51–60 of 93 posts
So what happens when you know what you love but can't do it? This blog post assumes: 1) You know what you love to do. 2) What you love to do is profitable.
1) Do you love what you do?
2) Could there be profit in what you love?
3) Is profit the most important question?
Deliberatism isn't about telling people what to do. It's about asking questions in a fashion that might get people talking and coming up with their own answers.
A defining feature of individuals with ADD/HD is a tendency to focus on immediate rewards versus long term goals. This doesn't mean that X-Box and weed are what the universe 'wants' for anyone, it just so happens it's what some (or many) people are wired to respond to.
Acknowledging the gap between our natural, immediate, impulses and our long term desires is part of being an adult, and part of being human. We're capable of conceptualizing of and seeking a future that is not directly in front of our noses. Just because you're not immediately drawn to something, or just because it doesn't "feel" good does NOT mean it isn't worth pursuing.
Apropos, a great Moneyball quote comes to mind :
Billy Beane: You don't know how to play first base. Scott?
Scott Hatteberg: That's right.
Billy Beane: It's not that hard, Scott. Tell him, Wash.
Ron Washington: It's incredibly hard.
Billy Beane: Hey, anything worth doing is. And we're gonna teach you.I've spent the last few years working really hard on developing my ability to maintain focus on a task, improving my mental stamina, and pushing my programming skills. Every time my course veered into a spot where I felt less productive, I made some painful changes and tried again. And now I'm seeing the benefits (like getting up at 5 most days of the week, and coding for 12-14 hours). No pain, no gain.
What a load of fatalistic nonsense. This essentially boils down to "if you haven't done it, don't try since you're clearly not meant to". A defining feature of individuals with ADD/HD is a tendency to focus on immediate rewards versus long term goals. This doesn't mean that X-Box and weed are what the universe 'wants' for anyone, it just so happens it's what some (or many) people are wired to respond to. Acknowledgin…
What a load of fatalistic nonsense. This essentially boils down to "if you haven't done it, don't try since you're clearly not meant to". A defining feature of individuals with ADD/HD is a tendency to focus on immediate rewards versus long term goals. This doesn't mean that X-Box and weed are what the universe 'wants' for anyone, it just so happens it's what some (or many) people are wired to respond to. Acknowledgin…
That's inaccurate. It actually boils down to: if you don't love it, you probably won't keep doing it. And if you don't do it, you won't become any good at it. So, take the time to find what you love.
This is a pretty awesome article, IMO. I agree not everyone is meant to be incredibly "successful." Success is rather subjective. In the end, for most people at least, the attainment of happiness is the ultimate goal of life. And if that means being a lazy pothead or whatever it may be, why the hell not?
While some might not approve, their approval might not actually be that relevant.
Self-help books and workshops arm us with ways to trick ourselves into doing things we perhaps should, but generally don’t want, to do. Maybe, but this is not true of Tony Robbins, one of the biggest in the business. His technique is to get you to dig down into what outcomes you truly desire and then redefine the emotional associations you have with the steps necessary to reach them. He assumes you already know what…
When I was starting my company, I had to cold-call a few dozen people to test a hypothesis. I delayed it for weeks, and when I finally forced myself to pick up the phone, I dreaded dialing every digit. Today, three years into running the company, picking up the phone to call a dozen people is peanuts. I don't like doing it, I'm not very good at it, I delegate it whenever I can, but if call I must, I'll do it, I'll be…
The argument isn't one of never doing unpleasant things. (I don't like changing the oil on my car, but I know it needs to be done.) Instead, I suggest examining why a desire seems important, and whether it might be more of a societal (or ego-driven) thing. Additionally, I believe that if you take the time to find out what you really enjoy, some things will sort themselves out. I've been really good at getting off my…
But take the example of running, or writing. Well like many people, I hated running at first, I really did. But I sticked to it because, well maybe it was some kind of challenge I had set to myself. And I got better at it. And I started to enjoy the feeling, to understand the messages from my body.
This is a classic example and I'm sure I'm not the only one to whom that happened. But let's now take the example of writing. I'm no writer, just a casual blogger (at best). I write by periods, but there is something I noticed: when I write often, inspiration and creativity flows more easily, and I tend to enjoy the activity more, while when I'm writing sporadicly, inspiration just doesn't come, and writing becomes a chore.
The opposite works too. I've always loved playing video games. This is something I really enjoyed doing. But you know what? When I turned 20, I decided that I would no longer play on a regular basis because I had better things to do with my life. Now I only play about 20 days a year, during the holidays. And that's it. And I'm happy because while I wasn't playing video games, well I got better at programming, I read Nietzsche, spent some time with friends (all things that I used to enjoy less that playing video games), and learnt how to love these things more than playing games.
Another point I'd like to raise is the fact that some things are more difficult to appreciate than others. Take wine for instance. Very few people like wine when they first try it, but when you get better at distinguishing the flavors, it is something amazing. The same goes with coffee (I mean coffee without sugar, cream, and other spoilers). Same with Jazz or Classic music. You have to learn how to appreciate these things.
I guess what I'm trying to say is: don't trust your first impression. Or the second. Or the third. You can only know what you really enjoy if you try different things, and stick to them long enough.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
That's inaccurate. It actually boils down to: if you don't love it, you probably won't keep doing it. And if you don't do it, you won't become any good at it. So, take the time to find what you love.
Which should be common sense. Sadly, it's a notion many understand, but few act upon.
Developing a passion takes time and effort. Speaking for myself, I've actively disliked a whole slew of things until I developed enough skill to appreciate it. The stage between starting an endeavor and finding satisfaction in it can be very damn long.
Beginner to intermediate just-about-anything isn't "fun" and won't inspire feelings of "passion" or "love". That doesn't mean people should be discouraged by their pursuit.
Some are fortunate to either be very talented or very inspired very early on. That's the exception, not the rule.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
In my experience, pleasantness and unpleasantness are day to day feelings that sometimes work in my favor and sometimes don't. Many times I have a responsibility which requires unpleasant things, and it makes it more difficult to do, and might make me unhappy if my happiness is based on daily frustrations and successes. That type of happiness tends to have very little to do with our goals. Since it's also very unpred…
I like this perspective. There's just one problem with it: while many would likely find it sensible, most don't share your ability act in a rational fashion. I'm of the mind that most people are overwhelmed by impulses; therefore, they choose what's immediately desirable, over what they know to be the right thing to do. Then of course, my post isn't altogether that different from yours, in terms of its applicability…
At the end of the day, there's one solid evidence of advice that I've ignored one too many times.
"Just try it."
also exercise.