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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?

#251

Post by annyeonghada »

lnwlebjel wrote: post #200
jstrebel wrote: post #60

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That is a blatantly false answer. Of course, there is an ongoing debate about nature vs. nurture, which means that the genetic makeup of the individual strongly influences the individual's life. Look at musicality, look at sociopathy, look at general intelligence - all areas where genes exert their influence (as an example). So yes, you can try to grow around your talents, and develop strengths there. But by the same…

Your response carries much too much confidence. There is no debate any longer - the story is pretty well worked out [1][2]. Nature only gets you so far. See for example how much top pro golfers practice (or musicians, or whatever ..). (Not that it matters but I learned this late in life and was able to apply the knowledge to make it near the top of my admittedly very narrow field). Sure, at the top 0.1%, maybe even 1…

The books cited are weird self help-y "non" fiction books that misrepresent research: when you look at the actual articles is nature all the way down.

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

#252

Post by ismail »

tediousdemise wrote: post #190
pr07ecH70r wrote: post #113

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Actually never crossed my mind it could be a sickness-related. I just thought it as a sort of "too many possibilities saturation" or too quick loss of interest. So I decided to ask like-minded people like you here, at least from the same more or less background. Will make the online test, though...

You’re getting a lot of advice about ADHD and the medications prescribed for it. My advice is to tread cautiously and know the risks, because most doctors won’t tell you (or they’ll just gloss over them). Amphetamines are addictive and, used as prescribed, you can find yourself with way worse attention and psychological problems. This is especially true if you take them on a daily basis as prescribed. Taken this way,…

> Taken this way, they can lead to chronically depleted adrenals and long term downregulation of your dopamine receptors, which means you’ll feel like shit when you run out of medicine. The road to up-regulating your receptors is long and arduous.

Do you have references?

> There are also long term risks such as the development of Parkinson’s disease

Do you have references?

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

#253

Post by ismail »

RHSman2 wrote: post #175
whoooooo123 wrote: post #145

Earlier quoted context omitted.

How do you get hold of it?

How did I? I have impulsive ADHD. It’s been a great tool but also got me into a lot of trouble. I never thought I could change who I am. I am right but I could become aware of what I am an try to engage my bigger brain rather than the impulsive part. Once I started investing in knowing me better rather than just allowing me to be on a seemingly uncontrollable train I could see how certain behaviors could be toxic to…

Were you able to do this without prescription meds?

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

#254

Post by GameOfFrowns »

t0bia_s wrote: post #242
triggercut wrote: post #211

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There are. Heaps. And you try them all Talk therapy is incredibly important. People with ADHD can often suffer from rejection dysphoria and depending on how long until they realise, or how self aware they are, they end up internalising a lot of negative opinions and shame about themselves that needs to be unwound. There are a lot of issues around the pain of "never fitting in" or being understood. Some of these are a…

I think ADHD could be related to overconsumption of sugar.

The question would be: Which one would be the cause and which one is the effect?

I am diagnosed with ADHD and I consume unhealthy amounts of sugar in form of chocolate, gummy bears and ice cream. I wonder if...

A) all that sugar creates a gut microbiome that facilitate ADHD symptoms or if

B) the general impulsiveness and higher-than-usual glucose demand from the brain create the sugar cravings, or if

C) it's some kind of feedback loop and bad habits get reinforced to the point of addiction

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

#255

Post by whoooooo123 »

RHSman2 wrote: post #175
whoooooo123 wrote: post #145

Earlier quoted context omitted.

How do you get hold of it?

How did I? I have impulsive ADHD. It’s been a great tool but also got me into a lot of trouble. I never thought I could change who I am. I am right but I could become aware of what I am an try to engage my bigger brain rather than the impulsive part. Once I started investing in knowing me better rather than just allowing me to be on a seemingly uncontrollable train I could see how certain behaviors could be toxic to…

Can you be more specific about what you did?

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

#256

Post by RHSman2 »

ismail wrote: post #253
RHSman2 wrote: post #175

Earlier quoted context omitted.

How did I? I have impulsive ADHD. It’s been a great tool but also got me into a lot of trouble. I never thought I could change who I am. I am right but I could become aware of what I am an try to engage my bigger brain rather than the impulsive part. Once I started investing in knowing me better rather than just allowing me to be on a seemingly uncontrollable train I could see how certain behaviors could be toxic to…

Were you able to do this without prescription meds?

Yes however I looked into with a psychologist, a lot of research and decided to not.

Was based on looking back on my life with a new understanding and then working via therapy on aspects of being.

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

#257

Post by robertlagrant »

roey2009 wrote: post #231
robertlagrant wrote: post #74

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Phrasing and mindset aren't the same.

They are more indicative of one another, than a direct analogy. Whether you blame another, view some traits as faults, idolise some concept or are blind to some thing, all are appearant in your writing and speech.

You're overreading into a message typed into a forum. I've noticed mistakes in your post, but I don't then assume you're careless in every aspect. You could just be having a bad day, or English could be a second language. I don't know, so I don't assume.

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

#258

Post by lucideer »

robertlagrant wrote: post #74
lucideer wrote: post #72

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Agree with sibling commenters here critiquing this for being an oversimplification- nature vs nurture is not a binary. But even aside from the core of the argument, I find your phraseology oddly formulaic. It's ironic you're accusing the OP of having a "fixed mindset" when so much of your contributed "opinion" is clearly copypasted from books. I'd suggest opening your own mindset to forming a worldview of your own ra…

Phrasing and mindset aren't the same.

True and fair. My observations may be misguided- I thought them appropriate to voice regardless purely in the context of the condescending & ironic nature of the observations the gp made about the op.

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

#259

Post by kirso »

pier25 wrote: post #173

Your curious nature is really an asset which might not be apparent if you are on your 20s or even 30s. I'm in a similar boat and for me the issue with switching activities/hobbies/jobs is that I feel unsatisfied with the lack of results that focused people achieve. A couple of years ago (I'm 43 now) I found a way to balance focus with curiosity. I made a deal with myself that when I embark on a project, whatever it i…

Thats a great framework! Still struggling with this and quite frankly when realising that I spread my attention thin, that only gives more anxiety after some time of unfinished things.

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

#260

Post by kirso »

prismatix wrote: post #144

You sound a lot like me. My best moments of clarity always come from a 2+ week trip abroad, spending less time on the internet and more time with the world and myself. It's taking time to talk to other people and hearing that people are happy and successful doing all sorts of different things. It's recognizing the core values that make you feel fulfilled.

Think this is a hack that not a lot of people have generally considered. Switching off all devices and just going out and spending time somewhere nice with oneself.
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