Archive for the ‘Misc’ Category
4 Jul, 2008
Writing for a living
I was just thinking how nice it would be to write for a living — not fiction works, for that’s not something I’m either good at nor really passionate about, but non-fiction, self-improvement, finance literature, of which I am rather passionate about and am pretty interested in.
The problem here of course is that as much as the market is a pretty large market, I hardly see myself (yet) as one of the better writers; as one of whom has much experience or value-added thoughts to add to the already saturated world of self-improvement and financial literature.
And so I decide to not do it.
But after making the decision, I suddenly feel a little lost, and not quite knowing what else to do, especially with my free time.
I should really go get a job, one that allows me (at least in part) to do what I love. And then perhaps after some time spent in the finance sector I’ll be able to come back to freelance in writing, and actually feel like I’ve got something to offer.
2 Jul, 2008
Feeling like a Retiree
I’ve been back in Singapore for about half a week now, and I must say that I feel absolutely like a retiree — but one that hasn’t got much of a clue what to do.
During the exams itself, there was much to do: which is just about anything that doesn’t involve studying. Now that the exams are over I’m feeling pretty aimless, and lethargic, and totally unmotivated to do just about anything.
I have decided to catch up on some reading, but even then these reading episodes don’t last as long as I’d have liked them to. And another problem: I’m not too sure what to read.
I suppose one of the things that I probably should do is to find out what I want out of life. I want to live my life such that when it comes to times like these, where I do not have any clear “external” goals, I’ll still have something to work toward.
Something intrinsically worth working hard for: I think that’s what I’m looking for.
12 Jun, 2008
Sensitivity Analysis
I’m currently taking a unit called decision making, and in it we get quite into the nitty-gritty of this thing called sensitivity analysis. Sensitivity analysis is, in a nutshell, the study on how sensitive an output is to variations of input. For example, is one percent inspiration and 99 percent perspiration really needed for genius? How much can we take from perspiration to put into inspiration, and still maintain genius? The answer to that, of course, can be found through sensitivity analysis.
(A more detailed take on sensitivity analysis can be found here for those so inclined.)
Focusing on what Really Matters
One of the main purposes of sensitivity analysis is to find out what is important when it comes to making decisions.
For example, let’s say you had one hour of time and didn’t know where to spend it on. You’re really interested in making full use of that hour. You think for a moment, and decide that you want to spend that hour increasing your wealth.
You could choose to read a book on investing, or you could go rake your neighbour’s lawn for an hour and earn, say, $20. Let’s say you were a clairvoyant-in-training, and could predict roughly what consequences your actions would have. You look into your crystal ball and see that raking the lawn would bring you — lo-and-behold! — $20!
Not too impressed, you look again into your crystal ball and see that your reading the book on investing led you to enroll in an investing seminar, in which you met a man whom mentored you to become an extremely successful investor, consequently bringing you at least, as far as your limited clairvoyant abilities can tell, $20 million.
Where would you put your one hour’s worth of time now?
Making Decisions
I guess learning about this just makes me think more about where I spend my time (and money). It forces me to think about consequences as well: what impact does this activity (input) have on bringing me closer toward achieving my life goals (output)? Is there anything else I could be doing that would bring me even closer to the achievement of my life goals?
28 May, 2008
How Smart People Can Be So Stupid
I’m currently reading a book called Why Smart People Can Be So Stupid, edited by Robert J. Sternberg. The book, as the title suggests, is a compilation of essays written by various authors on some of the sub-optimal behaviours that otherwise “smart” people engage in.
The first essay in the book that I read, called Beliefs That Make Smart People Dumb, written by Carol S. Dweck, talks about a couple of beliefs people have that can often be used as a predictor on whether or not they are successful in any activity. These two beliefs are:
- that intelligence is fixed; and
- that intelligence is malleable and can be improved.
The conclusion of the essay is that people who believe in the possible improvement of intelligence (i.e. intelligence is not fixed) are more likely to be successful in their endeavours — not because they are intrinsically more intelligent, but because the behaviours associated with either belief will help or hinder one from successfully completing a given task.
Those with a fixed view of intelligence tend to have the following associated traits/beliefs:
- The belief that performance measures intelligence and self-worth: When given a task to do, and a person with a fixed view of intelligence fails at it, that person’s self worth drops. This leads to a drop in self-esteem and motivation, leading to a downward spiral. When going the other way, there isn’t much it can do except help back-up a belief that has always been there: that the person is “intelligent”. In short, there’s much more to lose than to gain having this belief.
- Avoidance of learning opportunities if weaknesses may be discovered: A person with a fixed view of intelligence who sees himself as “intelligent” would avoid situations in which that person may be “exposed” as being less intelligent than this person is thought to be. This occurs even when that situation is a learning opportunity that this person may consider important or immensely useful. Fear prevents one from improving oneself if there is a chance of failure.
- The belief an intelligent person does not need to put in effort: A person who has a fixed view of intelligence believes that intelligent people do not have to put in effort in order to carry out a task well. What that person is neglecting is that very often those who appear to do things “effortlessly” put in countless hours of work practising and working at that particular skill in order to carry out the activity as well it is observed to be.
These three are the main points of the essay with regards to those who hold a fixed view of intelligence. Those who hold a malleable view of intelligence, or who believe intelligence has the potential to be improved believe that:
- Performance at a given task measures the ability of a person’s ability at a given task: In other words, the person who believes intelligence can be improved disassociates the ability at a given task with his or her overall intelligence. Just because the person is not particular good at a given task does not mean he or she won’t be good at others
- Opportunities to improve on one’s weaknesses should be pounced at: Even if it means that the person may potentially appear “less intelligent” than before, a person who believes in the potential of improving one’s intelligence will do whatever it takes to be good a task he or she believes is worthwhile pursuing. These people know that in order to run, we have to learn how to walk first.
- To make doing a task appear effortless, one has to put in tremendous effort: A person who believes in the improvement of intelligence does not avoid worthwhile activities simply because they require effort. He or she knows that most leaders in their fields put in countless hours of effort in order to be where they are today.
I hope you found these points useful. Read more, learn more, and become more intelligent today, tomorrow, and every day after that.