My guess is that in a lot of cases, the root cause of negative feelings here is going to be something like perfectionism. I certainly felt disenchanted when I wasn’t able to make as much progress on AI as I would have liked. But I also felt disenchanted when I wasn’t able to make much progress on ethics, or being more conscientious, or being a better dancer. I think EA does some combination of attracting perfectionists, and exacerbating their tendencies. My colleagues have put together some great material on this, and other mental health issues:
That said, even if you have a healthy relationship with failure/rejection, feeling competent is really important for most people. If you’re feeling burnt out, I’d encourage you to explore more and focus on building aptitudes. When I felt AI research wasn’t for me, I explored research in other areas, community building, earning to give, and others. I also kept building my fundamental skills, like communication, analysis and organisation. I didn’t know where I would be applying these skills, but I knew that they’d be useful somewhere.
My guess is that in a lot of cases, the root cause of negative feelings here is going to be something like perfectionism. I certainly felt disenchanted when I wasn’t able to make as much progress on AI as I would have liked. But I also felt disenchanted when I wasn’t able to make much progress on ethics, or being more conscientious, or being a better dancer. I think EA does some combination of attracting perfectionists, and exacerbating their tendencies. My colleagues have put together some great material on this, and other mental health issues:
Howie’s interview on having a successful career with depression and anxiety
Tim Lebon on how altruistic perfectionism is self-defeating
Luisa on dealing with career rejection and imposter syndrome
That said, even if you have a healthy relationship with failure/rejection, feeling competent is really important for most people. If you’re feeling burnt out, I’d encourage you to explore more and focus on building aptitudes. When I felt AI research wasn’t for me, I explored research in other areas, community building, earning to give, and others. I also kept building my fundamental skills, like communication, analysis and organisation. I didn’t know where I would be applying these skills, but I knew that they’d be useful somewhere.