Re:Ask HN: Is anyone else depressed, reading about all the s...
by kafkaesq on Thursday March 17, 2016 @02:27PM
(#11306445)
I've felt that way many times. And I'm not even trying to be an entrepreneur, necessarily.
My workaround? Comes from recognizing the following:
(1) In many ways, our "system" (not just the tech meritocracy cult, but our whole consumption-oriented society) is strongly predicated on promoting feelings of inferiority, "coulda-shoulda-woulda" and anxiety generally. It's it's main oxygen source, in fact. So whenever I feel myself feeling beset by these pangs and impulses, I try my best... to deny the system its "oxygen" by questioning the validity of these pangs and impulses. And looking instead for other sources of validation / motivation.
(2) More drily, there's a huge selection bias in all of these success stories. We nearly always hear about the winners, only very seldom about the failures. And even the "big" winners, talented though they are, might have been only "so-so" winners had it not been for certain twists of dumb luck.
Not to mention the legions of "so-so" winners (e.g. that total schmuck you know who just got a $30M B-round) who might otherwise just be regular devs, perpetual grad students, or slaving away at an investment bank right now, had they had the tragic misfortune of being born a few years later, or earlier.
(3) Finally, so some extent maybe I do suck, at least at this game. Or maybe I don't? Either way, a healthy amount of self-doubt isn't a bug, it's a feature -- and nearly omnipresent amongst people who are in any way trying to achieve their potential, and question the limits and rules set by others (as nearly any biography of successful people will tell you).
As such, when viewed properly and used properly, this kind of self-doubt can not only not be a straightjacket -- it can be an invaluable energy source.
My workaround? Comes from recognizing the following:
(1) In many ways, our "system" (not just the tech meritocracy cult, but our whole consumption-oriented society) is strongly predicated on promoting feelings of inferiority, "coulda-shoulda-woulda" and anxiety generally. It's it's main oxygen source, in fact. So whenever I feel myself feeling beset by these pangs and impulses, I try my best... to deny the system its "oxygen" by questioning the validity of these pangs and impulses. And looking instead for other sources of validation / motivation.
(2) More drily, there's a huge selection bias in all of these success stories. We nearly always hear about the winners, only very seldom about the failures. And even the "big" winners, talented though they are, might have been only "so-so" winners had it not been for certain twists of dumb luck.
Not to mention the legions of "so-so" winners (e.g. that total schmuck you know who just got a $30M B-round) who might otherwise just be regular devs, perpetual grad students, or slaving away at an investment bank right now, had they had the tragic misfortune of being born a few years later, or earlier.
(3) Finally, so some extent maybe I do suck, at least at this game. Or maybe I don't? Either way, a healthy amount of self-doubt isn't a bug, it's a feature -- and nearly omnipresent amongst people who are in any way trying to achieve their potential, and question the limits and rules set by others (as nearly any biography of successful people will tell you).
As such, when viewed properly and used properly, this kind of self-doubt can not only not be a straightjacket -- it can be an invaluable energy source.