The project of your soul is more immense and more important than expertise.
Ask HN: I want to be an expert in many things but my lifetime won't be enough
41–50 of 222 posts
Re: Ask HN: I want to be an expert in many things but my lifetime won't be enough
#42I let my natural curiosity guide me. I used to beat myself up about not being one of those people who have a singular purpose, someone who focuses deeply in one area, but found solace in Susan Fowler's blog post: "All of the really great people of the past and of the present always have some singular destiny. Somehow they know exactly what they love, they find it when they're young, and they spend their entire lives…
I was about to post the same link from Susan!
I found myself a lot in the post and made me felt like I was not alone feeling that way.
Re: Ask HN: I want to be an expert in many things but my lifetime won't be enough
#43Ars longa, vita brevis
"skilfulness takes time and life is short"
Re: Ask HN: I want to be an expert in many things but my lifetime won't be enough
#44Wait 10-40 years for more progress with AI and brain-computer-interfaces.
The good news is that it will likely be completely possible to effectively be an expert in all of those things. The bad news is that everyone else will be an expert also.
It will probably be kind of like what has happened now with Google and arguments over trivia. Just 10 or 100 times more integrated and in-depth.
Re: Ask HN: I want to be an expert in many things but my lifetime won't be enough
#45Pick one field and start practicing everyday, you'll be amazed what you can achieve on one thing in one year with even only 2hr daily practice.
Re: Ask HN: I want to be an expert in many things but my lifetime won't be enough
#46I think this is an unhealthy desire, as it's impossible to achieve. You should replace it with its source, like "I want to provide wisdom to my community", and then let that guide you in prioritizing your time
I think the OP knows this and thats why he has asked the community. So brushing off by a casual "duh, grow up" isn't the way to go
A few people I talked to in life, have this love for learning everything to the point they feel "afraid to die" before mastering something. They aren't Einsteins - they know that. But having that insatiable curiosity to learn something through & through. It is sad to be empathetic but also a revelation how passionate some folks are. And although its a terrible plan by design, it personally keeps them going on & on. I think what they need to understand is "how much expertise" is good enough. Finding inner balance is as important as finding expertise.
Re: Ask HN: I want to be an expert in many things but my lifetime won't be enough
#47I think this is an unhealthy desire, as it's impossible to achieve. You should replace it with its source, like "I want to provide wisdom to my community", and then let that guide you in prioritizing your time
Yeah, my first thought what that it would be better to focus on what you want to do, rather than what you want to know.
Re: Ask HN: I want to be an expert in many things but my lifetime won't be enough
#48First, have you asked yourself why you want to be an expert in many things? If it is just to know things, then it doesn't matter; just keep learning until you can't anymore. If it is to apply the knowledge to something, then you can use that fact to determine how much utility over time the knowledge of each thing would have, and focus on the greatest first.
> First, have you asked yourself why you want to be an expert in many things? Not the OP, but here's my answer. I want to be able to win arguments. If I debate the merits of an economic proposal with you, and you say, "Sure, and what are your qualifications, exactly? Do you have a PhD in economics?", I want to be able to say, "Yes, I do have a PhD in economics, actually", or "I have read over 490 books about economic…
Arguments are seldom "won" outside of something like a formal debate with point scoring.
Arguing with most people is like mud-wrestling with a pig. You both get dirty and the pig enjoys it.
Re: Ask HN: I want to be an expert in many things but my lifetime won't be enough
#49One thing to realize is that the most relevant skills and knowledge are changing rapidly. So maybe it's better to be an expert in adapting to and adopting new approaches.
Because being an expert in less practical subjects that are slightly dated can still be useful and interesting but may tend a little more towards vanity.
Re: Ask HN: I want to be an expert in many things but my lifetime won't be enough
#50In that case, first become an expert in life-span extension!
If new things to be expert in proliferate faster than you can become an expert then life-span extension will not work. You would need to duplicate yourself each time there is a new thing you want to pursue. One you would be a concert violinist and the other you could cure the common cold.
> "you would need to duplicate yourself each time there is a new thing you want to pursue"
Much easier than inventing a duplicator is to imagine you have done this already, and the duplicates are all the other people in the world, busy being concert violinists and working on cold vaccines. What a relief to find that you no longer have to bother with such things.