What are some subjects one should self-study that can be applicable and helpful in the fields of economics, finance, business, and computer science?

• For example, I've come to believe that I should definitely teach myself statistics and probability, it seems to be applicable in business, computer science, as well as quantitative finance. I've also seen machine learning come up a lot and that it's helpful for algorithmic traders, and hedge fund managers. I'm still young and would very much like to pursue a life as a tech entrepreneur, I've been reading as many entrepreneurship books as I can and have begun to teach myself coding/programming. I'd also like to go into trading at one point in my life or pursue a career on wall street. Please help me as I would like to explore the possibilities and learn subjects that WILL be useful for me in these fields. I enjoy reading and like to believe that I'm an autodidact. I'm looking for answers similar to that of Ron Maimon's(below) with emphasis on business(finance/trading/economics/etc), programming, and math(statistics, etc). I'd really like recommendations to good books. What I'm basically asking is, which set of skills do you think one should learn and hone to not only be financially successful in the future but also intelligent, intellectual, and logical/strategical. Please help me with the answer, and help me get to the best one by promoting this question. I would like some advice from people in any of these fields. Thank you all very much for your time!

• Answer:

  I was A2Aed, so here goes. I'll tell you right off the bat that my answer will be quite a bit different than the others. First, the particular topics you choose to study in high school, university, etc. are nothing more than door openers. I feel pretty comfortable making the blanket statement that none of the courses you (and other posters) mention will lead directly to success. So what should you do? Well, I've got opinions about that too. First, you should concentrate on learning two skills: One: Learn to talk. When I was 15, I had the great fortune of taking a public speaking course in high school. This was a year-long, full credit course, and I can say without a shred of doubt that it was the single most useful course I ever took in my life. It doesn't matter what area of work you go into; you're going to need to convince somebody about something. You're going to need to argue your case, promote your idea, beg for funding, get a crowd whipped up, or even do a bit of corporate brown-nosing. In every case, the ability to speak well is paramount. Two: Learn to listen. Now, this might seem paradoxical, given point one, but this skill is just as important. Listen to your boss, and they'll tell you how to get ahead. Listen to your colleagues, you'll learn which ones know what they are talking about and which ones are idiots. Listen to your customers, they'll tell you what they want to buy. Listen (especially!) to your enemies, they'll tell you what their plans are. And most, most importantly, don't be afraid to say "Hey, I know nothing about ___________" to somebody who knows a lot about __________. Most people who know a lot about a subject love to talk about it, and you can learn a lot just by listening. Shy about trying this? Here's a tip: do it on a train or a plane. Next time you're sitting beside someone, and they tell you what they do, just say "Hey, I've always been curious about that. What's it like?". I guarantee you, you'll learn something. Second, you should develop two plans: One: Develop a set of goals. Now, this might seem pretty darn simple... "I'd like to be successful". But what does that really look like? Here's a hint: You're not going to be a tech entrepreneur, work on Wall Street, and be a trader. I'm not. Nobody I know is. Mark effin Zukerberg's not. What I'm saying here is that you need to focus. So, if your goal is to be a tech entrepreneur, make it that. And make it specific: "When I'm 26, I want to be CEO of a company I have founded with no more than two other partners". By the way, just as an FYI, I find that the best way to do this part is to sit down with a pen, and a piece of paper, and a nice stiff rum and soda. You want to be pretty ambitious. And also FYI, you don't want to do this too often. Focus, remember? But at the same time, you don't want to do it too rarely either. Two: Develop a set of actions to implement your goals. If the first plan looked simple, then this one probably just looks repetitive. Didn't we just make a plan? The answer is "No". A goal is not an action. So, once you have a goal you have to use all of your skills (including listening and talking) to get some idea of what actions you need to take in order to achieve your goal. And I'm not a great believer in acronyms, but there's one here that's useful: you want the ideas to be SMART ideas: specific, measurable, actionable ideas that can be completed in a reasonable time. So, you want to found a company with a few partners? Idea one: decide that you will spend one year looking for partners you want to start a company. Idea two: you will ask people you respect what piece of technology the like the most an dislike the most. Idea number three: you will choose some area of technology and learn all you can about it. The good news is that you can usually complete these on the back of the same piece of paper, as you finish your second rum and soda. Last but not least: Time and time again I have seen examples of very mediocre products and companies which have been very successful indeed. Why? Because they are run by people with passion. More than anything else, chose a path which allows you to exercise your passion, not suppress it. You then have to bring that passion to every job you do. I can promise you from the bottom of my heart that the way to get ahead to to demonstrate passion, commitment and competence to whoever it is above you. And trust me, there's always someone above you. A boss. The CEO. The board of directors (blech). Public shareholders (double blech). Customers (so demanding!). Bring every one of these people your "A" game, and you'll go places. But if you choose to be a "B" player? Not so much. Good luck!