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How to increase your luck surface area (2010)

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Re: How to increase your luck surface area (2010)

#21

Post by mettamage »

kharak wrote: post #11

Being passionate about something for a long time (not just a couple of hours or weeks) seems to be a rare quality. Too bad for those who lack it, as it seems to be a requirement for success in everything. There are so many posts that try to tell you how to get the most out of your passion, I haven't seen one that explains the origin of passion or whether it is possible to become passionate.

What also isn't talked about:

__Burnout and Passions__

Here's a comparison: I once build a computer graphics engine in 2 weeks and a few years prior I played WoW for 2 weeks.

In both cases I spent between 16 to 20 hours per day on it. I got ill, had an angry girlfriend (in the computer graphics timeline), and I did everything I wanted to do (it was done).

__Passions and Interests__

I have a genuine interest in security. Once every year I become super passionate about hacking/red teaming for 2 months. I'm like a cat in heat or something, but then with security. I play hackthebox, I follow security courses and clock 12 to 16 hours per day on it, 7 days per week. Converted to working days, that is around 5 months of working days.

Yet, people mistake this as me having a passion for it. I can assure you, if the article is technical and I'm in the other 10 months, I'd need to apply quite some self-control and discipline to be able to read it.

__It's not always the subject__

I have this weird trait. Whatever my friends are interested in, can become a passion of mine. One requirement: I need to do it with them. If I do and I'm having a positive interaction with my friend, then I'm passionate about it. However, I know it's not the subject, it's simply being with that friend. I figured it out by first noticing this in video games. It turns out I don't care about video games, I simply care playing them with friends. It turns out, it's true for all activities I have an interest in.

__Passions and linking to other topics__

I love imagining music. It's a compulsion I had since I was 4. Because of this, I quite like making music as well. However, I also like not being poor. I've seen quite a few poor musicians, so I've never focused too much on my music creation and I think that's quite a sad fact about my life.

But! It turns out, that (web) app development for things that I find cool or useful scratches exactly the same itch. So that means that passions are wider than your interest alone. It turns out that passions might be able to transfer to other passions if they have the same properties.

Unfortunately, I don't feel passionate about (web) app development for corporations. This is mostly because a lot of the creative freedom isn't there, but when you make your own stuff it is there.

---

My 2 cents.

Re: How to increase your luck surface area (2010)

#22

Post by xyzelement »

An Israeli entrepreneur once introduced me to the idea of "the adjacent possible" - meaning, as you progress to "the next point" - the possibilities connected to that point are available to you.

Somewhere else, I read the definition of "intelligence" as that which maximizes its future options.

I think both things hit at the same idea of "surface area of luck". We think of luck as "a good opportunity you can take advantage of" - if you become someone who can take advantage of more opportunities, you become luckier.

Some of the strategies that helped me (none of them are intentional):

- Never passing up an opportunity to learn - whether new skill or new degree or new industry or a new personal challenge. As Steve Jobs said, sometimes you don't learn until later how the dots connect to what you eventually do.

- Diversifying my experience. EG: 13~ years ago I was a "senior software developer." Since then, I had been a "development manager", a "product manager" and also for a time a "senior software developer" again. When I lost my job a few months ago, I was able to look at opportunities along all 3 of these job tracks, whereas if I had stayed in the single track, I'd have 1/3 the options.

- Ditto to industries. Until now, everything I did was in finance, so I intentionally found a role outside of finance, because I could always go back to it if I need to, but now I am proving to myself (and to my resume) that I can cross industries and work anywhere. That again increases. your surface area.

- Have a diverse network, for example find a way to connect with young talented people where you are (first job, university) because they will disperse throughout the world and may do cool things and you may want to do those things with them, or they can just help you. It has been amazing how much people that I had barely connected with when we worked together were willing to help when I needed a referral/advice/whatever.

- I'll call this one out separately: help people. Make time to mentor people, help them get jobs, put in a good word, whatever. Not everyone will "pay you back" but it doesn't matter, the reputation of "xyzelement's a good guy, he's generally helpful" means the world, especially as you become more senior.

- Be the dumbest guy in the room. You grow more when being surrounded by those who can challenge you uncomfortably. Pick the right room. Comfort = death.

- Troubleshoot your mind. Most of us are held back by stupid hangups. For example, most developers I know could be overall way more successful if they got over shyness/fear of public speaking. Figure out why you fear whatever you fear, and work to get over it. Imagine you didn't go for your dream job because it has some minute attribute that you pointlessly fear.

