I met an impressive individual recently. He was your archetypal, super-successful finance guy. Went to Harvard, worked at Goldman, etc. Stacked resume.
The topic of credentials came up, and how much they’ve helped his career, which obviously wasn’t surprising.
Credentials are rocket fuel
Going to a top-tier school or working at a prestigious firm is like adding rocket fuel to one’s career. The human brain loves to take judgement shortcuts wherever it can, and credentials are an easy one. As soon as we see shiny credentials, our brains automatically flash green lights. We might give them preferential treatment in a recruitment process, take their ideas more seriously, or just want to have them in our network.
And this makes complete sense. Getting into a top-tier school or a prestigious firm is extremely difficult. And so these credentials are generally an accurate proxy for someone’s work ethic and intelligence (not always, but generally).
Continuing on the conversation…
So, he began discussing various distinguished people in his network whom he admired. To both our surprise, we had a lot of mutual connections.
Each time he’d ask me, “How did you meet this person?“, almost always my answer was “through my content“.
Towards the end of our meetup, he told me that he had read a bunch of my posts, and it was one of the reasons he was eager to meet me. I had no idea, since I was introduced to him through another contact. This contact also happens to be highly credentialed/successful, and funny enough, originally reached out to me after reading my blog.
Content remains a meritocracy
Sometimes I genuinely forget how many incredible people I’ve met through writing, and how much my network has massively upgraded through it. As I reflected on this conversation, I realized that I’m in many of the same circles as this individual, but without having a Harvard MBA. This could never have happened without my writing.
I’m not suggesting that writing is a substitute for pedigree. It isn’t. But the fact that it can earn even a fraction of the access that prestigious credentials provide is incredible.
If, for whatever reason, you didn’t come up through elite institutions (like me), this post is for you. If you feel you are at all impressive in any way, shape, or form, you need to start writing. Put your thoughts, ideas, insights, frameworks, and experiences out there.
Even in 2025, with all of the AI slop abound, I believe that content still remains a meritocracy. The best ideas win, always, especially on the internet. High-quality content eventually attracts high-quality eyeballs, which will then convert into opportunities and connections.
You don’t need to build a massive audience. Even a following or readership of just a couple of hundred people could contain a few connections that could completely change the trajectory of your career. I am proof of this.
Creating your own yacht
I’ll end this post with a great essay that I revisit from time to time: Creating Your Own Yacht: The Art of Making People Come to You.
It’s an amazing piece about building an edge in networking, very relevant to my post above.