[lotsofpulp]

I think the “Valley” is just sufficiently expensive and/or newly settled that the probability a person would be a net negative to introduce was low enough that there did not need to be as much gatekeeping as there is in the east.

If you were knowledgeable enough to move to the Valley, if you had the wealth and connections to move to the Valley, then you already passed some of the checks needed to be someone who would be a sufficiently good bet to introduce.

It might already be the case that the Valley has changed to be more similar to the East.

[cobbzilla]

I had negative wealth and no meaningful connections when I moved to the SF Bay, so you’re wrong on that.

But I did know to move there, so you’re right on that.

And yes, while the pay-it-forward culture is still very much alive and you can find it if you look, I don’t think it has the ubiquity today that it did back then. You’re also right that the culture has shifted a bit.

[lotsofpulp]

In the context of my comment, wealth would include one’s potential, which if young and driven, could make one’s “wealth” positive, or at least useful to someone else.

For example, if you were 80 years old when you moved, would you have still received the same introductions?

[cobbzilla]

For sure, there is a premium on youth, but I did meet many career-switch types who were older and equally accepted.