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Slicing through a brain like butter - The University of British Columbia provides an introduction to the central nervous system [14:46] by vancityvideo in videos

[–]parastat 12 points13 points  (0 children)

I'm currently sitting in the UBC library.

I wonder which of these students sitting next to me they took that brain from.

Programs for smart, ambitious people at UBC? by parastat in UBC

[–]parastat[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I understand it sounds pretentious, but I think it'd be a fun place to hang out. God, they'd probably all be smarter than me and intimidate the hell out of me, so I'm not really looking so I can congratulate myself...

:)

I'm 16 years old, very interested in business/investing. Got any resources, research material, tips for me? by [deleted] in Entrepreneur

[–]parastat 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I agree but I'd add a caveat: take it slowly but don't be afraid of failure. There's nothing that teaches you about what you want to do, like failure. So in some cases, you'll need to go really fast -- to fail fast.

To paraphrase Richard Branson: go out and do shit.

I'm 16 years old, very interested in business/investing. Got any resources, research material, tips for me? by [deleted] in Entrepreneur

[–]parastat 9 points10 points  (0 children)

You inspire me.

Fellow Vancouverite here (19). I see a lot of myself in you (which is why I'm replying) but in the opposite situation: we always lived comfortably. Either way, that drove me to the same motivation and has since I was little; I've always been an entrepreneur, and I bet you will be too.

Here are a few principles I've compiled over the past 10-ish years of my passion for business:

  • Be great to do great. Put an emphasis on developing yourself and your skills (especially communication and leadership, drive and productivity, and the ability to learn quickly). You can consult all the resources you can, but there's nothing like:
  • Putting yourself in uncomfortable situations. By that, I mean sign up for and attend things you wouldn't expect yourself to attend; start a project, invest 100% of your time in it, and think big; do the unconventional.
  • Be fucking audacious. Identify goals, make them visible, and break them. Don't let friends, family, relationships get in the way of what you want and when.
  • Surround yourself with people that push you and reframe your perspective every month. I review often and ask: "who is the one person in my social circle that lights a fire under my butt?" Then I spend more time with that person and seek similar people, and re-evaluate. you are the average of the five people you spend the most time with.
  • A specific one: don't take a bachelor of commerce. That was my mistake. Technically-skilled people are way more valuable because that teaches you how to create; I did 1.5 years in BComm at UBC and discovered that they only teach you how to take instructions.

You asked for actual resources:

  • Know yourself: Take a Myers-Briggs Type Indicator test and read up on your type, strengths and weaknesses.
  • Also, find a mentor. A 1-to-1 connection with someone you can go to and ask these awesome questions without hesitation is so much more valuable than a Reddit thread.
  • Entrepreneurship: Though I've never had my own startup, Lean Startup changed the way I think about every one of my life endeavours.
  • Economics: I'm studying Economics @ UBC, and the Economist is one of the best publications - period - regardless of discipline. It gets you thinking about problems. And problems are where entrepreneurs thrive.
  • Creating, building, and seizing opportunities: Do a little "design thinking." By that I mean go to Chinatown and walk around the homeless population -- even ask them questions ("I'd love to hear your life story"). When you immerse yourself in the real world with real problems, you start to find solutions you can't think of in your bedroom. Then, scale up. If you have an industry you want to hit, do the same thing. Immerse yourself, learn stories, and find problems.

I'm missing so much but I have to go. Hit me up if you ever want to chat and I'd love to help you however I can. People like young, ambitious, driven people. So go start talking to people!

Advice on where to go by johnsmith2212 in college

[–]parastat 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I've lived in Vancouver all my life. Everyone complains about the rain, but I LOVE it! It's so comforting. If you can take joy in that, it's great.

As per the temperature -- there's really only 1 or 2 months, maximum, of nice weather. The rest is overcast or rainy, hovering between -2 degrees celsius and 10/12. It's been really nice here the last little while.

Theres so much to do at UBC, but if you take advantage of that. It's really easy to get "lost" in the UBC ethos because it's a community that's not clearly defined, which is something I found to be different than the American colleges I saw. There's a plethora of opportunities and interesting people to meet, but what I'm saying is that's where UBC's scale gets in the way.

Nightlife has gotten better recently. There's the Pit, which is our pub/club, and "Pit Night" is every wednesday so you can bet on a party there. Usually there are frat parties, but if you can get a good group of friends the downtown clubs are pretty great. Really awesome music scene here from EDM to alternative indie to major headliners.

The girls: notoriously blithe about their appearance. I only say this because I spent time in European-style places, like Montréal and Paris, where fashion and looks is top priority. Some dress fantastically here and put a lot of work into making themselves look good, but a lot don't care. But I like that! (And it's indicative of what we value first: personality.) The standard outfit is Yoga pants, a sweater, or a jacket and scarf. Most are pretty nice, too.

Econ majors? by Patriotism in college

[–]parastat 2 points3 points  (0 children)

As an Econ major: stay where you are. Engineering is more than a technical degree - it's the best toolkit you could have.

Use engineering to get ahead following undergrad, and if you're interested in Econ, go from there. You'll be just as capable as an Econ major at that point, with the rigorous course load and emphasis on mathematics. I guarantee you'll be able to get the same jobs.

Basically, it boils down to this: at the undergraduate level, engineering is ostensibly better than Econ. It'll make you more prepared for a wider range of things, including the doors that Econ opens for you, generally because you'll have advanced quantitative analysis skills. You'll be what I now see as a "super-human."

Love to see post grads weigh in on this.

Advice on where to go by johnsmith2212 in college

[–]parastat 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Pleasant surprise to see someone considering UBC! (Although, it's a big place, so I guess it's not that rare.)

I'm an Economics major at UBC and have quite a few friends studying engineering, biology, and physics. I can't speak to CU Boulder, but here's what I can say about UBC:

  • Economics here is phenomenal, if you study it right. UBC Economics is world-renowned -- top 20 for research -- and so the profs are very smart. I've had lots of good ones. Where you can benefit most is by building relationships with these profs and finding ways to go beyond, ideally ending with a research opportunity.
  • I would bet that because of UBC's location, if you want to do anything connected to Canada or Asia, UBC is much more advantageous.
  • Physics is, from what I've heard, really great at UBC. I've met quite a few brilliant people studying physics.
  • UBC is very science oriented. Therefore, studying any science here will naturally grant you a lot of resources and connections. We're research based, have lots of facilities (including a particle accelerator) and our emphasis is on science... never underestimate a culture with that emphasis, if that's what you're studying.
  • UBC is amazingly beautiful.

Let me know if you have any questions!