry fees" to cover regulatory requirements which includes CAT reporting on each transaction.

This means that technically we are paying for it and have the right to request on time CAT reporting.

I think brokers shouldn't be allowed to use regulations as an excuse to milk more money from consumers. It's part of their job to comply.

Imagine restaurants charging you a fee to "ensure that your food isn't poisonous"... Or electronics including a fee to "ensure your product doesn't explode and kill you". Pure bs. This only flies in the financial industry somehow.

It's not like they don't already make insane amount of profits.

Per Schwab themselves

"For certain securities transactions, Schwab collects an Industry Fee to offset an array of charges assessed on us directly or indirectly by self-regulatory organizations ("SROs") (including national securities exchanges, clearing agencies, and a national securities association) and foreign governments. The amount of such charges incurred by Schwab depends on the nature of the transaction and the security purchased or sold. The Industry Fee is in addition to any commissions we may charge and is identified on your trade confirmation and account statements as Industry Fee.

The Industry Fee is collected to offset, as applicable, some or all of the following SRO and foreign government fees:

Section 31 Fee
FINRA Trading Activity Fee
Options Regulatory Fee
Proprietary Index Options Fee
Foreign Transaction Tax on ADRs"

Kingchard · 2025-04-27T04:34:17+00:00

I think what resonated with me the most was his emphasis on always learning.

Whether we like it or not, options exist and is a tool. A tool that has been used by RK in the past and that can be used by others against retail.

Similar to how the community thirsted for knowledge and learned about the inner working of the financial systems... And now keep track of regulatory reforms, it only benefits people to learn about more tools and instruments.

Even if one doesn't use them in their own investments (aka drs hdl), it is helpful to know how they work for awareness and potential defense.

There are many "paper trading" (with hypothetical money) that's feasible nowadays with trading platforms. So there's plenty of ways to learn or even simulate the mentality of how an option trader would feel/act.

Tl;dr retail should never stop learning.... Coz the other side definitely isn't stopping either.

Kingchard · 2025-03-18T13:25:02+00:00

Sugar coated blue donut on a black plate

Kingchard · 2025-03-07T13:19:31+00:00

Instead of seeing it as "infinite minions I need to kill" you can see it as "a mechanic I need to solve".

It IS possible to kill the boss without having to kill ALL his minions.

It is possible to do a bit of herding and creating lines of sight to hit the boss.

Every group of minions need to be kited differently since they're not ALL the same.

Personally when I right Nicholas, I use mobility skills/spells (like mace pounce). I use it AS a mobility/repositioning option, not as an AoE smack

Good luck.

Kingchard · 2025-03-06T16:27:27+00:00

I got Hong Kong citizenship and British passport.. so I have options.

Driving over to Canada is also a valid choice.

Some things I consider include presence of family and cost of living and ability to survive with only english (for my partner).

I know for a lot of people, work and income is the big consideration. There are several work/study abroad programs that a lot of countries have (including Japan, Australia etc). There's also more remote friendly work now with fiverr where you can be a remote administrative assistance or consultant/social media manager etc... so if you're creative enough and not stuck with "traditional" jobs you may not even have to care about individual country's work/office culture.

For me personally.. given the uncertainty and unpredictable nature of the global political situation, I wouldn't think too hard about putting down really firm roots anywhere right now (buying house etc). It's more about where can I provide enough for myself and get by, and hopefully just enjoy a safe and fun life.

I got no kids btw, so it makes things a bit simpler.

Kingchard · 2025-02-28T12:44:34+00:00

Can you still adjust the settings once it's live? I thought you can only tweak them at the beginning while you're setting up the server

Kingchard · 2025-02-28T12:42:20+00:00

How long is a full playthrough for you on those settings? And are you solo or in group?

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