As a child of Asian immigrants, I grew up with a ceaselessly demanding & imposing mom, who dictated my life decisions: from my haircut to taking up flute, something I detested, to the topic of my middle school research project (I wanted to do puppy welfare. She decided I’d get a better grade interviewing pharmacists). The only truly autonomous decision I recall might be deciding to join the Cross Country Club in the 8th grade, which was met with sufficient chagrin as a waste of time not spent studying for an entrance exam at a local magnet school.
She meant well. She was simply enforcing her understanding of the path to success, but wow—I resented her.
I also grew up Christian—another prescriptive institution with a list of virtues you should adopt & actions you should and should not do—for the sake of your soul’s wellbeing (amongst other reasons).
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Here’s how to be a top tier & great effective altruist
(Optional but correlated) Graduate from an elite university
Work at a high income or high career capital job
Do personal fit—so that you are good at what you do and make more money or attain more power
Your personal fit should be something that neatly fits into 80k’s most pressing problems
Or make a lot of money & your donation interests should neatly fit into the most effective charities
Work at one of the 20 EA orgs or start your own or fund one
Your tombstone contains a number: the global QUALYs that you’ve contributed to. Make that number the highest you possibly can.
Don’t burnout because burnout is ineffective to reaching the highest possible score.
Also, have kids and do fun things because serotonin & happy chemicals are effective to reaching the highest possible score.
Have some virtues because if you don’t that makes us look bad and may diminish the highest possible total score of the EA community
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I should be doing more. I should be donating more. I should be organizing more. I should be reading more EA things. I should be… I should be….
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On personal principle, I am now averse to actively evangelizing, or prescribing an individual to adopt EA principles.
Taking advantage of Draft Amnesty with a generated image that is not completely accurate but satisfice to get the point across
I used to preach the good word of EA, GiveWell, and the 10% pledge, and watched many eyes slowly glaze over. Then, not too long ago at my peak hubris, I told a friend, “people who aren’t doing EA-esque things should not be kidding themselves into believing that they are truly impactful.”
I meant well. I truly believed EA methods were our best chance at fighting the desperate war on suffering. (My inflated ego was just an unintended byproduct.)
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What I want from myself & by extension, sprinkled a bit in EA culture
No patronizing local nonprofits, soup kitchens, or community volunteering. These can be the butt of jokes in casual conversation.
We are all on the same side of the war against suffering.
I want more epistemic humility & awareness of assumptions I make—the map is not the territory.
Ex: Resolving global poverty is a topic that challenges even top Nobel Laureates in the field. Social entrepreneurship & funding is one part of a larger socioeconomic dynamic at play full of historical and sociological forces. There is uncertainty on how much a donation pledge shifts the needle for long-lasting change—a common critique.
Practically, this idea doesn’t change my actions (ITN is a good framework), but it generates humility in conversations with non-EAs.
I want more personal empowerment over deference to experts or EA leaders
[On Catastrophic AI Risk] Form your own models and anticipations. It’s easy to hear the proclamations of [highly respected] others and/or everyone else reacting and then reflexively update to “aaahhhh”. I’m not saying “aaahhhh” isn’t the right reaction, but I think for any given person it should come after a deliberate step of processing arguments and evidence to figure out your own anticipations.
The end goal is all species flourishing & suffering alleviation & doing good (with a great community of people!). That is the moon. Many other aspects of EA—frameworks, status & clout, flashy careers—are a means to getting there, not the end state. Being a good EA is not the same as doing good. I personally struggle with this idea.
—-------------------------------------
Resolution
I’ve decided that I’m part of the EA community not because I should be—that there’s a moral-guilt-shaped gun to my head telling me that any alternative to tackling suffering alleviation is subpar.
I am part of the EA community because our approach to suffering alleviation is interesting and I personally largely resonate with its analyses and approach in moving the needle.
I am part of the EA community because I get to meet, befriend, and be in awe of above-average humble, passionate, selfless and/or wacky people.
