"1. When you work hard at something you become good at it."
Yup
"2. When you become good at doing something, you will enjoy it more."
Hmm.. what now?
I'm good at a lot of things I hate. I've spent time doing them either because I had to or because I enjoyed it at the time. For me, it often works the opposite of what he says; when I get better at something, I often find it boring.
Regarding 2 I think it's sometimes true - for example people don't like math, when they don't understand it. But when somehow they notice they're good at some branch of math - most starts to love it, cause they can beat challange. At least it worked that way for me for math and programming. Similiar story for team sports - I love basketball cause I was higher than most people in middle school so I was good at it.
Other thing is - when you need to do sth you love for living - it sometimes become a chore instead of passion. External vs internal motivation etc.
I think you're right, but I can't remember this ever happening to me. Maybe I just have to think harder.. Or maybe I enjoy learning so much that I don't care that I'm new at something. Or maybe I just avoid things I don't like..
I don't advocate any philosophical comments or endorse one. People, often in a blog, write stuff from their experience (or experiences of people around him) which might or might not apply to all or even a single individual author but worked well for the author (or around him). It's hard to generalize and hence, shouting that you don't fit into the 'general' or the 'natural' defined by somebody's premise is as baseless as generalizing it in the first place.
All this articles proves is that people are misusing the word "passion" to mean some sort of hobby. If you haven't poured almost all your free time into something, you aren't passionate about it.
Isn't the point of the passion advice that people would wish to put more time into their passion (and find what their passion is to begin with)? So your comment boils down to "it isn't your passion unless it is your passion", which is not very useful.
No, I think there's a valid point. The difference between a mild interest and a passion is precisely how much attention and effort you devote to it.
When I was young, computers at home were quite rare. But once I was exposed to them I was hooked. I rode my bicycle to the Radio Shack and stood at the display model writing programs. I saved and bought a Sinclair ZX-80. Almost all of my free time went into programming.
Then there are all the people I've known that say they want to learn to code. People who grew up with a computer, and went to school were there were programming classes, and work alongside programmers. They think they'd like to learn programming, but really they're not interested enough to bother.
Yes, but you didn't need any advice to find your passion for computing. Presumably people looking for self help advice are less "self aware" than you are/were.
1. When you work hard at something you become good at it.
2. When you become good at doing something, you will enjoy it more.
Actually, it's quite possible to become good at something you don't enjoy, speaking from personal experience. One does not follow the other, and I'm surprised that the author states this as a fact.
You're right, of course. But the point he's making seems to be based on the idea that to experience mastery of a domain can be truly fulfilling even if that domain is boring. That is, the feeling of power and self actualization that comes from competence can happen even if you are doing something that is not innately enjoyable.
I draw an intuitive connection in my mind to the study [1] suggesting that people are happier with having a higher status compared to their close associates than with a higher absolute status but lagging behind the peers to whom they aspirationally compare themselves.
Would you rather be a mediocre newbie working in a dazzling, sexy field, or the best damn X in the Y field who knows all the tools and has confidence about relative competence?
I agree! But you won't do it forever, sooner or later you realize that you've worked in something you're not passionate about. It will result in serious consequences.
More important than passion and effort is long-term goals. I believe to be successful you must project yourself in the future. Look what you will be if you continue to walk the current path or what you will be if you change your path. The key is to choose the path that will bring you to a brighter future and stay in that path in turbulent times.
Choosing the right path is not as easy as speaking but an everyday exercice.
Agreed. I used to make sandwiches for a living. Became pretty awesome doing it. Even mastering the art of the one handed mustard line acroos the tomatoes. But I never enjoyed it. Not a single minute.
When most people tell you to pursue your passion or follow what you love, don't you think they're really saying, "think real hard about what you like, and go do that" rather than "notice you've already put a ton of effort into X, realize that's what you are passionate about, and go do more X."? It's a semantic argument if you interpret "Follow your dreams!" the latter way, but I don't think most people do.
Please update the title, the url is blogmaverick.com, which I think most people on HN know is Mark Cuban's blog.
I feel like Cuban wrote this post just because he needed to write a post. In the end he says "Don’t follow your passions, follow your effort. It will lead you to your passions...", and the roundabout way he goes to get there doesn't add any value.
He himself says if you're passionate about something, you're going to learn about it, and become better, etc. etc. Ignoring that that isn't completely true, I've wasted too much time just writing this comment.
I was just about to say the title is extremely sensationalist and inappropriate for HN, but the mods beat me to editing it -- like a second after I typed this up.
Maybe he is a very "clear" person. Lot's of normal people are confused and not so well organized. Follow your passion is a guideline for getting started with organizing your life.
I can only assume that the author was always organized enough to put his effort where his passion is, but he doesn't seem to realize that.
A normal person will just put the effort where he/she is told to put it by authorities: first parents, then school/high school, then the first random shitty job they happen to land. Sure, it works, they'll probably eventually be able to pay off their mortgage. But some people expect more from life.
Ken Robinson did a great talk about passion, that somewhat negates this blog post...it takes a lot more than just being greatly skilled at something to be passionate about it.
Is it just me or does this logic not make sense? You put a lot of effort in -> you get good at it -> you become passionate about it. How do you choose what to put effort into? Answer: what you're passionate about.
Yup
"2. When you become good at doing something, you will enjoy it more."
Hmm.. what now?
I'm good at a lot of things I hate. I've spent time doing them either because I had to or because I enjoyed it at the time. For me, it often works the opposite of what he says; when I get better at something, I often find it boring.