Live data from Hacker News

Ask HN: Of your hard learned lessons, which do you wish could’ve been easier?

news.ycombinator.com

41–50 of 51 posts

Re: Ask HN: Of your hard learned lessons, which do you wish could’ve been easier?

#41
post #40

Earlier quoted context omitted.

As another shy, socially awkward person, I must say that getting professional help is definitely worth it. If you find that you can't break this wall yourself, don't be afraid to ask for help.

By professional help do you mean therapy?

Sure, including but not limited to only therapy. For my case, Cognitive Therapy helped me a great deal with both depression and social anxiety.

It's just when you are not social, you may be reluctant to ask for help when it's actually needed the most.

Re: Ask HN: Of your hard learned lessons, which do you wish could’ve been easier?

#43
post #21

I wish I learned to take care of my health at a younger age. Of course, I'm overdue to go to the dentist, so perhaps I'm still struggling with that. I wish I had learned not to have a fear of other people at a younger age. It's easy to say that I was "shy". I think it went much further than that. I'm in a place where I don't speak the common language, and let me tell you how hard it is to learn a language when you ar…

100 times these. It's very difficult to understand some things at a younger age. I wish I can explain these things to my younger self. But what's gone is gone, and the only way is forward.

But having said that I would like to help my younger family members to understand these things, but they act exactly as I did. Not sure how can I communicate it to them.

Re: Ask HN: Of your hard learned lessons, which do you wish could’ve been easier?

#44
1. Career progress is not about more money or promotions. It's about going from where you are, to somewhere better. Sometimes the high ranking jobs means that you work 12 hours a day, 6 days a week, travel for months without your family. A good career path improves your quality of life.

2. Being nicer. I've been an angry, forceful person. It's unnatural for me, and I thought it would get more things done. It didn't help at all and made things a lot worse. I find that, statistically, being nice has far better returns. You'll probably remember the few times people take advantage of it, but in most modern, high wealth areas, it pays off very well.

Re: Ask HN: Of your hard learned lessons, which do you wish could’ve been easier?

#45
post #5

Earlier quoted context omitted.

- if you are powerful, even enemies will respect you. If you go powerless, your own family will not be with you. - Purandara Daasa Life is Boxing Arena, not a Dance-Party - Marcus Aurelius Man must never be attached to anything that can be lost in a ship-wreck. - Upanishads We are stronger than what we think we are - Swaminomics Never make small plans. - Atanu Dey If Government is made in-charge of Sahara Desert, wit…

Imagine you had to harvest your own food, build your own shelter and manufacture your own clothes... you would not have time to be in Hacker News. Then, if everyone had to do it, the technology to make computers and HN possible would not exist. Our society is what it is because of specialized roles. Then, whenever everyone competes against each other, a group of people takes advantage and ends up prevailing against t…

Then, if everyone had to do it

Those sort of universal arguments can mislead. What if everybody worked as a programmer, then we would all starve. That doesn't make programming a morally bad career choice.

Re: Ask HN: Of your hard learned lessons, which do you wish could’ve been easier?

#47
post #15

Earlier quoted context omitted.

And what tools and supplies do they use to grow their own food? Are they fully self-reliant? I doubt so.

I already conceded the “tools” issue. That’s not necessarily a huge input though — good tools last a long time. Can you find a blacksmith who would trade tools for food? I’ve never had cause to find out but it wouldn’t shock me if you could...

Can you find a blacksmith, period?

Re: Ask HN: Of your hard learned lessons, which do you wish could’ve been easier?

#48
post #15

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I already conceded the “tools” issue. That’s not necessarily a huge input though — good tools last a long time. Can you find a blacksmith who would trade tools for food? I’ve never had cause to find out but it wouldn’t shock me if you could...

Can you find a blacksmith, period?

Certainly. Most around here (UK) tend to make more ornamental than functional stuff nowadays, but skills are definitely out there. This being a somewhat “horsey” area, there are also plenty of farriers.

It’s also somewhat accessible to hobbyists. My sister has done some pretty neat stuff.

Re: Ask HN: Of your hard learned lessons, which do you wish could’ve been easier?

#49
I wish I learned earlier that it's possible to not want what everyone else wants, in my situation, money. Growing up poor, my mom was always money, money, money. Have to get good grades to get a good job to make money. I joined a business fraternity in college, then a startup incubator, then became an Amazon seller so I have consistently been surrounded by people who really want to make a lot of money.

I had my first loss of a loved one last year and I learned the hard way that money is trivial in the large scheme of things when you have enough. That it is okay to not want to make huge sums of money and to focus on other things in your life that are more meaningful to you like your relationships. But more importantly to be aware of who you surround yourself with.

Luckily I'm 25 so maybe it's good I learned this now but I would give anything to spend more time with the person I lost instead of stressing so hard about making more money. That and in the larger scheme of things, most of the things you find stressful are trivial when it comes to the big picture, death. I watched a wonderful talk by Alexis Ohanian about "Zero Lives Remaining" and it's true. Compared to that, a lot of the things that you thought were the end of the world, really aren't, so take it easy and enjoy life.

Re: Ask HN: Of your hard learned lessons, which do you wish could’ve been easier?

#50

1. Take good care of your health. It impacts other areas of your life - how you feel, how you think, your confidence. 2. Being right is overrated. 3. Don't get too attached to any "thing" or person. 4. Letting go of people and things won't kill you though it hurts at first. 5. Care less about what other people think.

Can't agree more!
Post reply on HN