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Ask HN: How did you decide what problems to solve in your lifetime?

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Re: Ask HN: How did you decide what problems to solve in your lifetime?

#171

Post by colordrops »

tvanantwerp wrote: post #50
nnd wrote: post #35

Earlier quoted context omitted.

My biggest issue with 80,000 hours is that it's a rational, but radically uninspiring advice in the end. It is a framework for those who buy into "don't follow your passion advice", and try to maximize their utility function instead.

A fair criticism. Personally, I've spent enough time around folks who followed their passion and seen where it got them that I'm 100% on board the utility function train.

It's not binary though. It's a complex weaving dance between passion and utility for most people if you are to be both reasonably happy and well off.

Re: Ask HN: How did you decide what problems to solve in your lifetime?

#172

Post by colordrops »

jadbox wrote: post #149

"Do what you love" is a common phrase, but I've found an opposite technique. Find the things that bugs you most (that you talk about, focus on, debate about) and allow yourself to become a solution. I've found that the problems I tended to be naturally be bothered by ended up making great career choice(s) for me.

What problems have you made career choices out of if you don't mind me asking?

Re: Ask HN: How did you decide what problems to solve in your lifetime?

#173

Post by casper345 »

What I found in my experience is that an idea is great but until you start working on it, you will not know if you're passionate/interested/capable/ready for it.

I have a lot of projects/ideas that I am working on or want to work on. I jump from one project to the next until there is one that really grasps me, then I try to finish till completion. Most people have shallow understandings of a lot of things. Only with deep knowledge does innovation or sparks of it come to being. So with your interest in a lot of subjects (Energy, AI, Healthcare) try to learn a little of them in the beginning beyond shallow understanding. MAybe you will find something from that.

Re: Ask HN: How did you decide what problems to solve in your lifetime?

#174

Post by colordrops »

DenisM wrote: post #155

"Follow your heart [rather than your wallet]" is generally a bad advice [1], but if both tracks are equally well paid you might as well indulge, if only for long enough to get a feel for it. Meaningful work is one of the pillars of mental health, don't take that away form yourself unless you have to trade it for another pillar. [1] It's a bad advice because it often turns people to soul-sucking cafe ownership, hand-t…

Owning a cafe is soul sucking?

Re: Ask HN: How did you decide what problems to solve in your lifetime?

#175

Post by pmarreck »

Aeolun wrote: post #100
totololo wrote: post #94

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Oh how I would LOVE to know more! Can you give examples?

Join a startup as a soon-to-be father, following your dreams, and have the thing explode in your face, then finally recover and get a job at a megacorp (a week before the baby is due)? Utility for the win! Following your dreams is fun and all, but the risk/reward ratio is just way out there.

So the take-home here is take all your career risks before you take on dependents?

Re: Ask HN: How did you decide what problems to solve in your lifetime?

#176

Post by casper345 »

cproctor wrote: post #99

I got some good advice about a decade ago, which I've used for guidance and, on reflection, has served me well. You're not well-positioned to understand the core nature of problems, and which are most important, from the outside. Until you have this clarity, do what you can to become part of the core community driving the thinking in your field of choice. There's a strong case for the social importance of many proble…

> You're not well-positioned to understand the core nature of problems, and which are most important, from the outside

Great point. What startups that are trying to infiltrate "old/traditional" industries like hospitals or healthcare are realizing. Need to shadow doctors to see their workflow, not just propose a solution based on your observation or reading articles about hospital shortcomings.

Re: Ask HN: How did you decide what problems to solve in your lifetime?

#178

Post by mynegation »

colordrops wrote: post #174
DenisM wrote: post #155

"Follow your heart [rather than your wallet]" is generally a bad advice [1], but if both tracks are equally well paid you might as well indulge, if only for long enough to get a feel for it. Meaningful work is one of the pillars of mental health, don't take that away form yourself unless you have to trade it for another pillar. [1] It's a bad advice because it often turns people to soul-sucking cafe ownership, hand-t…

Owning a cafe is soul sucking?

YMMV but on average - yes. Restaurants and cafes are very cutthroat industry, with a lot of churn, long hours, lots of regulation etc.

Re: Ask HN: How did you decide what problems to solve in your lifetime?

#179

Post by cs02rm0 »

nnd wrote: post #35
MrGLaDOS wrote: post #11

These fokes devoted quite some time into thinking about your problem: https://80000hours.org/ From their homepage: "You have 80,000 hours in your career. Make the right career choices, and you can help solve the world’s most pressing problems, as well as have a more rewarding, interesting life. We’re here to give you the information you need to find that fulfilling, high-impact career. Our advice is all free, tailore…

My biggest issue with 80,000 hours is that it's a rational, but radically uninspiring advice in the end. It is a framework for those who buy into "don't follow your passion advice", and try to maximize their utility function instead.

I've only had a quick look. I really like the idea of the site, almost desperately so. But the lists of top things to work on that I found seemed a bit disappointing. AI safety policy made the top of one list.

My undergrad AI lecturer told us that it was widely "known" AI was soon going to be generally smarter than humans when he was an undergrad. He wasn't convinced evolutionary changes were going to get us there. It was some 15 years ago I was listening to him, probably 20 or more years before that when he was an undergrad. We still seem to be saying it's 10, 20, or some other made up number of years away.

I'm not even sure there's a significant future problem here. Not on the scale of, say, becoming a multi-planetary species or resolving issues with antibiotic resistance.

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