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jacquesm, I'm actually really curious about your life experiences. I remember arguing with you last time similar to this (http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=1

by dannyr 16y ago

jacquesm, I'm actually really curious about your life experiences. I remember arguing with you last time similar to this (http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=1373349 http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=1373349). You seem to be always against advising people to make bold choices to pursue their dreams. I grew up in a poor family in the Philippines. I have lived with the poor and I have seen many people rose from poverty because they chose to. My mom who never finished grade school is the best example for that. I have also seen so many people who just never made an effort to rise out of poverty. I just can't imagine a world full of people with the same views as yours. People who keep telling others that they don't have a choice - "be content to where you are now because that's as far as you can get" or "it may have worked for others but it doesn't mean it's going to work for you".

jacquesm 16y ago
> You seem to be always against advising people to make bold choices to pursue their dreams. On the contrary, but there is a right time for everything. Pretending that a class of graduates has something to learn from a guy that basically is standing before them not because of how ethically he lived his life and how happy he is but because he simply is rich (and therefore successful by our most common yardstick, wealth) is dishonest. If you'd go out and find someone that has actually managed to achieve such a state of mind from hardship (say Nelson Mandela) then I'd be all for it. My life experiences are one long series of bold moves, and I wouldn't have it any other way but I'm very careful to tell other people to 'do as I do', everything has its price and you have to make people aware of the price before you tell them to purchase the wares. I think you are completely misreading me in what I wrote back then, I made it pretty clear in this sentence: "Yes, so it worked for you. Great. It worked for me too, 23 years ago, one idle day in July. But that does not mean it will work for everyone." To put out the advice to quit to someone without further knowledge of their situation is short-sighted, at a minimum you should spend a good bit of time to ascertain that that really is what's best for them, off the cuff advice like that can be very harmful. If you want to know more about my life experiences feel free to read: http://jacquesmattheij.com/ http://jacquesmattheij.com/ .

by dannyr 16y ago

jacquesm 16y ago

> You seem to be always against advising people to make bold choices to pursue their dreams. On the contrary, but there is a right time for everything. Pretending that a class of graduates has something to learn from a guy that basically is standing before them not because of how ethically he lived his life and how happy he is but because he simply is rich (and therefore successful by our most common yardstick, wealth) is dishonest. If you'd go out and find someone that has actually managed to achieve such a state of mind from hardship (say Nelson Mandela) then I'd be all for it. My life experiences are one long series of bold moves, and I wouldn't have it any other way but I'm very careful to tell other people to 'do as I do', everything has its price and you have to make people aware of the price before you tell them to purchase the wares. I think you are completely misreading me in what I wrote back then, I made it pretty clear in this sentence: "Yes, so it worked for you. Great. It worked for me too, 23 years ago, one idle day in July. But that does not mean it will work for everyone." To put out the advice to quit to someone without further knowledge of their situation is short-sighted, at a minimum you should spend a good bit of time to ascertain that that really is what's best for them, off the cuff advice like that can be very harmful. If you want to know more about my life experiences feel free to read: http://jacquesmattheij.com/ http://jacquesmattheij.com/ .