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I met this guy in 2004. He talked about himself for 20 or 30 minutes before I got a word in. He had a couple of ideas at the time, some about charitable givi

I met this guy in 2004. He talked about himself for 20 or 30 minutes before I got a word in. He had a couple of ideas at the time, some about charitable giving, and others were about fighting spam with the technique of charging strangers to receive their email. (This is such an oft-repeated idea it's listed in the "You Might Be An Anti-Spam Kook" page). I told him that there were a few things wrong with his approach, and he clapped his hand on my shoulder and said that he could just get someone else to do this. Overall I felt a bit sorry for him. He was a pretty interesting guy who had great talents and great ambitions. He wasn't limited by a lack of confidence. Unfortunately he has had a lot of early validation that he was a genius, and such overconfidence can be just as crippling.

quizbiz 17y ago
I do feel obligated to remind myself that your impression is limited in the fact that the scope is narrow, just one experience with him seemed to form the impression. That being said, this makes me even more curious about his story as it is a representation of many similar stories, countless young people (my role models) persisting and working their ass off, being rewarded as a result, but then after they seem to just feed off of the initial success or seem to fall short of the "initial promise". ie: Farrah Gray. What sets those that persist only early on apart from those that continue to challenge themselves? When I start doing really successful things, I don't want that to spoil me and turn me lazy.
- deleted 17y ago
  [deleted]
- torpor 17y ago
  In my experience, the thing that sets true genius apart from the contentious kind, is the willingness to listen. If you don't have that, then you're not really as smart as you - or others - think you are. The capability a person has for listening to other people is a skill that very rarely gets acknowledged as a particularly genius trait. However, there is really nothing that can be done in this world if you aren't willing to listen at least as well as you talk.
  - ErrantX 17y ago
    Wholly agree with that. The guy who blusters about and talks a lot might well be pretty smart. His charisma opens doors. But I for one would be keeping an eye on the guy by the door who hasnt spoken yet. Because usually, just as it is "all decided" he can chime in with the most insight of the day :)

quizbiz 17y ago

I do feel obligated to remind myself that your impression is limited in the fact that the scope is narrow, just one experience with him seemed to form the impression. That being said, this makes me even more curious about his story as it is a representation of many similar stories, countless young people (my role models) persisting and working their ass off, being rewarded as a result, but then after they seem to just feed off of the initial success or seem to fall short of the "initial promise". ie: Farrah Gray. What sets those that persist only early on apart from those that continue to challenge themselves? When I start doing really successful things, I don't want that to spoil me and turn me lazy.

deleted 17y ago
[deleted]
torpor 17y ago
In my experience, the thing that sets true genius apart from the contentious kind, is the willingness to listen. If you don't have that, then you're not really as smart as you - or others - think you are. The capability a person has for listening to other people is a skill that very rarely gets acknowledged as a particularly genius trait. However, there is really nothing that can be done in this world if you aren't willing to listen at least as well as you talk.
- ErrantX 17y ago
  Wholly agree with that. The guy who blusters about and talks a lot might well be pretty smart. His charisma opens doors. But I for one would be keeping an eye on the guy by the door who hasnt spoken yet. Because usually, just as it is "all decided" he can chime in with the most insight of the day :)