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Comment by magic_hamster | Hacker News Reader

Status is a completely artificial construct that completely melts away the minute you run out of money. It's an unfair advantage, but it offers no security whatsoever.

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Status is a social construct, and we are social animals. So it really, truly does matter. And money is not the only thing that can convey status.

Indeed. Money and status are certainly correlated, but you only need to look at e.g. the British class system, or the difference between "old money" and "new money" to understand that they are not the same thing.

I think some of it is artificial, but I think the types mentioned in the article[1] do confer real security. For someone without status, getting a top tier company on their resume will make future job searches either. Making it into the inner ring of a company makes ones position more secure against for example layoffs. Neither of these are directly tied to money, rather I think many view it as a way to protect against running out of it.

Obviously there are limits (ie governors running for president aren't doing it for additional security), but I think it is true for many.

[1] "They begin by trying to get into a top-tier investment firm. Once they accomplish this, they find a hierarchy to navigate within the fund, then realize that the real inner ring in VC is occupied by the investors who land the hottest deals."

Influencers showed that you can get paid just by having status.

And that status can be wiped out whenever google feels like it.

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