Building a two seater, 180hp kit airplane in my garage. Learned all the skills I need post-40. Honestly I enjoy drilling and riveting metal more than computers anymore.
Ask HN: Have you picked up any new skill from scratch in your 40s or later?
61–70 of 164 posts
Re: Ask HN: Have you picked up any new skill from scratch in your 40s or later?
#62I started taking weight training seriously about a year ago, Then came the virus and the lock-downs. Gyms closed for weeks where I live. At the moment they are still closed again. I didn't want to build a home gym with heavy weights, especially because hopefully gyms will open again some day. I also didn't want to lose the muscle I built which made me segue into body weight training and calisthenics. Previously I had…
How did you learn calisthenics? Any resources you can share?
Re: Ask HN: Have you picked up any new skill from scratch in your 40s or later?
#63Yes - standup comedy. I’m 47. Started 2 years ago, background mostly “nerdy” and not hyper social. Have done some paid gigs and performed for crowds of up to 150. And at 38 learnt rock climbing ... got quite far with that until was stopped by an injury. Also more recently podcasting and literally today Adobe Audition. More nerdy I guess but still. Somehow programming is a good career to have a mindset of “I can learn…
wow, standup comedy. Performing anything in front of people is hard, comedy is even more harder. This is awesome.
Did you follow any structure to learn comedy? Or are you a natural?
Re: Ask HN: Have you picked up any new skill from scratch in your 40s or later?
#64Playing Go. It takes a lifetime to learn regardless of when you start--so you're not that bad off (tho they say it helps to start preschool).
I looked at Go, bought a few books. Gave up quickly because this is one of those things that would require way too much time. Kudos to anyone learning go, especially those who start late in life!
Re: Ask HN: Have you picked up any new skill from scratch in your 40s or later?
#65I learned Korean, re-learned French. Learned to build cigars and since I'm a later bloomer, learned about parenting (had my first child at 40).
Any resources for learning French? Did you learn it casually (mostly for speaking, I mean) or more seriously - like for reading French literature?
Re: Ask HN: Have you picked up any new skill from scratch in your 40s or later?
#66I've always thought it's important to learn something significant in each decade of life. In my 20s I started teaching and doing long-distance bicycling trips. In my 30s I moved from NYC to Alaska, and started doing mountain rescue work. In my 40s I started writing and learned to drive a boat on the ocean. That was intimidating in a fishing town, where it feels like everyone else has known how to drive a boat since t…
You are very interesting!
How did you decide what you wanted to do at each juncture?
Re: Ask HN: Have you picked up any new skill from scratch in your 40s or later?
#67Soldering.
Not quite in my 40s, but after getting into keyboards the last year I finally learned basic soldering skills. I've heard it referred to as "geek knitting", and sitting in the garage for a few hours, carefully soldering together custom keyboards while listening to music is a great way to relax and focus. I just looked up some basic tutorials, got a few start kits from Amazon and just went with it.
This has lead to other interests too, like learning more about electronics and low-level coding with micro-controllers.
It also has the benefit that our kids now see me as someone who can fix anything. Most toys are simple enough to repair with basic tools and hearing the phrase "daddy can fix it" is worth it. Also there's a slight hope that seeing physical STEM skills (as opposed to daddy typing into a computer all day for work) makes an impression and it perks their interest in general engineering pursuits as they get older.
Re: Ask HN: Have you picked up any new skill from scratch in your 40s or later?
#68Earlier quoted context omitted.
It’s definitely harder with kids, but I’ve actually used my kids as a catalyst for learning. There are loads of hobbies and activities I’ve taken up just as a way to expose them to the world.
Like what? Share some ideas, please.
Geocaching is an easy hobby to learn (and much cheaper than it used to be for anyone with a smartphone) and gets you outside with the kids, who consider it a treasure hunt. It might be a little challenging during quarantine, but it’s a great way to get some exercise and explore the area around you.
Re: Ask HN: Have you picked up any new skill from scratch in your 40s or later?
#69I'm 46. I just started taking Salsa dancing lessons. https://www.instagram.com/tv/CHtpVk2BL6_/
Good luck! I'd like to share with you a couple things. I still love Salsa even though I stopped actively going to Salsa clubs a few years ago (like many things in life, activities will fade in interest/fade back in). As a note, most of the social dancing advice applies to a world without covid dangers. 1) Keep on going. You can take a break though. One of my favorite articles from "The Unlikely Salsero" (archived cop…
Thanks!
Re: Ask HN: Have you picked up any new skill from scratch in your 40s or later?
#70I've always thought it's important to learn something significant in each decade of life. In my 20s I started teaching and doing long-distance bicycling trips. In my 30s I moved from NYC to Alaska, and started doing mountain rescue work. In my 40s I started writing and learned to drive a boat on the ocean. That was intimidating in a fishing town, where it feels like everyone else has known how to drive a boat since t…
You are very interesting! How did you decide what you wanted to do at each juncture?
When I finished undergrad I started teaching middle school, and after two years of teaching I finally had a summer off with zero obligations. I had read A Walk Across America, about a guy who walked across the US. It sounded fascinating but it took him several years. So I settled on biking, because you can get all the way across the US on a bike in a summer. I did that a couple times, and then spent a year living on a bike. I rode from Seattle to Maine (through northeastern Canada), down to Florida, over to California, and ended in Alaska.
That led me to move to Alaska a few years later, which led to mountain rescue work. Teaching led to writing. Living in a coastal fishing town led to boating. Each adventure leads to the next. :)
I wouldn't want to live forever, but I'd happily live a thousand years and spend ten years on a hundred different things.