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The days are long but the decades are short

blog.samaltman.com

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Re: The days are long but the decades are short

#31

Post by runesoerensen »

kungfooey wrote: post #6

Are we really at the point where a 30 year old can offer sage advice on living life? Wow. As a counterpoint to "be the best you can be in your profession": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hIJdFxYlEKE [PyCon keynote by Jacob Kaplan-Moss on 'mediocre developers'].

I can't say I'm surprised to see this as the top comment, but I think it's sad that you (and apparently many other upvoters) don't think 30 year olds can offer valuable advice on life.

It's also wrong as proven by history. Many writers have produced some of their best works at the same age. One example is Kirkegaard who wrote "Fear and Trembling"[1] at age 30.

If you think that Sam's advice is narrowminded or bad as a result of his age you can address that in your comment. That would add value to the discussion -- it currently does no such thing.

Go for the ball not the man.

[1](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fear_and_Trembling)

Re: The days are long but the decades are short

#32

Post by putzdown »

samsolomon wrote: post #3

Those of you on HN that are past the 30+ mark. What would you add to this list?

Your twenties are the age of proving yourself. But this is a self-defeating goal: a person worthy of the respect and success you yearn for doesn't need them as badly as you do.

Your thirties expand and narrow your world: expansion into parenting (for many) and to richer relationships, if you can survive them, with spouses. But now you know your limits, and the sky is no longer it. There's a contraction of options, but the few options you have grow deeper.

By forty you know you have nothing to prove or, contrariwise, you've proven just how limited you are. You've made your bed and you're lying in it. For many this is a crisis and they struggle to break free, but there's no escaping it: you're older. You feel your own age in your mind and body (knees? back? eyes?) truly for the first time. But once you get over the shock, you realize that you're still young enough. You also realize, if you've stayed at the hard work of marriage and parenting and building skills and opportunities for a career, that you've got a lot to be confident about. You're humbler, but more powerful and capable, than ever.

I haven't reached 50 yet so I have to stop there.

Re: The days are long but the decades are short

#33

Post by JoeAltmaier »

I was 5 minutes late to work every morning, because of taking my son to school in the neighborhood where our new house was being built. I didn't want him to have to move schools in the middle of the year.

Boss said "This won't do. You'll have to examine your priorities."

I thought about it all day, that night. Next morning I got to work (5 minutes late), went in his office, said "I examined my priorities. Work is #12." and I left.

Re: The days are long but the decades are short

#35

Post by jkestner »

kungfooey wrote: post #6

Are we really at the point where a 30 year old can offer sage advice on living life? Wow. As a counterpoint to "be the best you can be in your profession": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hIJdFxYlEKE [PyCon keynote by Jacob Kaplan-Moss on 'mediocre developers'].

Eh, define your profession/mission more narrowly, and you can always be the best at it. Granted, it's the defining your mission that seems to take all the work.

Re: The days are long but the decades are short

#38

Post by nether »

kungfooey wrote: post #6

Are we really at the point where a 30 year old can offer sage advice on living life? Wow. As a counterpoint to "be the best you can be in your profession": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hIJdFxYlEKE [PyCon keynote by Jacob Kaplan-Moss on 'mediocre developers'].

Seriously I was hoping for something unique, but there's nothing new here if you have ever read a life advice column before or practiced any faith for a while. If anything, I only reached the same conclusion as in the end of this article: http://www.theonion.com/articles/24yearold-receives-sage-cou...

Re: The days are long but the decades are short

#39

Post by JoeAltmaier »

mikeg8 wrote: post #24
sz4kerto wrote: post #9

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Having a child relativizes everything else and makes life so much easier because you don't need to figure out the meaning of your life anymore and you don't even need to be successful, neither personally nor professionally. This does not mean you won't be or you can't be, it just does not matter that much anymore. And this is friggin' liberating.

I have an amazing father and grandfathers, all of whom I am close with. I've dreamed of being a father for many years (26M) and think I'll make a great one someday based on the examples I was fortunate enough to have. But I don't like the thought that as soon as you have a child, you instantly have to be defined by that. Is reproduction really the meaning to life? (Biologists say absolutely). And saying you don't hav…

Not reproduction: parenthood. Never mind how the kid got there; they are soon more important than everything you naïvely thought mattered.

Not so much defined by that. Instead, motivated by entirely new impulses. Its not that you change your mind about success. Your mind changes, and that isn't a bad thing.

Re: The days are long but the decades are short

#40

Post by georgemcbay »

JoeAltmaier wrote: post #33

I was 5 minutes late to work every morning, because of taking my son to school in the neighborhood where our new house was being built. I didn't want him to have to move schools in the middle of the year. Boss said "This won't do. You'll have to examine your priorities." I thought about it all day, that night. Next morning I got to work (5 minutes late), went in his office, said "I examined my priorities. Work is #12…

Assuming you were effective at your job, said boss needs to examine what is important to him, slavish respect-mah-authortai-style following of rather arbitrary rules, or having a "bird-in-the-hand" competent employee who gets shit done (perhaps 5 minutes later than the boss-man would like).

It is kind of sad how many boss/manager types still fail miserably on this point, and then complain about not being able to hire "good people".

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