As a newbie to the EA concept and community, but as someone who has practiced a pick-up game of ‘greatest good’ since 2004, I have to agree. The current EA entry points for newcomers do feel very narrow. I don’t come from an AI background or a particularly academic or financially endowed one. I’m one of those ‘graphic designer, writer, mental health…’ types you mention.
I joined the EA to find smart people who could help me think about my local, practical, and socially based ‘greatest good’ questions and issues. Now that I understand a little bit more about the macro longtermisim aspects of EA, I’m pretty sure my side game isn’t a good use of the community’s time or talent.
I’m sorry that you’re feeling that way, and I suspect you could be more impactful in many ways—but I agree that much of EA seems designed to marginalize people who want to help without being able to upend their lives. I’m guessing that what you’re doing now is beneficial, and I hope that can continue.
But if you’d be interested in doing volunteer brand analysis for EA firms, or finding jobs working in an EA org with those skills, please let me know.
Thank you for this post.
As a newbie to the EA concept and community, but as someone who has practiced a pick-up game of ‘greatest good’ since 2004, I have to agree. The current EA entry points for newcomers do feel very narrow. I don’t come from an AI background or a particularly academic or financially endowed one. I’m one of those ‘graphic designer, writer, mental health…’ types you mention.
I joined the EA to find smart people who could help me think about my local, practical, and socially based ‘greatest good’ questions and issues. Now that I understand a little bit more about the macro longtermisim aspects of EA, I’m pretty sure my side game isn’t a good use of the community’s time or talent.
I’m sorry that you’re feeling that way, and I suspect you could be more impactful in many ways—but I agree that much of EA seems designed to marginalize people who want to help without being able to upend their lives. I’m guessing that what you’re doing now is beneficial, and I hope that can continue.
But if you’d be interested in doing volunteer brand analysis for EA firms, or finding jobs working in an EA org with those skills, please let me know.