- Having lots of money
- I feel like I could allocate money so well, that I’ve done quite a good job with the resources that I have.
- Implies I should just, try to go and make this legible, and raise a bunch more money to fund stuff
- I think maybe I also resent the feeling of needing help from others, the feeling of being weak, being unable to fund it straight out of my own pocket. I like helping others and dislike needing to be helped.
- (It seems like I should view fundraising as providing an opportunity, to allow people to steward their money and earn a share of my own efforts.)
- Doing things quickly, exceeding expectations, succeeding hugely despite being young
- Growing up, I took some pride at being young and smart, having skipped a grade, doing well in school, finishing things faster than expected
- I still have some of this (eg marrying, having children earlier than most in my generation). But I wonder if it’s still a useful or true identity to hold on to at 30.
- “Winning”
- The ability to write really well
- Scott Alexander and Paul Graham are the classic examples here
- Cate Hall, lately
- (how much of this is “writing well” vs “having good ideas”?)
- Deep technical coding ability, paired with the ability to clearly articulate their thinking
- Quick shoutouts: Evan You of Vite; Eric Zhang of Modal; Tristan Hume of Anthropic; Evan Wallace of Figma; Jarred Sumner of Bun
- An ability to stay obsessed with a single topic
- I love reading through something like SMBC, which has archives going back decades — you can see how the quality of Zach’s art and jokes have improved over time
- Freedom from obligations
- Especially as I get older and “grow my network” — a network or reputation is a double-edged sword
- Being able to speak well in public, tell stories and jokes
- This is less “I want to be the life of the party” and more “I’m often in situations where I’m organizing a large group of people, and being able to entertain them seems instrumentally useful”
- First-principles thinking, deriving ideas and strategy based on the fundamentals of economics and physics
- Elon Musk is the ur-example here
- Casey Handmer for eg proposing ways to do desalination megaprojects
- Sam Black for inventing new Magic draft archetypes and strategies
- Killer design aesthetic
- In many things (eg space layout, fashion) I consider myself pretty aesthetic-blind.
- I do have some taste for websites, I think, developed from years and years of staring at them and making tweaks
- Being taken seriously by others I admire
- Lovingness, goodness, warmth, kindness, wholesomeness?
- Some characteristics:
- At a party, while everyone else is debating in high spirits, she is quietly cleaning up a spill she did not make
- Says hi to strangers and tries to help them have a good time
- Understated competence, humility
- Scott Alexander is a good example here, eg giving away a kidney
- I wrote these traits down because I feel like I ought to admire this, that it would be good to emulate this, that I would endorse becoming more like this. But… these don’t draw my eye the way the other traits above do. I’d like to change this about myself.
What don’t I admire or envy, that others might?
- Happiness… (usually)
- Maybe: I’m a pretty happy person most of the time
- Friendships, having people to talk to
- Maybe: my need for people to converse with is quite low; I get a lot out of being alone, or a lot out of reading
- Similarly: having a lot of followers
- Nice things, fancy vacations, fun experiences?