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I also often notice a self-serving conclusion that you should quit your comfy corporate job (and perhaps create a startup?). In this particular essay, it's clos

I also often notice a self-serving conclusion that you should quit your comfy corporate job (and perhaps create a startup?). In this particular essay, it's close to the bottom: "Is there a way to cultivate curiosity? To start with, you want to avoid situations that suppress it. How much does the work you're currently doing engage your curiosity? If the answer is "not much," maybe you should change something."

LeonB 6y ago
Yes, conveniently aligns with self-interest. Pointing out middle managers are necessarily conformist is also convenient. Re Curiosity: Darwin spent decades studying barnacles.
- barry-cotter 6y ago
  > When I meet someone who knows a lot about something unusual (which includes practically everyone, if you dig deep enough), I try to learn what they know that other people don't.
read_if_gay_ 6y ago
> you should quit your comfy corporate job (and perhaps create a startup That's not what he's saying. That's just one possible interpretation of it. You could also keep the job and pick up an interesting hobby, or just change jobs. It's not like it's bad advice only given out to serve his own interests. It's actually obvious sounding advice. If you notice this often, maybe it's because in an essay that long, there will likely be some passage that can be interpreted as "quit your job and start a startup", especially considering PGs usual topics.
- killtimeatwork 6y ago
  > That's not what he's saying. That's just one possible interpretation of it. That why I put "perhaps" in my characterisation of what he's saying - even if 0.1% of people decide that the solution to them "not thinking for themselves" is to create a startup, pg comes out ahead.
  - read_if_gay_ 6y ago
    But it is a weak characterisation because you can construe basically anything anyone has ever done to be a selfish action, and in this case the evidence isn't particularly strong. It's not like the whole essay is telling you to act in PGs interest. Basically you're assuming selfishness because in one possible interpretation of one sentence, it's possible for PG to derive any benefit at all. I don't think it's even possible to write an essay where that's not the case.
mewpmewp2 6y ago
No, he is not hinting that. In fact society would most benefit of certain percentage of conventional thinkers and certain percentage of independent thinkers. And society should have different kind of people and personalities to fulfill different roles. No role is necessarily morally superior or whatever. But he is focusing on how to live better as an independent thinker and how to get maximum out of independent thinkers. He is not stating that being independent is superior or that everyone should be this way.
rendall 6y ago
"self-serving conclusion" To me, this comes off as a quite paranoid. Confirmation bias is a real thing: if you seek how any particular essay is self-serving, you will find it in every single essay. If everything is self-serving, then it's not a meaningful signal.

LeonB 6y ago

Yes, conveniently aligns with self-interest. Pointing out middle managers are necessarily conformist is also convenient. Re Curiosity: Darwin spent decades studying barnacles.

barry-cotter 6y ago
> When I meet someone who knows a lot about something unusual (which includes practically everyone, if you dig deep enough), I try to learn what they know that other people don't.

read_if_gay_ 6y ago

> you should quit your comfy corporate job (and perhaps create a startup That's not what he's saying. That's just one possible interpretation of it. You could also keep the job and pick up an interesting hobby, or just change jobs. It's not like it's bad advice only given out to serve his own interests. It's actually obvious sounding advice. If you notice this often, maybe it's because in an essay that long, there will likely be some passage that can be interpreted as "quit your job and start a startup", especially considering PGs usual topics.

killtimeatwork 6y ago
> That's not what he's saying. That's just one possible interpretation of it. That why I put "perhaps" in my characterisation of what he's saying - even if 0.1% of people decide that the solution to them "not thinking for themselves" is to create a startup, pg comes out ahead.
- read_if_gay_ 6y ago
  But it is a weak characterisation because you can construe basically anything anyone has ever done to be a selfish action, and in this case the evidence isn't particularly strong. It's not like the whole essay is telling you to act in PGs interest. Basically you're assuming selfishness because in one possible interpretation of one sentence, it's possible for PG to derive any benefit at all. I don't think it's even possible to write an essay where that's not the case.

mewpmewp2 6y ago

No, he is not hinting that. In fact society would most benefit of certain percentage of conventional thinkers and certain percentage of independent thinkers. And society should have different kind of people and personalities to fulfill different roles. No role is necessarily morally superior or whatever. But he is focusing on how to live better as an independent thinker and how to get maximum out of independent thinkers. He is not stating that being independent is superior or that everyone should be this way.

rendall 6y ago

"self-serving conclusion" To me, this comes off as a quite paranoid. Confirmation bias is a real thing: if you seek how any particular essay is self-serving, you will find it in every single essay. If everything is self-serving, then it's not a meaningful signal.