- Check your language. If you find that "they" are responsible for what's happening to you, you have given away all your power. Figure out how "you" are responsible for where you and and what opportunities "you" have, and then own it and act.

Re: How to increase your luck surface area (2010)

#23

Post by m463 »

kharak wrote: post #11

Being passionate about something for a long time (not just a couple of hours or weeks) seems to be a rare quality. Too bad for those who lack it, as it seems to be a requirement for success in everything. There are so many posts that try to tell you how to get the most out of your passion, I haven't seen one that explains the origin of passion or whether it is possible to become passionate.

"stop starting and start finishing"

On the other hand, we have so little time here. Who's to say whether narrow and deep is always more rewarding than broad and shallow?

You know, be mindful of doing the wrong thing well instead of the right thing poorly.

So learn to forgive ourselves for pursuing things that fizzle out or lose our interest. Leave space to preserve passion to the benefit of our health and happiness. More interests might also mean more opportunities to align shared passions with others.

Re: How to increase your luck surface area (2010)

#25

Post by sigmaprimus »

I'm not sure the variable of how many other people I tell about my passion has an effect of its success.

I have several passions and many ventures based on them.

I believe "A farmer has as much luck as he has seeds in the ground" regardless of how many people are involved. I my case "seeds" are ventures that I start based on my passions, many will wither but some will do well and a few do great.

The great ones seem to draw others to get involved even when I try to keep them low key.

Re: How to increase your luck surface area (2010)

#26

Post by pototo666 »

I like this idea. It's simple and elegant.

I am accidentally practising it.

I make games. I tried and failed to get investement and partners.

So I am making games alone. Last week I started streaming my daily work. I stream my the other screen display, such that I can decide what to show and what to hide.

I told myself, streaming cost me no money and I might attract attention of partners and investors. Nothing unfold yet. But I would continue.

Re: How to increase your luck surface area (2010)

#27

Post by williamonill »

I think this equation completely forgets to take into account the power of the people you tell about your ideas. If you are studying in Stanford and can literally walk into the office of professor X and tell him about your ideas (which worked pretty well for Elizabeth Holmes and professor Channing Robertson but that's a different story) you have an enormous competitive advantage. And if you have a Stanford professor on your side, it's pretty easy to open doors to other influential people.

On the other hand, if you tell your idea some stranger on the Internet... chances are much lower that you will find the right people.

Re: How to increase your luck surface area (2010)

#28

Post by pototo666 »

kharak wrote: post #11

Being passionate about something for a long time (not just a couple of hours or weeks) seems to be a rare quality. Too bad for those who lack it, as it seems to be a requirement for success in everything. There are so many posts that try to tell you how to get the most out of your passion, I haven't seen one that explains the origin of passion or whether it is possible to become passionate.

I haven't seen one that explains the origin of passion or whether it is possible to become passionate.

---

As Bezos said, you can't choose your passion, your passion chooses you.

Re: How to increase your luck surface area (2010)

#29

Post by etrautmann »

pototo666 wrote: post #28
kharak wrote: post #11

Being passionate about something for a long time (not just a couple of hours or weeks) seems to be a rare quality. Too bad for those who lack it, as it seems to be a requirement for success in everything. There are so many posts that try to tell you how to get the most out of your passion, I haven't seen one that explains the origin of passion or whether it is possible to become passionate.

I haven't seen one that explains the origin of passion or whether it is possible to become passionate. --- As Bezos said, you can't choose your passion, your passion chooses you.

I disagree - passion can emerge after you’re much deeper into something. I liked building things but wasn’t passionate about engineering until my last year in undergrad. It took 3-4 years of grinding away uncertainly until I had enough skill to make it really fun and interesting. That knowledge snowballs.

Plenty of people are passionate about work which appears arcane. Few of them started with that.

Re: How to increase your luck surface area (2010)

#30

Post by vincentmarle »

kharak wrote: post #11

Being passionate about something for a long time (not just a couple of hours or weeks) seems to be a rare quality. Too bad for those who lack it, as it seems to be a requirement for success in everything. There are so many posts that try to tell you how to get the most out of your passion, I haven't seen one that explains the origin of passion or whether it is possible to become passionate.

> Being passionate about something for a long time ... seems to be a requirement for success in everything.

There’s a book that attempts to debunk this myth by making the case that generalists are typically more successful: https://www.gatesnotes.com/Books/Range

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