Getting a good job, working long hours, keeping your skills relevant, navigating the politics of an organization, finding a live/work balance…these are all really hard, xxxx. In contrast, respecting institutions, having manners, demonstrating a level of humility…these are all (relatively) easy. Get the easy stuff right xxxx. In and of themselves they will not make you successful. However, not possessing them will hold you back and you will not achieve your potential which, by virtue of you being admitted to Stern, you must have in spades. It’s not too late xxxx…"
Now that is an honest to goodness teacher. xxxx is quite fortunate. She/he may or not may recognize this now, but that letter was such a huge favor.
Jobs dropped out of Reed not because he wouldn't/couldn't play by the rules, but because he didn't think he was getting value for the top dollar his parents were spending to send him there. He ended up 'dropping in' on classes (like calligraphy), but there's no indication that he just strolled in an hour late and disrespected the professors he was trying to learn from.
That's a fair point. But I just somehow don't see Steve Jobs sending that email. (He would have Woz hack the school PBX and have fun with the Professor. ;) So, yes, if you are a genius with a devilish charm, and have the stuff to back it up, go ahead and break the rules. Hell, even Jobs had to learn a few painful lessons about people, business, and politics the hard way:
"You are an anonymous student who is now regretting the send button on his laptop. It’s with this context I hope you register pause…REAL pause xxxx and take to heart what I am about to tell you [...]"
To me that's the subtext of this object lesson by the ex-"Muffketeer". Let me paraphrase: "I didn't know you before, and the event was forgetful. Not any more. That was stupid, and you need to learn so you won't make that mistake again."
If the student's course sampling story is genuine, then this professor has accomplished nothing more than being a jerk to an engaged student. There is no reason to interpret 1 hour tardiness of a single student as disrespect. Consistent 10 minute tardiness of a large portion of a class or a single disengaged student? Now that's a different story. The only time students entering or exiting make much of a distraction is when the instructor calls them out on it.
However, it is more likely that the student's story is bullshit. In which case he or she shouldn't have bothered to send that email. Both people are at fault here. The student shouldn't have written an email when a simple "I'm sorry, bye." had already resolved the issue. The professor should have assumed good intentions and kept his unsolicited advice to himself. Especially if he was going to be that rude about it. He could have simply ignored the email. That is what my political experiences have proven the safest course of action to be.
The student pays the university. The university pays the professor. This is not a small detail. Professors (and other teachers more generally) are not personal employees of their students.
Beyond that, the student is paying for an education and - in the case of an MBA - an entrance into a professional world. He or she just got both. I would say this semester, he or she already got value for the investment.
Getting a good job, working long hours, keeping your skills relevant, navigating the politics of an organization, finding a live/work balance…these are all really hard, xxxx. In contrast, respecting institutions, having manners, demonstrating a level of humility…these are all (relatively) easy. Get the easy stuff right xxxx. In and of themselves they will not make you successful. However, not possessing them will hold you back and you will not achieve your potential which, by virtue of you being admitted to Stern, you must have in spades. It’s not too late xxxx…"
Now that is an honest to goodness teacher. xxxx is quite fortunate. She/he may or not may recognize this now, but that letter was such a huge favor.