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So the message is, 'It helps if people can understand you'. Um. Ok. ...and I appreciate that PG wanted to make this clear as the press loves to make a story
by tpatke 13y ago
So the message is, 'It helps if people can understand you'.
Um. Ok. ...and I appreciate that PG wanted to make this clear as the press loves to make a story where there isn't one. But do we really need to vote this up like crazy to guarentee it is the top story for the next 48 hours? Are there really that many people here who will benefit from this lesson?
- mathattack 13y agoThe reason for voting this up isn't so people know that it's good to communicate well. The reason for voting this up is to correct a misperception with what was said. Corrections rarely ever get the publicity that they deserve.
- deleted 13y ago[deleted]
- phillmv 13y agoThe right way to have communicated would have been "Oh shit, I didn't mean it that way, sorry guys. I understand how that may have come across poorly." instead of "What me racist unpossible!"
- PhasmaFelis 13y agoYeah, I agree 100% with his conclusion, but I would've been a bit less defensive about why people might have misunderstood him.
- sp332 13y agoHe was explicitly called out as being prejudiced when deciding which companies to fund. I don't think he's being too defensive here. http://www.siliconbeat.com/2013/08/27/quoted-y-combinators-paul-graham-on-ceos-with-strong-foreign-accents/ http://www.siliconbeat.com/2013/08/27/quoted-y-combinators-p...
- mathattack 13y agoYes - it's the type of thing you have to jump on quickly before the negative PR spirals. And unfortunately, corrections and clarifications rarely get the hype that original articles or misquotes get in the first place.
- tokipin 13y agoThe meaning is pretty clear in the interview: "I'm not sure why. It could be that there are a bunch of subtle things entrepreneurs have to communicate and can't if you have a strong accent. Or, it could be that anyone with half a brain would realize you're going to be more successful if you speak idiomatic English, so they must just be clueless if they haven't gotten rid of their strong accent." He is talking about strong accents as a superficial data point. You would have to make shit up to infer anything beyond that. I actually think his second suggestion (a lack of a critical kind of sensibility) is the deeper and more meaningful one.
- fs111 13y agoNext week on hackernews: * Eat food daily. * Take a shower. * Continue breathing.
- unimpressive 13y ago>Take a shower. I don't know, if PG took on Lisp Machines Inc. that might have been a problem with Greenblatt.
- evadne 13y ago…TIL. http://maimonideanangst.com/2011/10/31/i-never-knew-steve-jobs-or-richard-greenblatt/ http://maimonideanangst.com/2011/10/31/i-never-knew-steve-jo...
- lifeformed 13y agoPersonally I work better when I put breathing on the top of that list.
- kmfrk 13y agoThis is basically Medium.
- marcosdumay 13y agoAnd people getting called racist, sexist or whateverist because they are giving those recommendations.
- kristiandupont 13y agoYou can boil down practically any essay to a one liner like that and dismiss it just as easily.
- _dark_matter_ 13y agoHardly. This lacks the depth typically found in a PG essay.
- cobrausn 13y agoBecause this isn't an essay, it's a clarification, and it deserves to be seen.
- seiji 13y agoDo you not read HN while wearing your orange hoodie (hood status: applied) and chanting the list of Common Startup Mistakes over and over again?
- mrtron 13y agoThe obvious is underrated.
- dclowd9901 13y agoI agree to some extent. I'd love to have heard how he approaches the sensitive subject of telling someone he can't understand them because they're speaking with an incredibly thick accent or considerably stilted english. I know many people I work with or interview that I would love to convey this to, but I can't think of a way to say it that wouldn't either run afoul of their feelings or Human Resources.
- Swannie 13y agoNo, the message is, if you have such a strong accent that people don't understand you, working on your language skills is not only a good idea, but it may even be a cause why you are not successful.