Ask HN: What are some new things to try in life?

https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=7101634

by _g2lm • 13 years ago

24 18 13 years ago

news.ycombinator.com

I'm eighteen and looking for new challenges. What are some new things in life to try?

Examples of things I have decided to try:

- playing the piano

- drawing

- Krav Maga

Al__Dante• 13 years ago

Walk from Whitechapel to Portobello Road via Harrods

Learn 10 Chinese or Japanese characters

Learn 10 phrases in Hindi, Indonesian, Russian and Spanish

Visit a refugee camp

Go to Botswana

Build something with a Raspberry Pi

Cook scrambled eggs sous vide

grayarea• 13 years ago

Walk from Whitechapel to Portobello Road via Harrods

At this time of year? Can I wait until spring?

onion2k• 13 years ago

Help someone without expecting anything in return.

I rather hope that's not new to you, but it is for a lot people...

jdimov• 13 years ago

Girls

AnimalMuppet2• 13 years ago

You mean, like, sex? Or do you mean actually understanding them?

Those two are not equivalent...

a3n• 13 years ago

- Skydiving.

- Fourteeners. Some are easy, some are hard.

- Get a dog, build a relationship with it. They're both family members (should be, from your POV) and pack members from their POV. You need to train your dog, get professional advice; violence is not part of legitimate training (see family member above).

Artagra• 13 years ago

Not all of these would classify as "new challenges", but overall they will expand your perspective and expose you to interesting new ideas.

- Taking long walks (5km +) in your neighbourhood can give you a new perspective on your surroundings

- Snow Skiing or Diving - expensive, but both worth it if you haven't tried them

- Volunteering at a local organisation

- A part-time job that's way out of your normal focus. I've worked part time as a real-estate agent, photographer, IT technician, and learnt a lot about life doing so.

- Do some online / self study in a literature, psychology, philosophy or politics.

kfk• 13 years ago

Travelling by kayak or bike for 800-1500km will give you a new perspective on things. I did about 750km when I was 17 and it changed my life. You can check out my article on my kayak trip this year in Poland to get an idea.

Red_Tarsius• 13 years ago

A few things come to mind:

- learn to cook properly so that in adulthood you won't rely on junk or premade meals;

- volunteer in your local community;

- write a short story (up to ~1000 words) every day for the next month;

- start a sketch book and doodle ~1 page every day for the next month;

- join an online course ( https://www.coursera.org/ ) or teach yourself a new skill ( http://ocw.mit.edu );

- learn a prototyping tool or a programming language and join a videogame jam (http://compohub.net/)!

Whatever challenge you take on, be sure to have a clear goal in mind, so that you won't just do random things. A goal will let you see how far you've progressed, have a feedback and be more motivated. At the same time, don't be a slave to your self-imposed goal. It's a tool to frame your actions and make them meaningful; don't beat up yourself if you don't achieve it, enjoy the ride!

vmsmith• 13 years ago

Things to try?

Read the story of a man named John Goddard, sometimes known as "The Man with the List."

Check it out: http://www.johngoddard.info/bio.htm

I came across his story when I was a few years younger than you -- I'm 61 now -- and it has inspired and guided my entire life. Read his story; read his list. The two of them ought to provide you with enough ideas for a lifetime.

Here's his list: http://www.johngoddard.info/life_list.htm

jasonkester• 13 years ago

Travel.

If you're just coming off of high school, it's socially acceptable to delay starting University by a semester or two to go backpack around the world for a while. If you can scrape together a few grand to do so, definitely jump on the chance.

Fly one-way to Bangkok, get a room on Ko San road, then walk downstairs and grab a beer in the bar. Talk to people, ask where they've been and where they're going. Ten minutes of this will probably be enough to load you up with 6 months worth of amazing things to do in SE Asia.

It's cheap there. It's easy to get around. The locals are friendly and speak English. You'll rock it.

Fly out, say, tomorrow afternoon (or the day after you graduate, if you haven't yet done so). Stay as long as the money holds out. Use your last $600 to buy a one-way flight home from wherever you happen to have ended up.

You'll come back never having to ask strangers for a list of new thing to try again.

Good luck!

ddorian43• 13 years ago

I would substitute Krav Maga with kickboxing/muay thai/mma since you can't practice it and it's not a sport.

japhyr2• 13 years ago

Travel to the end of a road. If you're starting in CA:

- Travel all the way to the east coast, using no interstates.

- Head north until you reach Alaska.

- Head south until you reach Tierra del Fuego.

AnimalMuppet2• 13 years ago

I don't think you can go all the way to Tierra del Fuego by road. If I recall correctly, somewhere in Central America, it's broken. Also, some places is quite dangerous.

At least research it before you try...

japhyr2• 13 years ago

That's absolutely true. It's the Darien Gap, and you basically take a boat around the gap, from Panama into Colombia I believe. But the point is, pick a destination at the end of the road, and get there by traveling over the land/ sea; no airplanes, and no interstates. It's not about the destination, it's about all the experiences that aiming for the destination brings you to.

jthurman• 13 years ago

The things you've listed are all "skills." Learning new skills is great, and you should do it for the rest of your life.

Don't limit your 'trying things' to just new skills, however. Consider new experiences you'd like to have. Others have mentioned travel, skydiving, etc... Those experiences are what make the memories that last a lifetime, long after you're past the novelty of being able to plunk out tunes on the piano. Here are a few suggestions:

* Go eat at a Michelin 3-star restaurant, even if it the price seems crazy.

* Next time the Mormons or Jehova's Witnesses knock on the door, invite them in and listen to what they have to say.

* Go to a concert, especially one that's outside your "norm" (Been to a few rock concerts? Go to the symphony. Or vice-versa).

* Volunteer at a soup kitchen, homeless shelter, or some other place where you'll work hard for nothing more than feeling good about contributing to society.

That said, when you do tackle the skill stuff, I highly recommend Josh Kaufmann's book "The first 20 hours" (http://www.amazon.com/The-First-20-Hours-Anything/dp/1591845...). In which he teaches how to become "not a beginner" at something fairly quickly.

Good luck!

_g2lm• 13 years ago

I'm checking out the book and it looks great! Going to try it out with something.

Other than that, good suggestions.

RollAHardSix• 12 years ago

Forget Krav Maga, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.

Ask HN: What are some new things to try in life?

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