Realistic goals do not need a lot of dream investment but rather time and effort and it is safe to invest dreams in unrealistic ones.
I think this is factually untrue. It seems to me that time and effort investment follows dream investment, for basic psychological reasons.
When I have read Eliezer’s mis-investment of emotions argument it came accross to me an elitistic Bay Area upper middle class thing.
I think that’s because you misread it, or you’re identifying correct financial attitudes with being upper middle class and throwing in the rest of the descriptions for free. Here’s the part where he talks about mechanisms:
If not for the lottery, maybe they would fantasize about going to technical school, or opening their own business, or getting a promotion at work—things they might be able to actually do, hopes that would make them want to become stronger.
Going to technical school is not an “elitistic Bay Area upper middle class thing.” Yes, later he talks about dot-com startups doing IPOs, but the vast majority of new businesses started are things like barbershops and restaurants, and people go to technical school to learn how to repair air conditioning systems, not to learn how to make Yelp. A person who dreams about owning their own barbershop or being an AC repairperson or demonstrating enough responsibility at work to earn a promotion is likely to do better than someone who dreams about being a lottery prince.
That is, I think a key component of grinding successfully is dreaming about grinding.
Basically you are saying constant grinding requires constant motivation—or discipline?
But in reality all it takes is the precommitment of shame.
Example 1. you come from a working-class or slum family, get into a university as the first one in the family. Your mom and grandma brags the whole kin and neighborhood full with what a genius you are. At that point, you are strongly precommitted, not exactly through your own choice, you don’t want the shame of 100 people treating yoiu like a genius to be let down by you dropping out.
Example 2. you get your first real job and it sucks, but your dad is proudly supporting a family for 25 years know on a similarly sucky one and for you to get his approval / not feel ashamed in his eyes you need to stick to it until you get enough experience for a better one.
I think the elitism part is precisely in the lack of this kind of shame-precommitment: elites have discretionary goals, doing what they want, not what they must to get ahead, and thus need constant motivation. If you would quit a job once it stops being fun, you are of the elites in this sense. If you stick to it until it does not feel shameful to quit, then not.
And this is why for the majority constant motivation is not required for constant grinding.
I think the elitism part is precisely in the lack of this kind of shame-precommitment: elites have discretionary goals, doing what they want, not what they must to get ahead, and thus need constant motivation.
I think it’s quite the reverse: elites have strong shame-precommittment, it’s only a few levels higher. All your family went to Harvard and you’re going to fail?? Your ancestors have Ph.Ds three generations back and you’re not enrolling in a graduate program?? X-D
Of course I mean elites not of the Kardashian kind.
I think this is factually untrue. It seems to me that time and effort investment follows dream investment, for basic psychological reasons.
I think that’s because you misread it, or you’re identifying correct financial attitudes with being upper middle class and throwing in the rest of the descriptions for free. Here’s the part where he talks about mechanisms:
Going to technical school is not an “elitistic Bay Area upper middle class thing.” Yes, later he talks about dot-com startups doing IPOs, but the vast majority of new businesses started are things like barbershops and restaurants, and people go to technical school to learn how to repair air conditioning systems, not to learn how to make Yelp. A person who dreams about owning their own barbershop or being an AC repairperson or demonstrating enough responsibility at work to earn a promotion is likely to do better than someone who dreams about being a lottery prince.
That is, I think a key component of grinding successfully is dreaming about grinding.
Basically you are saying constant grinding requires constant motivation—or discipline?
But in reality all it takes is the precommitment of shame.
Example 1. you come from a working-class or slum family, get into a university as the first one in the family. Your mom and grandma brags the whole kin and neighborhood full with what a genius you are. At that point, you are strongly precommitted, not exactly through your own choice, you don’t want the shame of 100 people treating yoiu like a genius to be let down by you dropping out.
Example 2. you get your first real job and it sucks, but your dad is proudly supporting a family for 25 years know on a similarly sucky one and for you to get his approval / not feel ashamed in his eyes you need to stick to it until you get enough experience for a better one.
I think the elitism part is precisely in the lack of this kind of shame-precommitment: elites have discretionary goals, doing what they want, not what they must to get ahead, and thus need constant motivation. If you would quit a job once it stops being fun, you are of the elites in this sense. If you stick to it until it does not feel shameful to quit, then not.
And this is why for the majority constant motivation is not required for constant grinding.
I think it’s quite the reverse: elites have strong shame-precommittment, it’s only a few levels higher. All your family went to Harvard and you’re going to fail?? Your ancestors have Ph.Ds three generations back and you’re not enrolling in a graduate program?? X-D
Of course I mean elites not of the Kardashian kind.