I read a similar thread on reddit (https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/4v3ts4/what_was_your_why_didnt_i_start_doing_this_sooner/) and thought that it would be interesting to know such moments from the HN community!
Ask HN: What was your “why didn't I start doing this sooner” moment?
1–10 of 785 posts
Re: Ask HN: What was your “why didn't I start doing this sooner” moment?
#2For me, it has been reading books. Although my reading speed is very slow right now (hopefully it will get better with time) but i still manage to read a book every month. So much to learn from them :)
Re: Ask HN: What was your “why didn't I start doing this sooner” moment?
#3Functional programming
Sleeping 8 hours a night, even when behind on work
Re: Ask HN: What was your “why didn't I start doing this sooner” moment?
#4Programming. Started at 19. Wish I would have started at 10.
Re: Ask HN: What was your “why didn't I start doing this sooner” moment?
#5For me, it has been reading books. Although my reading speed is very slow right now (hopefully it will get better with time) but i still manage to read a book every month. So much to learn from them :)
What kinds of books have you found yourself reading? Fiction? Non-fiction?
Re: Ask HN: What was your “why didn't I start doing this sooner” moment?
#6Getting past Excel and learning SQL and then Rails
Re: Ask HN: What was your “why didn't I start doing this sooner” moment?
#7Running... outside... I didn't start until I was like 26. It feels great.
Re: Ask HN: What was your “why didn't I start doing this sooner” moment?
#8I wish I played street fighter earlier than college. Programming I've been doing since fifth grade. I think that's early enough
Re: Ask HN: What was your “why didn't I start doing this sooner” moment?
#9Every time I start seriously exercising this hits in about week ~4. Sadly, I only generally keep it up for 6 months before falling back to old habits.
Professionally: email lists. If you have any reason to have a blog, you should have an email list. It surfaces the identities of the people who are actually interested in what you have to say, and ties people to you much, much tighter than "Oh yeah, that thing you wrote in 2011 that I read, that was a cool thing."
Businesswise: man, so many things could go here. How about "Put our sales process in a flowchart and execute from the flowchart, not from I'm-smart-and-can-extemporize-in-real-time. Adjust flowchart as required." Relatedly: answer common objections once, offline. Cache the answers. Repeat back from the cache, not from "best halfway decent thing you can remember to say in real time."
Re: Ask HN: What was your “why didn't I start doing this sooner” moment?
#10For me it was psychotherapy / dealing with both my physical & mental health.
I now meditate 2x a day, run, and lift weights.