4 ms·

Interests aren't necessarily obsessions or passions. I think it's rare to be obsessed with any of those things, but common to be superficially interested. For

Interests aren't necessarily obsessions or passions. I think it's rare to be obsessed with any of those things, but common to be superficially interested. For instance many people will just watch a TV show and enjoy it, and maybe even rewatch it a few times, without knowing all of the actors or writers or how the production of the show worked, etc etc, while you would expect an obsessed person to know at least some of these things, because they are compelled to find out at much as they possibly can about the object of their obsession.

chubot 7y ago
Yeah that’s a good point. Almost everyone watches TV. But people like say Jimmy Kimmel watched TV so closely that they came to understand its underlying mechanisms. What makes people laugh? What entertains them and makes them less lonely? Who are the important people in the business? You could watch TV for years and never ask yourself those questions. After all there’s no real school for TV. Many people on TV now studied it by simply paying closer attention. There are LA insiders for sure who can watch their parents, but there are also people like Letterman who was from a small town in Indiana. As another example, a lot of UFC fighters also grew up watching the nascent sport in the 90’s. They learned how it worked simply by paying more attention, practicing, and being more obsessive about it than the millions of other fans. There’s no school for it since it was a rapidly developing martial art. YouTube has apparently permanently changed the state of practice in Jiu-Jitsu.
irrational 7y ago
I think its fairly common for teenagers (and some not-teenagers) to be obsessed with sex. Many people seem to be obsessed with politics. I've met many adults who I assume are obsessed with work since they spend so much time doing it.

4 ms·

Interests aren't necessarily obsessions or passions. I think it's rare to be obsessed with any of those things, but common to be superficially interested. For

by sornaensis 7y ago

chubot 7y ago
Yeah that’s a good point. Almost everyone watches TV. But people like say Jimmy Kimmel watched TV so closely that they came to understand its underlying mechanisms. What makes people laugh? What entertains them and makes them less lonely? Who are the important people in the business? You could watch TV for years and never ask yourself those questions. After all there’s no real school for TV. Many people on TV now studied it by simply paying closer attention. There are LA insiders for sure who can watch their parents, but there are also people like Letterman who was from a small town in Indiana. As another example, a lot of UFC fighters also grew up watching the nascent sport in the 90’s. They learned how it worked simply by paying more attention, practicing, and being more obsessive about it than the millions of other fans. There’s no school for it since it was a rapidly developing martial art. YouTube has apparently permanently changed the state of practice in Jiu-Jitsu.
irrational 7y ago
I think its fairly common for teenagers (and some not-teenagers) to be obsessed with sex. Many people seem to be obsessed with politics. I've met many adults who I assume are obsessed with work since they spend so much time doing it.