[Volundr]

I honestly do not understand what your getting at here. I think your suggesting my career is diminished because... I don't spend every waking minute with my co-workers or others in my profession? I wouldn't do that if I lived in NYC/LA/SFC either, I have no desire to be on 24/7/365, especially for the vague benefit of "serendipity".

If your career only advances because you went to the bar with your co-workers your workplace is broken. And I bet I'll find a far better start up partner at a hackathon or a conference (or just at work) than the local pub.

[GDC7]

Competition is not solely about the working environment.

Competition also happens in the social environment both during working hours with co-workers but most importantly once you clock out.

Once you clock out the competition moves to other venues: the bar, the club, the parking lot, the gym, the shooting range...

Each of those venues is embedded in the big city.

If you frequent certain places in NYC/LA and you know how to carry yourself and are socially competent, sooner rather than later you'd be offered a role in some independent film.

Also Poker games, big sport events which double as networking opportuinities, tennis clubs, yacht clubs....

[Volundr]

I powerlift in my spare time. I have a group of friends who do so, we both compete and encourage each other. I fail to see how this is somehow better because we're doing it in LA. As for the idea that the shooting range is "embedded" in the big city like it's something I can't get in the rural US... just weird.

As for getting offered roles, I haven't had any issues. Oddly their generally based on my work skill-set and my professional network built up over a career of doing good work and delivering results while empowering my reports to do the same, not being "socially competent" at the tennis club.