I agree. HN is really unique in the web landscape. A lot of smart and nice people here. It's a great community that inspired you to take that challenge and that's amazing. Good luck.
Tell HN: Hello
101–110 of 190 posts
Re: Tell HN: Hello
#102Earlier quoted context omitted.
Great story expect the last part. Where you're sort of implying that all smart people are coders and others that do other types of jobs aren't. I met a lot of people that were a lot smarter than most "startup developers" and it didn't require them to sit in front of a computer most of the day.
It's not easy to tell how smart someone is by meeting them. That tends to bias you towards social abilities. IQ tests help to level the field by testing abilities that we can't easily observe just by knowing someone. Not that IQ tests are accurate at all either. But I just mean to say that feeling that someone is smart can just mean they're smart at appearing smart and may not have the same abilities at a broad range…
Relevant anecdote: I used to do some programming for my job, and have an incredible vocabulary and am fluent in Chinese; I'm extremely "smart". But, sbout a year and a half ago, I was in a terrible motorcycle accident in which I was knocked off by an SUV and went into a coma, suffering a massive amount of neural damage to various areas all around my brain. Unfortunately, because of this brain damage, it is now incredibly difficult for me to learn some new things (specifically the logistical complexities involved in programming or advanced math/physics, for example). Also, my short-term memory is now awful. Many a time, in recent months, I've figured out how to do some kind of little software trick on my PC or phone, but then I'll forget how I did it, and have to spend hours re-learning it. Am I not "smart" anymore? Conclusion: sometimes how you appear and the things you say can't completely represent one's capabilities. "Smart" is a very broad, and possibly ambiguous term.
Re: Tell HN: Hello
#103Earlier quoted context omitted.
Great story expect the last part. Where you're sort of implying that all smart people are coders and others that do other types of jobs aren't. I met a lot of people that were a lot smarter than most "startup developers" and it didn't require them to sit in front of a computer most of the day.
I read it as, one can be smart, but the drive and perseverance to pursue your dreams and desires are really a major key to achieving one's goals.
The major key. Hard work and perseverance can make up for just about any deficit in natural ability, but it doesn't work the other way around.
Re: Tell HN: Hello
#104Become an entrepreneur instead. You work in a jail, possibilities for content creation in such environments are endless.
Re: Tell HN: Hello
#105Earlier quoted context omitted.
I don't think the experience is necessary. He wants to found a company not be an excellent engineer. That means as long as he can get a prototype out, it doesn't matter if it's all spaghetti code. It's startup code and it will be shitty. He can then hopefully raise money and hire people with at least a few years experience to build things out properly (hopefully). I've seen successful startups started by people who c…
he worked in a prison you funny person ... what qualifies him to found tech company? right - nothing! and spaghetti code that turns useful requires even more experience to maintain.
What qualified Steve Jobs to start a tech company? Right - nothing!
What qualifies anyone who is not technical to start a tech company?
Perhaps you should ask the non-technical founders of almost every single successful tech startup. Maybe some will comment right here as there are so many ...
Re: Tell HN: Hello
#106Earlier quoted context omitted.
Great story expect the last part. Where you're sort of implying that all smart people are coders and others that do other types of jobs aren't. I met a lot of people that were a lot smarter than most "startup developers" and it didn't require them to sit in front of a computer most of the day.
I read it as, one can be smart, but the drive and perseverance to pursue your dreams and desires are really a major key to achieving one's goals.
Sometimes also known as grit:http://mobile.nytimes.com/2012/08/26/books/review/how-childr...
Re: Tell HN: Hello
#107Earlier quoted context omitted.
I read it as, one can be smart, but the drive and perseverance to pursue your dreams and desires are really a major key to achieving one's goals.
The major key. Hard work and perseverance can make up for just about any deficit in natural ability, but it doesn't work the other way around.
Eh, this'll end up being a metaphysical debate, but I think that's much too strong.
If someone is of average or higher natural ability, yes, hard work and perseverance will be the biggest determinant of outcome. But someone who's genuinely pretty dumb, wholly socially incompetent, or exceptionally disabled or ill will have massive difficulties being successful regardless of their perseverance.
Which isn't to say that hard work is useless to the people on the lower end of the spectrum: far from it, a stupid hard-worker not only can find themselves with a decent enough job but will usually be able to keep it. It's just they lack the ability to set themselves up for good opportunities like that and to limit downside risk from one-off events. Luck of the draw will end up dominating outcomes.
(Obviously, most people who comment on internet forums, particularly a specialized forum like HN, are not only likely to be average or above but also to have extremely limited contact with people significantly below the mean, so if you're reading this, your life outcomes probably are determined by your own work ethic. On that note, cheers to a productive Sunday!)
Re: Tell HN: Hello
#108Mohamed let me tell you about my little sister. She was the opposite of me in that she hated school. Truly hated it. She said she'd never set foot in school again after graduating high school. But, she wanted to be a police officer, and that required college. So she put herself through school by being a prison guard. My little 5'3" sister running around bossing grown men like it was nothing. She made it through schoo…
Great story expect the last part. Where you're sort of implying that all smart people are coders and others that do other types of jobs aren't. I met a lot of people that were a lot smarter than most "startup developers" and it didn't require them to sit in front of a computer most of the day.
I'm not certain he meant to imply a divide between smart people and non-coders, I think he was referencing Mohammed's comment that people here were very smart people and that he felt out of place in them. To which the parent of your comment responded that it's okay to not be the smartest person, as long as you have perseverance.
Re: Tell HN: Hello
#109Earlier quoted context omitted.
It's not easy to tell how smart someone is by meeting them. That tends to bias you towards social abilities. IQ tests help to level the field by testing abilities that we can't easily observe just by knowing someone. Not that IQ tests are accurate at all either. But I just mean to say that feeling that someone is smart can just mean they're smart at appearing smart and may not have the same abilities at a broad range…
Relevant anecdote: I used to do some programming for my job, and have an incredible vocabulary and am fluent in Chinese; I'm extremely "smart". But, sbout a year and a half ago, I was in a terrible motorcycle accident in which I was knocked off by an SUV and went into a coma, suffering a massive amount of neural damage to various areas all around my brain. Unfortunately, because of this brain damage, it is now incred…
Side note: have you tried memory systems like Anki (spaced repetition)? As I've gotten older, it's been a godsend: my ability to pick up memory on the fly is shot, but Anki helps a lot. You're in a different, unfortunate situation, but it's worth a shot.
Re: Tell HN: Hello
#110Mohamed let me tell you about my little sister. She was the opposite of me in that she hated school. Truly hated it. She said she'd never set foot in school again after graduating high school. But, she wanted to be a police officer, and that required college. So she put herself through school by being a prison guard. My little 5'3" sister running around bossing grown men like it was nothing. She made it through schoo…
Great story expect the last part. Where you're sort of implying that all smart people are coders and others that do other types of jobs aren't. I met a lot of people that were a lot smarter than most "startup developers" and it didn't require them to sit in front of a computer most of the day.
huh? The story ends with her succeeding at being a cop, not a developer.