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Advice

patrickcollison.com

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Re: Advice

#211

Post by ryandrake »

sus_007 wrote: post #48

> In particular, try to go deep on multiple things...deep on languages, programming... I fall under the target audience for this piece and by now I've dabbled with at least half a dozen of programming languages and their celebrated frameworks/libraries- from Front to the Back. I tried my best to go deep on all of them just for the sake of learning. But, now I feel lost and can't figure out which path am I supposed to…

My advice to my 20 year old self would be the opposite: Don't go deep on a thing unless you are absolutely convinced that it's going to be lucrative. You might bet your career on the wrong horse and find yourself with no other skills to fall back on.

For maximum flexibility, aim to be a jack of all trades, and learn to fluently translate between tech-speak and business-speak.

Re: Advice

#213

Post by shafyy »

gargarplex wrote: post #46
shafyy wrote: post #37

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Sorry, but this is real bad advice. Stalking people in front of Google is not going to work.

Sorry, but that's just not true. Silicon Valley is filled with stories of successful stalkings. For example, in 2007, I loitered outside Facebook HQ on university ave until I had a chance encounter with someone who also attended my alma mater (!) and was starting his first day of work, so he took me inside with him[1]. I tried to meet with Zuck but they sicced Dave Morin on me. I ended up getting incredible access to…

First, as the other commenter said, FB had something between 150 and 450 employees in 2007 (depending on when in 2007 you did that). You can still do that with "smaller" startups today, of course. But you can also just email the CEO of a 150 person startup and they'll reply if you're not full of shit.

Second, just because it worked for you doesn't mean it works in general. I'm sure if 1,000 people did it, a couple of them would be successful. But that's definitely not the best way to get peoples attention. Some YC partner says in one of their Investor Startup School lecture that they hate it when people stalk investors at their favorite coffee shop or whatever and that it leads to an adverse effect.

Re: Advice

#214

Post by tim333 »

sireat wrote: post #187
WJW wrote: post #161

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's pretty much a self fulfilling prophecy, yes.

As Aristotle said everything in moderation including cigars and pizza. Going into a full blown mega health nut phase is not very helpful either because the end result is not going to be pretty anyways. Now if/when we start making serious life extension progress beyond 120 years with high quality of life then we can start talking.

If you look at the places where people live longest they are not health nuts especially and have quite a nice lifestyle. eg

>Ikaria, Greece, three times more likely to reach 90 than Americans, almost no dementia

>residents stay active through walking, farming and fishing, but they also make sure to take time out to nap and socialize. In addition to their Mediterranean diet, they eat a lot of wild greens and drink an herbal tea that’s full of nutrients. Their community lifestyle also encourages good health habits and regular social engagement.

Re: Advice

#215

Post by tim333 »

gfodor wrote: post #59

> If you think something is important but people older than you hold don't hold it in high regard, there's a decent chance that you're right and they're wrong. Status lags by a generation or more. I winced a little bit at this one, though it's worded strangely so I may be misinterpreting it. The way I took it is poor advice -- when there is a mismatch between yourself and another in terms of "what's important" or wha…

I imagine he's thinking of thing like doing a start up or getting into blockchain rather than say moral values.

Re: Advice

#216

Post by tobbe2064 »

There was a survey done at a home for the elderly that asked them what they would do differently. All of them, 100%, gave the same answer: Spend more time with their family.

Re: Advice

#217

Post by pouta »

Viliam1234 wrote: post #183
sillyquiet wrote: post #69

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I am in the same boat. And the damned thing is it's not that hard to do right by your physical health with moderate amounts of exercise and some self-discipline with meals and alcohol.

> it's not that hard Yes, that's the greatest component of my regret. I cannot even make the excuse of "it was so hard, and I was focusing on other things". I started weightlifting at age 40. I never seriously exercised or did sports regularly before. After one year of exercising 30 minutes a day, I am in a better physical shape than ever before. Those 30 minutes a day are totally worth it. And I regret not doing it…

Where can I buy those books?

Re: Advice

#218

Post by chatmasta »

sus_007 wrote: post #48

> In particular, try to go deep on multiple things...deep on languages, programming... I fall under the target audience for this piece and by now I've dabbled with at least half a dozen of programming languages and their celebrated frameworks/libraries- from Front to the Back. I tried my best to go deep on all of them just for the sake of learning. But, now I feel lost and can't figure out which path am I supposed to…

You’re taking the right approach for your age IMO. Breadth is good because it acquaints you with the solution space for any problem you may encounter. Depth is good because it enables you to build solutions. But you don’t need depth until you know you need it. Depth is rarely realized through academic exercise. You develop depth through trial and error while solving real problems with practical use cases. Once you have a problem, and you’ve used your breadth to identify a potential solution, then it is time to dive deep.

Re: Advice

#219

Post by [deleted] »

ritchiea wrote: post #192
tonyedgecombe wrote: post #142

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Actually I think I apologised too soon, looking at @ritchiea's posts and web site I reckon I was right on the mark.

Tell me about my background It’s absolute bullshit that you assume you know so much about me from browsing my web presence I didn’t ask for an apology and what I said about my life is true. You seem to have some kind of complex about class where you feel you need to make a point but without actually expressing anything of significance. I am not at all trying to prove any kind of point about what your class background…

[deleted]

Re: Advice

#220

Post by fiveoak »

everdev wrote: post #165
fiveoak wrote: post #160

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Same here, I actually lost 200 lbs in my mid-late 20s and it's amazing how many positive ways it has affected me beyond the physical health benefits. Growing up I never had an interest in sports/physical activities but I wish I had.

That's an incredible achievement. That's more than I've ever weighed. I can't imagine what it would be like to be carrying that much excess weight every day, I'm sure you were physically quite strong. And even mentally stronger for the commitment to lose the weight. Kudos for your transformation!

Ahh thank you, I've never been good at accepting compliments and don't really feel like I did anything too special since many people each day are able to handle their nutrition/weight in a much better way than I can. But I appreciate the kind words.
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