Whatever you like doing, do it

http://www.lettersofnote.com/2012/07/whatever-you-like-doing-do-it.html

by cs702 • 14 years ago

74 13 14 years ago

richardk• 14 years ago

Going into my final year at Edinburgh uni, studying Comp Sci.

I've always felt that I'm not nearly as talented as the folks around me, however I've loved computers since I was 10, I'm still in love and I'm always writing programs.

Ever since I realized I'm not the most talented at comp sci (mainly the mathematics) I've had problems with my self-esteem. As such, I find this article incredibly comforting. Thank you!

klibertp• 14 years ago

Just stop it. I mean - stop worrying about mathematics, this instant. If you want to develop software your hard work and passion will trump everything, be it natural talent, better memory or plain intelligence.

amouat• 14 years ago

I really wouldn't worry. The worst developers are the ones who simply have no interest in software and/or computing. The "smarter" developers can sometimes be a royal pita to work with.

I worked at the University of Edinburgh for a while and I was definitely far from the smartest (it was full of physicists that had been to oxbridge), however I would still like to think I was thought of as a capable developer who got things done.

I would say that it is important to make sure you are good at the process of development - document and test your code, try to be methodical about things. If you can do this, you should be an asset to any software project.

athesyn• 14 years ago

This only works out if you have an innate talent, or smart enough to optimize what you have in terms of your ability.

I have nothing against comforting articles, but that we should recognize the intellectual/productive peaks in our lives is much more important.

pestaa• 14 years ago

A very inspirational letter; however, he got into the very elite selection of 25 artists, with any one of them being way more talented than 99.99% of the country.

I would so describe him naturally talented regardless of the personal perspective he had of himself. I also see no other way he could got into Pixar (given of course his perseverance.)

I agree passion and hard work leads to better results than wasted talent, but there is no substitute for affinity.

Anyway, thank you Pete for the great movies and great advice.

peteforde• 14 years ago

I disagree with the Rand-ian outlook that some people should stick to working at McDonald's expressed by some other commenters. As humans living in the developed world, even the laziest person has enormous advantages. The real question is whether they are nurtured in an environment that tells a person that it's up to them if they are miserable, average or excellent humans.

http://www.humblepied.com/jessica-hische/

I really liked typographer Jessica Hische's outlook: "the thing that you do when you procrastinate is the thing that you should do for the rest of your life".

I don't have room in my world for people that would deny someone the shot at being happy doing what they do.

andyfleming• 14 years ago

So I should read hacker news for the rest of my life?

personlurking• 14 years ago

Although I'd guess you're saying that in jest, it seems what the OCP (original comment poster) is getting at is something that happens to resonate with me. Almost any chance I get, I'm reading articles, thinking about how one thing relates to another, trying to pick up a few more phrases in this language or that, etc. Therefore, I should have, or create, a job where I can share what I know or where I'm looked to for answers (since that's a symptom of my habit). Come to think of it, I wouldn't call what I do procrastination, since I'm rather quite addicted to learning and it really would be a dream job if all I was expected to do is keep learning all day, every day.

The phrase in question reminds me of another that basically says something to the effect of "a person should be judged on what they do when no one is looking." Though, I'm not sure I'd like to know, among possible Redditors, what that is.

edit: As for fingerprinter's response, there are some good points in there (like sometimes having to do what you like instead of what you love) though your argument in general seems dependent on if you have a family to take care of.

fingerprinter• 14 years ago

> I really liked typographer Jessica Hische's outlook: "the thing that you do when you procrastinate is the thing that you should do for the rest of your life".

This is hideously shallow and shortsighted advise. The stories of people "making it" are always inspirational, though for every one of those, there are thousands of people toiling away in obscurity with nothing (material) to show for those efforts. If people blindly followed the above, the world would literally be filled with people attempting watch TV, play video games, read books, nap, or just plain do nothing for a living (for example). And, yes, people can try to turn all those into different forms of livelihoods, but how many would actually manage to make a living wage doing that? Less than 1% at the most extreme? Probably.

Further, sometimes you have to do what you like rather than what you love. Or maybe even what you need rather than what you like. I get paid a very nice salary to do something I quite like, but don't necessarily love. The thing I love to do, on its face, pays 10x-15x less than what I do now. I am working at creating a venture that includes what I love and hopefully could ramp up to my wage now, but that takes time and I need to do it smart...because people depend on me.

I do encourage people to take chances when they are young, or when the kids are out of the house, but there is a window of time when your dreams and aspirations are LESS IMPORTANT than the people who depend on you. This is just part of being a mature, non-selfish adult.

So, if you want to chase your dreams and only your dreams (re: happiness), do it in such a way that others are not impacted. If you have a family, or kids, my advise is to not be selfish. If you can do it in such a way that you are not putting them at risk, great. If not, I believe you should wait until such a time that they are self-sufficient.

sopooneo• 14 years ago

I couldn't agree more. There is a massive survivor bias in the "follow your dreams and be successful like me" school of advice.

elliott99• 14 years ago

Obviously she didn't mean the type of procrastination wherein you are on blogs/reddit/HN, watching netflix, etc.

I suppose it's the type of inter-project procrastination wherein you focus on the part that you 'like' while avoiding the part that you don't like.

squonk• 14 years ago

First, this is a message to middle school kids. It is a solid message: Determine what you love to do and give it all you have. It is true that what you achieve in that pursuit will be mitigated by your actual talent for it, life circumstances, responsibilities and resources, not to mention luck. But even if you can't make a living at it or even get to it very often, doing what you love for its own sake will make your life more satisfying than not.

True?

Whatever you like doing, do it

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