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Ask HN: What are we even chasing?

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Re: Ask HN: What are we even chasing?

#81

You might be depressed out burnt out. You might be at a job that is demoralizing. For a while, I used productivity as a replacement for fulfillment, and work as a distraction from difficult parts of life. I eventually realized that I was miserable, and focusing on productivity just made me better at being miserable fast. Some people get joy out of optimizing their life - I don't. I get joy out of working with people…

OP here.

You're right. I left my job last year, after 1.5 years of experience out of burnout. I'm highly frugal but still running out of money, so gotta work again.

The problem is, I knew from the very beginning that I'm only doing software for the money. And now I have to do the same thing which I've always dreaded.

I hope I get some fulfilment working from office, socializing after three whole years.

Re: Ask HN: What are we even chasing?

#82
Most of the things I have bought, I've gotten used to, and brought me only short term happiness.

There are some exceptions:

- Financial stability for my family.

- Some musical instruments/equipment have given me lots of long term enjoyment. But I also have some stuff I only used a couple times.

- Trips. I love remembering the places I've visited and who I was with.

- Books.

Re: Ask HN: What are we even chasing?

#83

You might be depressed out burnt out. You might be at a job that is demoralizing. For a while, I used productivity as a replacement for fulfillment, and work as a distraction from difficult parts of life. I eventually realized that I was miserable, and focusing on productivity just made me better at being miserable fast. Some people get joy out of optimizing their life - I don't. I get joy out of working with people…

> Some people get joy out of optimizing their life - I don't.

Yes do, you just optimize for different things which you mentioned in the last paragraph. There is no escaping the need to optimize, so the chase is true for all of us even if the objectives differ.

Re: Ask HN: What are we even chasing?

#84

God I love this question. I ask the exact same thing at least twice a week. I use to have real depression over this issue. I have zero answers for you. Personally, I learned to truly be ok with the answer "we don't know yet, but we're working toward it together". If you can somehow get to that point, you'll feel a little ease and maybe even a bit more connection with the rest of humanity. I don't feel like most of hu…

I'm with you on this one.

I've come to terms with the fact that there's no point of our existence other than being merely observers. I still get these waves of existential dread that I know will go away once I regain momentum.

Scientific advancement is one of the few things that gives me energy. In an ideal day, I would be spending most of my time reading textbooks, learning physics and math from ground up.

Re: Ask HN: What are we even chasing?

#85
A semi-controversial take for OP and other commenters like OP: Try religion out.

These kids of questions and angsts are very normal and very old. Religion has been there to help with this for a very very long time. If not a daily/weekly practice, then the religious texts that you prefer may help.

For jews/christians, the Book of Job is a good starting place : https://www.bible.com/bible/1171/JOB.1.MEV (MEV lacks the ... poetry of NIV, of course, but is an easier starting place for laypeople, I think)

For hindus, the Bhagavad Gita is is another great starting place : https://www.hinduwebsite.com/sacredscripts/hinduism/gitasoci...

Other recommendations are welcome!

Re: Ask HN: What are we even chasing?

#86
post #6

Are you sure that you even want X? Perhaps it's a signal that you're pursuing the wrong things.

Oh, I know I don't want X, but I need it - X being money in my current situation. Frugality has helped, but only so much.

I know I'm pursuing the wrong thing. I know I need a system to get out of this cycle. Either that, or find something that's fulfilling and lucrative at the same time, which I've found to be rare.

Guess I'd achieve it some day. Maybe the freedom and satisfaction wouldn't be as long lasting as I'm telling myself to be.

Re: Ask HN: What are we even chasing?

#87

My answer was found by having kids. For me, one of the absolute best things about having kids was that it eliminated all doubt: I now had a 100% crystal clear main quest that trivially answers, "what should I be doing right now?" if I'm ever not sure. Everything else in life, especially my career, is just a side quest now. Why am I working? Before kids I foolishly thought it had something to do with being part of a t…

The value of family is one of those things that's a huge blind spot for "intellectual-types", but completely obvious to most normal people over the age of 25. It's too easy to think you're above it all, that your intelligence means you must have a higher calling, or that you're Not Like Other People. But it's not true. It takes humility to acknowledge that you're behind the curve in figuring this out, but better to learn it the hard way than before it's too late.

Re: Ask HN: What are we even chasing?

#88
I think we should pursue "human flourishing." What that means for each individual will be very different. It could be enjoying time with family and friends, creating or appreciating art, being involved in sports, gardening, raising animals, discussing philosophy or theology, electronics, cooking, etc, etc. The point is to flourish in this precious life.

On the societal level, I think promoting human flourishing means first making sure everyone's basic needs are met (shelter, food, clothing, healthcare).

The next step for society to promote human flourishing is to give people more time away from work to pursue their own things, and to that end I'm a proponent of the 4 day (32 hour) work week replacing the standard 40 hour work week.

Another important step in promoting human flourishing is for towns to design physical spaces to encourage community and satisfying daily rhythms. There should be more places like libraries, local cafes, community centers, parks, etc where people can meet with other people. And there should be a concerted effort to reduce the need for cars. Places that are designed to encourage walking and biking are generally more pleasant than places that are designed around cars. There's less paved space for highways and parking lots, and more space for interesting places to visit along with more greenery. Not to mention the gentle exercise.

I think there's more our society can do to promote human flourishing, but those are big ones. The biggest point is that capitalist societies, especially the United States (the heart of capitalism), prioritize profit over human flourishing. Sprawling highways, homelessness, financially brutal healthcare, inadequate paternity leave, and bad work/life balances are all things that can be changed if we, as a society, want them to be changed. But to do that, we have to stop doing what capitalists want and instead build what we want.

Re: Ask HN: What are we even chasing?

#89

We are trying to create value for key stakeholders. When does it end? It's always ending. And yet it is also always beginning anew each fortnight.

Anyone not experiencing the sublime joy of unification and oneness with the market is really missing out. The process of transcending material constraint by commodifying their labor so that it can rise to the platonic ideal of profit hasn't truly lived. Nothing else comes close.

Lol, I'm like 90% sure you're joking, but sometimes the stuff that shows up in HN comments is this depressing
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