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Ask HN: Advice that changed your life?

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Re: Ask HN: Advice that changed your life?

#61

Post by tomcdonnell »

When I was at university, one professor of electrical engineering would refuse to answer any student who asked whether their answer to a circuit theory problem was correct.

When asked why he would refuse to answer, he would say: "If you aren't confident that your answer is correct, then I would like to mark you as wrong even though you may be right. You are the expert. You should be telling me that your answer is right, not asking me whether it is right."

He would also say that another acceptable answer occasionally might be "Your question is wrong" (along with an explanation as to why it is wrong).

This professor's attitude bothered me at first when I was on the receiving end of this advice, but I have come to regard it as some of the best advice I have received.

Especially in a professional context, I have found that it pays to convince myself that my recommended solution is a good solution, perhaps by confirming it using a few independent methods, and also by anticipating the responses of detractors, and coming prepared with answers to likely objections that others might offer.

Re: Ask HN: Advice that changed your life?

#63

Post by mccorrinall »

tomcdonnell wrote: post #61

When I was at university, one professor of electrical engineering would refuse to answer any student who asked whether their answer to a circuit theory problem was correct. When asked why he would refuse to answer, he would say: "If you aren't confident that your answer is correct, then I would like to mark you as wrong even though you may be right. You are the expert. You should be telling me that your answer is rig…

This would have broken my neck when I had zero to none self-confidence a few years ago :‘)

Re: Ask HN: Advice that changed your life?

#64

Post by satysin »

NayamAmarshe wrote: post #56
satysin wrote: post #52

Eat less and restrict when you eat. As a teenager and twenty-something I just ate everything, all the time, and often far too much. I was thin so there was no issue. But one day I started to put the weight on, not much but it was there. Then I need some medication for something unrelated and the weight really went on . Changing my eating habits was hard . I was so used to eating all the time that not eating for just…

When do you eat your meals?

I have settled on a 17h non-eating window so I generally eat between 1pm and 8pm each day. What I mean is that I have lunch around 1pm, usually something small to "break the fast". Maybe a little snack around 4 or 5pm and then dinner around 7:30-8pm then I start fasting after dinner until 1pm the next day.

I usually do this every day but if I am going out for a meal one evening I just give myself a day off, it isn't a big deal. I can make it up the next day if I wish or just forget about it that one day. I don't go out for meals late very often so it isn't something I worry about.

So often I hear people say "oh I couldn't do that, it would wreck my social life!". Honestly it has never been an issue for me. Just the other week I went out for a nice meal with some friends until around 3am so just decided not to bother fasting that (next) day. It isn't like "falling off the wagon". You just start again the next day and continue.

I don't calorie count per day but over a week. If I do go out and consume a bigger than normal meal I automatically adjust what I eat the rest of the week to keep my weekly calorie consumption roughly the same.

Like I said it isn't rocket science and I feel people really over think time restricted eating mostly because of all the crap in the media about it in recent years.

Re: Ask HN: Advice that changed your life?

#65

Post by ananiochita »

JackOfCrows wrote: post #7

Most people will use time to save money. However, your time on earth is limited unless the Silicon Valley weirdos happen to be right. Money is infinite in that you can earn more or get a second job or get a better paying job or whatever. (Obviously only to a point but stay with me). Also: your time does have value or it should since it is limited. What would you pay for an hour of your life "back"? Or an hour to do w…

While I get the general point ( and mostly agree, and practice myself ) for many people, if not most, this is not a choice or an option.

Plenty are working two or more jobs just to barely make it, if they even get to make it.

Re: Ask HN: Advice that changed your life?

#66

Post by posix86 »

robbiep wrote: post #10
JackOfCrows wrote: post #7

Most people will use time to save money. However, your time on earth is limited unless the Silicon Valley weirdos happen to be right. Money is infinite in that you can earn more or get a second job or get a better paying job or whatever. (Obviously only to a point but stay with me). Also: your time does have value or it should since it is limited. What would you pay for an hour of your life "back"? Or an hour to do w…

I agrée and it’s a bit of a maxim of mine, but the extreme of this is absurd. There’s lots of life that is worth doing for the pleasure of just doing. Sometimes that might be learning how to do an oil change (to follow the thread!) but sometimes that’s the exact absurd trade off you’re talking about

I think that's his point. The point in life isn't to have money, it's to spend time on things you liked. Thus, trading time to save money is a bad trade, but trading money for time that you enjoy is what you should do. Which in his case means spending time on your phone instead of changing oil, but it might look different for you.

Re: Ask HN: Advice that changed your life?

#67

Post by robbiep »

posix86 wrote: post #66
robbiep wrote: post #10

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I agrée and it’s a bit of a maxim of mine, but the extreme of this is absurd. There’s lots of life that is worth doing for the pleasure of just doing. Sometimes that might be learning how to do an oil change (to follow the thread!) but sometimes that’s the exact absurd trade off you’re talking about

I think that's his point. The point in life isn't to have money, it's to spend time on things you liked. Thus, trading time to save money is a bad trade, but trading money for time that you enjoy is what you should do. Which in his case means spending time on your phone instead of changing oil, but it might look different for you.

And my point is if you pursue that thread too aggressively, without knowing what you want to do - and I’ve seen quite a few friends do this especially after moving to the valley and getting into ‘always be optimising’ mode - they don’t actually take the time to make mistakes

Re: Ask HN: Advice that changed your life?

#68

Post by zaik »

InCityDreams wrote: post #38
zaik wrote: post #14

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Nothing that you do or say will matter after a couple of hundred years. I don't think this is true at all.

Think of all the people alive 200 years ago. I would say that, for the overwhelmingly vast majority, nothing they said or did matters now.

At the very least they had children, but also a lot of small things probably have a very long lasting effect.

Re: Ask HN: Advice that changed your life?

#69

Post by Ghoyome »

Comfort is a drug. Once you get used to it becomes addicting. Give a weak person consistent stimulation, good food, cheap entertainment and they will throw their ambitions right out the window. Comfort is a graveyard of dreams.

For a shit ton of my teens all I did was chase comfort until this hit me earlier last year. Now I wait for pain to make sure what Im doing goes against the current to bend the resistance to my will.

Goggins sums it up: if you like running what you learning? If you like boxing well what are you learning? People say double down on your strengths. Fuck that triple down on your weaknesses.

Jordan Peterson in one of his lectures: if you expose people to what they fear they get stronger and we don’t know the upper limits to that.

In short: fk comfort, chase pain. That is the 21st century’s killer instinct.

Re: Ask HN: Advice that changed your life?

#70

Post by franze »

sideproject wrote: post #33

"Everyone wipes their butt the same way" I couldn't talk properly in certain situations. I was too self-conscious. That meant my communication was poor at workplace. I was too nervous presenting in front of execs and senior leaders. On the other hand, my friend was fluent and smooth. We both had same roles. After another poor presentation, my friend gently told me "Everyone wipes their butt the same way."

well, not really true. there are huge cultural differences in personal but hygiene. the end result is more or less the same, the process differs widely.
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