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Ask HN: Advice that changed your life?

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Re: Ask HN: Advice that changed your life?

#81

Post by vasco »

First class I got when I got to university, freshly arrived to the capital for my studies, still a kid. The calculus professor walks in and proceeds to do the "1/3 times 3 isn't 1, but it is" shtick, blowing everyone's minds. Continues doing this for 40 minutes and at the end he says:

"You're not competing with the people in your town anymore, you're not even competing with the people here, from now on think of yourselves competing with every engineer across the world. Aim high."

For a kid from Portugal that came from a smaller town, it changed my whole perspective. I loved that guy. Was an excellent professor for the rest of the semester as well. Can't say I met any other student of his that didn't walk away thinking fondly of him. Manuel Oliveira Ricou, you the man.

Re: Ask HN: Advice that changed your life?

#83

Post by Jemm »

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."

As someone with a bowel disorder, I have to say that one of the best pieces of advice I got was "Don't wipe, dab. Better yet, get a bidet".

Re: Ask HN: Advice that changed your life?

#84

Post by werber »

In art school I had a professor tell us something like,” when you’re sick you say you’re going to appreciate all these small things, like smelling the flowers after you had no sense of smell, and make all these changes but by the time you’re better you never do “, it’s something I think about pretty regularly two decades later. I think that telling a bunch of young people they would never do something made it a really great thing to “Rebel against”. Like, at some of my lowest points it’s been the thing that always replays first. How am I going to learn from this crap and find more enjoyment and humility from it.

Re: Ask HN: Advice that changed your life?

#85

Post by mattjaynes »

"Only boring people get bored."

This has been a life-long challenge - in a good way. Whenever I feel boredom approaching, I try to change the situation or come up with a more creative way of viewing the moment. Not always successful, but it's a good practice.

Re: Ask HN: Advice that changed your life?

#86

Post by glenstein »

mccorrinall wrote: post #63
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 :‘)

Yeah the road to confidence involves some intermediary steps where you begin to understand that your answers are correct, and walking that path brings you to confidence imo.

Re: Ask HN: Advice that changed your life?

#88

Post by nnoitra »

wruza wrote: post #32
oweiler wrote: post #6

Not a single advice, but David Goggins "Can't hurt me" was a game changer for me.

It seems there is a plenty of motivation material like this, but nothing sticked with me. Isn’t that a book that saturates you with willpower and then it fades away in a week? What’s different with it? I’ve watched another SEAL(?), Jocko Willink. He really charges you with “get up regardless, just do it”. And you get up and effing do it, but the next day comes and the game is over.

No post body was provided.

Re: Ask HN: Advice that changed your life?

#89

Post by thanatos519 »

lnalx wrote: post #12

"Take care of your body in your 20s" It's easier to build muscle mass before the age of 30 and the muscle you gain during that time will never go away (with a minimum of training). The earlier you start exercising, the less difficult it will be to maintain your body as you get older. Someone who has never exercised but wants to lose weight by their 40s will have a much harder time than someone who started exercising…

Yes! I figured this out in my mid-20's and it wasn't too late. I had gone to the doctor with the complaint that I just did not want to eat. He prescribed some substance, which of course didn't work. I was working from home, and my girlfriend had a back injury and a car so I had essentially no exercise.

I prescribed myself a bicycle, biked hard while singing every night until I couldn't breathe, and very soon I was regularly hungry and fit.

What did I need to learn? I'm not just a brain on a stick.

Re: Ask HN: Advice that changed your life?

#90

Post by aBitPlayer »

When I was a new developer just a couple months out of school, and was very eager to be a part of my company and fit in, an older developer told me “remember that your interests and your path are your own.”

Over the years, I’ve suffered from “company man” syndrome and look back to his guidance as a reminder that I should own my skills and interests, and bring them to an employer if and for as long as the job suits them. I shouldn’t go with the job wherever it takes me simply because that’s my employer’s wish.

Not always easy advice to take, but extremely important advice to me.

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