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Ask HN: How to find what I am really good at?

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Re: Ask HN: How to find what I am really good at?

#41

Post by pr07ecH70r »

kthejoker2 wrote: post #38

Separate comment: this question is framed with a fixed mindset and an unhealthy sense of what self-discovery is.l You "are" "good at" nothing. You are not a block of marble with David inside, something to be chipped away at until it is apparent for all to see. You are a ball of clay, malleable, reshapable and shapeless, fluid and formed, able to absorb new bits and grow into something wildly different, day by day if…

Thanks for the tip! Do you have any book suggestions from experience? Otherwise, I would randomly google and pick.

Re: Ask HN: How to find what I am really good at?

#42

Post by pr07ecH70r »

kthejoker2 wrote: post #33

Sticking to one thing is overrated :) “I believe in bumbling around long enough to not give up at things. And eventually success comes your way, because you tried to fail in every possible way, the only way that’s left is the one successful way, and always, for entrepreneurs, seems to come last." - Vinod Khosla, cofounder, SUN Microsystems Just a couple of feel good books disguised as pop science to quickly read thro…

Thanks for the tips! Going for the books as a starter.

Re: Ask HN: How to find what I am really good at?

#43

Post by xoptions »

You may not find it by asking others. You will lose sense of time if you really want to get good at something. Sportsmen do not go on a quest in their childhood. They are playing in the middle while their peers are enjoying birthday parties.

The good thing is you are exploring a lot. And exploration never ends until you begin to enjoy getting tired.

Re: Ask HN: How to find what I am really good at?

#44

Post by pr07ecH70r »

jasode wrote: post #37
andrewstuart wrote: post #2

You don't "find what you are good at" - that is backwards. Instead, you do what you are interested in, and initially you are not good at it, and with enough time, effort, working at learning and practicing, you will become good at it.

>You don't "find what you are good at" - that is backwards. [...] , working at learning and practicing, you will become good at it. Because of the imprecise way the op phrased his question, I think you've misinterpreted it. I agree with sibling comment (jstx1) that op is not asking about "good" as a skill-level change from beginner to expert. Instead, the op is asking something like... "How do I find the one activity…

Thanks for the clarification! :) You are absolutely right, and kudos for explaining it even better than I had it in my head! :D

Re: Ask HN: How to find what I am really good at?

#46

Post by cwb »

pr07ecH70r wrote: post #41
kthejoker2 wrote: post #38

Separate comment: this question is framed with a fixed mindset and an unhealthy sense of what self-discovery is.l You "are" "good at" nothing. You are not a block of marble with David inside, something to be chipped away at until it is apparent for all to see. You are a ball of clay, malleable, reshapable and shapeless, fluid and formed, able to absorb new bits and grow into something wildly different, day by day if…

Thanks for the tip! Do you have any book suggestions from experience? Otherwise, I would randomly google and pick.

Mindset by Carol Dweck (https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/40745.Mindset)

So Good They Can't Ignore You by Cal Newport (https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13525945-so-good-they-ca...)

Re: Ask HN: How to find what I am really good at?

#47

Post by atoav »

When I was 16 I was wondering whether too many things interested me at once. I was really into music, playing music, mixing/producing music, photography (both analog and digital), graphic design, web development and web design, drawing, writing, product design, electronics, film, skateboarding, snowboarding, programming and 3d modelling, contemporary art, philosophy and media science.

Naturally my feeling was that this is way to much for one individual to be good at and I felt I had to pic one.

Nearly two decades later I still haven't picked one and I am excellent in a few of these at the same time. I managed to create a freelance job in film post production and web stuff that paid well and covered many of those fields, with many of the intersection being fruitful.

When I was doing the sound editing for movies with directors, I could use my own experience as a director, as a DOP and as a student of film science to talk about certain aesthetical decisions with them, all while being the guy who knows how a preamp is structured on a circuit level. People booked me precisely because I know how to technically make it work and have the artistic experience both in picture and sound.

Then during corona it shifted more towards backend programming, electronics and media tech. But having a pool of abilities is not a bad thing.

If you are the type that can make it work of course. I have always been faster than average at learning and understanding new things. The most important thing is that the things you do go into, are things you like doing. And it is totally okay to split your money earning from that.

I know guys who lead a perfectly happy life by working in social care and make art and music in their spare time. There is a few happy ones that made their passion their profession and are happy with it, there is a lot of people who have no discernable interest at all, besides going on vacation or partying. There is people who always worked in tech only to realize they like working with people more or the other way around.

Find out who you are, what you are good at. Ask friends and family what they honestly think you are good at and figure out if there is a gap between how you see yourself and how others perceive you.

Re: Ask HN: How to find what I am really good at?

#49

Post by fxtentacle »

I spent my free time at university jumping around between projects and working on whatever I liked most that week. Looking back, I believe that was very useful just to memorize all that's possible.

Most frontend developers have never seen Haskell, so they don't even know what programming paradigms they are missing out on.

Also, there's nothing inherently wrong with cutting your losses and quitting a project that isn't working as you had hoped.

In the end, I stuck with a project long-term because I liked the team. So maybe that's your antidote: build stuff together with others.

Re: Ask HN: How to find what I am really good at?

#50

Post by mightybyte »

kthejoker2 wrote: post #38

Separate comment: this question is framed with a fixed mindset and an unhealthy sense of what self-discovery is.l You "are" "good at" nothing. You are not a block of marble with David inside, something to be chipped away at until it is apparent for all to see. You are a ball of clay, malleable, reshapable and shapeless, fluid and formed, able to absorb new bits and grow into something wildly different, day by day if…

I heard someone say once that one of the best things that helped them develop a growth mindset was lifting weights. Consistently doing 3x5 heavy squats, deadlifts, and presses just three days per week will make a visible change in most people's body remarkably quickly. And seeing that change in yourself really helps reinforce that you can change your situation.

I thought that was an interesting observation but I'd like to suggest expanding it to physical activity in general rather than specifically powerlifting. There are many different activities (for example HIIT, martial arts, gymnastics, rock climbing just to name a few) that will make a significant physical change in your body. When you stick to one of those activities and document your progress with data, photos, etc there's something about seeing that change happen to the blob of matter that is "you" that really expands what you consider achievable for yourself.

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