When offered a chance to go to a school abroad don't be afraid and just go. You will end up at a university abroad anyway,but you will always regard those last three years at a shitty school to be lost because you were too afraid to go.
Ask HN: What would you tell your 16-year-old self?
41–50 of 72 posts
Re: Ask HN: What would you tell your 16-year-old self?
#42I haven't read the comments so there might be duplication.
1) Try out new things on a regular basis. I don't mean technology. Try out running, jogging, swimming, pottery, origami, kickboxing, anything new you haven't tried before (You can do most of this without spending any money). But do this on a regular basis. A new thing every month, and you must spend 2 hour per week.
2) If you want to get good in programming, code for an hour every day.
3) Maintain a journal/diary. It doesn't have to be extensive or good prose. Just a rough outline of your day and a couple of lines on how you feel. I assure you, it will be fun to read it years later.
4) Read books. Learn how to read books. I have a habit of reading fiction and forgetting all about them or starting technical books and never finishing them. I am trying out a new method in which I write a small summary of fiction and a plan to work out all exercises of technical books in second pass.
How I wish I could give this advice to my younger self!
Re: Ask HN: What would you tell your 16-year-old self?
#43People lie. People project onto others what they wish they had themselves. Advice not followed. Choices they wish they'd made. Past circumstances as opposed to current circumstances.
There's no getting around making your own decisions. And living with them.
TANSTAAFL. Google (Wikipedia) it. Maybe read some Heinlein. Realize that while Heinlein may have some interesting things to say, he too was writing fiction.
Physical health is the foundation of everything else. Don't compromise it lightly.
From Frank Herbert's "Dune": "I must not fear. Fear is the mind-killer. Fear is the little-death that brings total obliteration. I will face my fear. I will permit it to pass over me and through me. And when it has gone past I will turn the inner eye to see its path. Where the fear has gone there will be nothing. Only I will remain."
My qualification: Fear is useful, in the short term. As are anger, and other "negative" emotions. Pay attention, and work to solve/resolve those situations. Left unresolved, they become poison.
There's a lot of good in the world, too. Nurture and trust your instincts. Don't put up with crap. Make it a priority to be in a position where you are not forced to do so.
Don't put other people in the position where they are forced to do so.
A good part of your strength and resilience come from your community (whatever that is -- not necessarily geographically defined). Take care of it, and it will take care of you.
People learn by example. Whether face to face, or in text -- the example has to ring true. Or rather, the example will ring true, whether what that ends up being is what you intended to convey, or not.
This is some random guy's advice. TANSTAAFL.
Re: Ask HN: What would you tell your 16-year-old self?
#44I would be more concerned with my 16 year old self developing their technical skills and social network rather than thinking about doing a startup, so my advice reflects that. -Stay away from python, dynamic typing is a sick joke for anything other than scripts. {controversial} -Good development tools can increase your productivity by an order of magnitude. I'm looking at you, Resharper. -You will get banned from wor…
I was going to comment on how ridiculous it was that your first advice to a 16 year old asking about his future was to avoid "dynamic typing", then I finished reading your comment and realized you were trolling.
Re: Ask HN: What would you tell your 16-year-old self?
#45Have fun. It's easy to work constantly and lose sight of why you're doing it but remember why you're doing it and take time to enjoy it.
Re: Ask HN: What would you tell your 16-year-old self?
#46Let's list some practical things:
Eat more bacon. I was a skinny teenager. After I was 22 I gained a lot of weight. I'm 33 and finally discovered keto/low carb eating and it's working wonders. I recognize that I never really had the interest in doing sports growing up, so if 16 year old me kept to a low carb diet we'd have maintained a low weight through the years.
Finish college. It's a real popular idea to drop out and "do the startup". If you have a side project that gets traction AND MAKES MONEY then that's probably ok. In my case, I did a bit of school and have self-taught myself a lot. I'm really good at what I do (web development), but there are holes in my knowledge. More importantly, I'm regretting now not being exposed to other potential fields of interest like astronomy, solar power, etc. I'll never have that experience unless I show up on campus like those guys in the movie Interns. Kinda akward and I'm not that funny.
Last thing would be to seize opportunities when they come. Always say yes. I don't do that enough. Go to that party, attend that meetup. If you have an opportunity to travel, do it.
Re: Ask HN: What would you tell your 16-year-old self?
#47Expect to underestimate the amount of time you'll be working, so plan accordingly. If you build something that puts more zeroes in your bank account than you've ever seen before, that doesn't make you invincible. An overnight success can't be replicated 5x. Save a large portion of your earnings. When you're older, you'll thank your younger self for helping you bootstrap your newest venture.
Re: Ask HN: What would you tell your 16-year-old self?
#48Don't be afraid to make a decision on choosing a specific path in life. The sooner you make a decision, the sooner you start learning and finding out things about the path. If you find yourself having a life where you are not happy for a really long period of time, re-assess things and make another decision. You have the rest of your life to figure out what you want to do, many people who are much older than you are still trying to figure out what they want to be when they grow up and you know - that is totally ok. Grow your network of friends and mentors and never be afraid to ask for help - you are doing good so far :) Get involved in things that you wouldn't normally do, these opportunities lead to other opportunities and also help you grow your network - many organizations with great causes out there. Always have something that you care about and is personal to you on the side, no matter what happens in life, you always have that one thing that matters to you and no one can take away. Hope you have a fun and great 16th bday!
Re: Ask HN: What would you tell your 16-year-old self?
#49I would be more concerned with my 16 year old self developing their technical skills and social network rather than thinking about doing a startup, so my advice reflects that. -Stay away from python, dynamic typing is a sick joke for anything other than scripts. {controversial} -Good development tools can increase your productivity by an order of magnitude. I'm looking at you, Resharper. -You will get banned from wor…
PUA teaches you to treat women like games. Some will say it's all about giving you confidence, but it isn't. It's entire purpose is to use a handful of gambits to fool women for sex. I've read several of those books as I was briefly interested in that world in undergrad. Keeping fit, having hobbies, being knowledgeable and aware, being part of an outgoing social circle, will give you the traits and skills you need to…
Many 16 year olds are not interested in meaningful, genuine relationships. Perhaps most teenagers who get casual sex are bullshitting their way to it. Some are just naturally confident, attractive and interesting, but I'd wager a bet that the average kid who actually gets laid is bullshitting quite a lot, with or without ridiculous hats.
Re: Ask HN: What would you tell your 16-year-old self?
#50My advice to you is whoever you take advice from, make sure they share your values or have a personality similar to yours. I personally don't regret anything in my life (mostly) but I know many people who would probably be miserable in my position. Likewise, I would be miserable in the position of many people who consider themselves happy and successful.