Number one is the ultimate skill of cooperation with strangers - I now notice that i can relate to many people from all walks of life completely and with ease and within the first few minutes, and I did not have a very social job per say. The job of the Silicon Valley artist is pretty much long hours of grind, on the surface. However there is the unique aspect of technology which permeates any Silicon Valley job. When you have complicated tech you have to leave the confines of your computer desk and start talking to people. Since 50 percent of your job may end up being trouble shooting and problem solving. It is not uncommon as part of you job, for you to need to communicate with people from the top to bottom, to engage the CEO, your manager, your colleagues. complete strangers with huge responsibilities who you have never met before and where they are not your friend, relative or acquaintance. I didn't realize until much later what a huge role social interactions had in the valley. And it didn't really dawn on me, until much later, the fact that everyone in San Francisco is overly nice somehow is part of the secret sauce of the valley success. I remember my parents being almost taken aback by the niceness of people, I remember them telling me they thought all the niceness seemed very fake. However they got used to it so much that they talk about it until this day.
This is the reason I recommend, even for artists who eventually may choose a life outside of an organization - take a job for a few years in a high pressure environment, a boiler room, a pressure cooker, a place with high pressure and high standards. If you can get in the best company, in the top place to compete with the A-players. A few years in the top company in the world equals 5 years of education in a top university. And ultimately this is not about compensation at all, it is about growing to the point where you outgrow most of your peers and start seeing a new horizon. It is important to step on a pretty high place to see the farthest.