This as-told-to essay is based on a transcribed conversation with 29-year-old Pete Ballmer, a standup comedian and former product manager in San Francisco and one of the sons of billionaire and former Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer. It has been edited for length and clarity.
As a kid, I liked computers. I used to subscribe to PCWorld Magazine because I liked reading about new products. I took computer science classes at my high school and really enjoyed them.
I majored in computer science with a concentration in human-computer interaction at Stanford. Many people told me I was doing what my dad, Steve Ballmer, did, but he wasn’t a programmer. He was a business guy familiar with the subject but didn’t push me into it.
My dad always told my brothers and me that he just wanted us to do what we were passionate about. He made it clear that he didn’t have specific expectations for our achievements, but he did harp a lot on working hard and doing our best. He would always say, “If you’re going to do a job, do a job. And if you’re not going to do a job, don’t do a job.” The rhetoric was, if you’re going to do something, do it to the fullest extent.
I worked a few internships
The summers after my junior and senior years of high school, I did a software engineering internship at a small startup called Dashwire.
I then did a software engineering internship at Expedia the summer after my first year of college. I kind of hated it. I was fine as a programmer but wasn’t the best, and I learned that I didn’t love programming.
During my sophomore year, I heard one of my friends talk about his product management internship. The nature of the role appealed to me; it’s a people-oriented job while still being analytical and creative.
The next summer, I got a product management internship at a startup called Travelnuts, which I liked. After my junior year, I interned at TripIt.
I never considered not working a full-time job after college
During my junior year, I was told I would inherit a six-figure sum from my grandfather when I turned 25. When I graduated from college at 22, I didn’t have that money yet and needed a job.
I had done some standup comedy in college and knew I wanted to do more, but I also knew the odds of “making it” were low. I didn’t have a lot of material, and the material I had wasn’t very good, so trying to pursue comedy full-time would’ve been a very risky move.
My parents paid for my college education, and it was unfathomable that I not get a full-time job after graduating. There was no way they would’ve paid for me to live in San Francisco and do open mics. Neither my brothers nor I have ever asked my parents for a notable sum, nor have our parents given us a significant amount of money.
I applied and was hired as a rotational product manager at Zynga, the company that made games like Words with Friends and Farmville. I was excited about having a product management job that paid well.
Working at Zynga was fantastic. It was a very fun environment with smart people, a good culture, and happy hours all the time with homemade beer. I respected my boss and liked the nature of my work.
I think there are two ways you can get fulfillment from a job: either the day-to-day work is enjoyable — that was true for me — or you have a long-term sense that what you’re doing matters. I knew I wasn’t making a massive impact on the world by making Harry Potter: Puzzles & Spells games, but I wasn’t looking to get that out of my job, so that was fine.
I got all of my jobs without connections
I got all of my internships and jobs — I feel it’s important for me to say — without leveraging my family connections.
My dad, however, did go to Stanford, and I don’t think I would’ve gotten in if he didn’t because I was a good student but not exceptional. I didn’t want my family connection to influence my college acceptance, but I also really wanted to go to Stanford. I couldn’t escape the fact that my connections helped me, so I decided to make the most of it.
I agree that it’s kind of pathetic for rich kids to use connections to get everything they have. My parents had money, I went to good schools, and I had enough given to me that I should be able to then turn that into something on my own.
I did learn about my high school internship opportunity from a friend of my mom’s, but my boss specifically told me that I was the strongest applicant they had and I didn’t receive preferential treatment because of my family.
I wasn’t entirely qualified for my job at Expedia, but my boss from my high school internship, who had moved to Expedia, put in a good word for me because he’d enjoyed working with me and I’d done a good job.
There were a couple of people at Expedia who made comments about my family, like, “Did he really deserve to get this job, or did he just get hired because of who his dad is?” That was frustrating because I did feel like I didn’t deserve the job, but it wasn’t because of who my dad was. That sucked.
I didn’t know anyone at Zynga before getting the job, so I got it without any connections. Once I was working at Zynga, some coworkers would make little comments like, “Oh, you’re using a Mac!” occasionally, but not a ton. Nobody made me feel uncomfortable.
I decided to focus on comedy in 2021
Four years into my time at Zynga, I’d been promoted twice, the game I was working on was doing well, and I’d accomplished enough in product management that I felt I could go back and do it again if I wanted to. By then, I’d also inherited the money from my grandfather.
I’d been doing comedy on the side, performing at open mics after work, and producing some shows. I’d gone from thinking of myself as a product manager who does comedy at night to a comedian with a day job as a product manager.
In 2021, I quit my job to pursue comedy full-time. I’m now a paid regular at some comedy clubs in the Bay Area. I do around five shows a week and an open mic or two. I’ve also done some festivals and produced Don’t Tell Comedy shows.
I don’t find it difficult to write relatable jokes. I joke about gossip, my dog, being red-green colorblind, and high school. It’s all stuff that’s just part of the human experience.
My family background is still a part of my perspective, so I have a few jokes about growing up rich or inheriting money. Once I have a following of people coming explicitly to see me at a show, I’m happy to do standup about growing up as a billionaire’s son because I have a unique perspective.
My greatest fear is excuse-less failure
It’s sad that some people have to stop pursuing comedy to earn money elsewhere, but at the same time, they can ask themselves, “Who knows what would’ve happened with my comedy career if I hadn’t had to quit?”
I don’t have that option.
My money allows me the luxury of time and choice to pursue my passion, but it also allows me to purely fail at it. At a certain point, maybe I’ll plateau or stop progressing, and I’ll have to choose to stop because I’m just not good enough.
I’m not saying that my situation is harder than being a comic without financial backing, but it would be really hard to fail so profoundly.
My dad has said that once someone is 35, their career trajectory is pretty set. I’m 29 now, so the idea that in about five years, I’m supposed to roughly know my trajectory kind of haunts me.
Would I ever be a product manager again? Maybe, but at the same time, I don’t know if I’d choose to work 40 to 60 hours a week doing a job that I wouldn’t need to work for the money, even if I enjoy it enough.
I’m pretty confident in my comedy, so I’m full speed ahead on being a comedian. I’ve continued to improve, and I don’t see any reason that wouldn’t continue. I’ll keep going with this as long as I keep honing my skillset and moving up the ladder.
If you had a unique experience growing up with money and would like to share your story, email Jane Zhang at janezhang@businessinsider.com.
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