I am part of the EA community because I want to be here.
EA can feel like an overbearing parent
Background
As a child of Asian immigrants, I grew up with a ceaselessly demanding & imposing mom, who dictated my life decisions: from my haircut to taking up flute, something I detested, to the topic of my middle school research project (I wanted to do puppy welfare. She decided I’d get a better grade interviewing pharmacists). The only truly autonomous decision I recall might be deciding to join the Cross Country Club in the 8th grade, which was met with sufficient chagrin as a waste of time not spent studying for an entrance exam at a local magnet school.
She meant well. She was simply enforcing her understanding of the path to success, but wow—I resented her.
I also grew up Christian—another prescriptive institution with a list of virtues you should adopt & actions you should and should not do—for the sake of your soul’s wellbeing (amongst other reasons).
—-------------------------------------
Here’s how to be a top tier & great effective altruist
(Optional but correlated) Graduate from an elite university
Work at a high income or high career capital job
Do personal fit—so that you are good at what you do and make more money or attain more power
Your personal fit should be something that neatly fits into 80k’s most pressing problems
Or make a lot of money & your donation interests should neatly fit into the most effective charities
Work at one of the 20 EA orgs or start your own or fund one
Your tombstone contains a number: the global QUALYs that you’ve contributed to. Make that number the highest you possibly can.
Don’t burnout because burnout is ineffective to reaching the highest possible score.
Also, have kids and do fun things because serotonin & happy chemicals are effective to reaching the highest possible score.
Have some virtues because if you don’t that makes us look bad and may diminish the highest possible total score of the EA community
—---—-----
I should be doing more. I should be donating more. I should be organizing more. I should be reading more EA things. I should be… I should be….
—-------------------------------------
On personal principle, I am now averse to actively evangelizing, or prescribing an individual to adopt EA principles.
Taking advantage of Draft Amnesty with a generated image that is not completely accurate but satisfice to get the point across
I used to preach the good word of EA, GiveWell, and the 10% pledge, and watched many eyes slowly glaze over. Then, not too long ago at my peak hubris, I told a friend, “people who aren’t doing EA-esque things should not be kidding themselves into believing that they are truly impactful.”
I meant well. I truly believed EA methods were our best chance at fighting the desperate war on suffering. (My inflated ego was just an unintended byproduct.)
—-------------------------------------
What I want from myself & by extension, sprinkled a bit in EA culture
I want less “tolerate anything but the outgroup”
No patronizing local nonprofits, soup kitchens, or community volunteering. These can be the butt of jokes in casual conversation.
We are all on the same side of the war against suffering.
I want more epistemic humility & awareness of assumptions I make—the map is not the territory.
Ex: Resolving global poverty is a topic that challenges even top Nobel Laureates in the field. Social entrepreneurship & funding is one part of a larger socioeconomic dynamic at play full of historical and sociological forces. There is uncertainty on how much a donation pledge shifts the needle for long-lasting change—a common critique.
Practically, this idea doesn’t change my actions (ITN is a good framework), but it generates humility in conversations with non-EAs.
I want more personal empowerment over deference to experts or EA leaders
“The finger pointing to the moon is not the moon”—Buddhist metaphor
The end goal is all species flourishing & suffering alleviation & doing good (with a great community of people!). That is the moon. Many other aspects of EA—frameworks, status & clout, flashy careers—are a means to getting there, not the end state. Being a good EA is not the same as doing good. I personally struggle with this idea.
—-------------------------------------
Resolution
I’ve decided that I’m part of the EA community not because I should be—that there’s a moral-guilt-shaped gun to my head telling me that any alternative to tackling suffering alleviation is subpar.
I am part of the EA community because our approach to suffering alleviation is interesting and I personally largely resonate with its analyses and approach in moving the needle.
I am part of the EA community because I get to meet, befriend, and be in awe of above-average humble, passionate, selfless and/or wacky people.
I am part of the EA community because I want to be here.