I know a story of a certain large engineering firm, dating back to the second World War. They had a senior engineer who habitually came to work drunk and slept through meetings. Every once in a while, they'd wake him up, and he'd save them a couple of million dollars. He had a gift for finding clever solutions.
He probably would have had a better life if he'd gotten his act together. But knowing how to fix subtle issues, or how to design good processes, can be a ridiculously valuable skill.
I know a story of a certain large engineering firm, dating back to the second World War. They had a senior engineer who habitually came to work drunk and slept through meetings. Every once in a while, they'd wake him up, and he'd save them a couple of million dollars. He had a gift for finding clever solutions.
He probably would have had a better life if he'd gotten his act together. But knowing how to fix subtle issues, or how to design good processes, can be a ridiculously valuable skill.