I think liberating altruists to talk about their accomplishments has potential to be really high value, but I don’t think the world is ready for it yet… Another thing is that there could be some unexpected obstacle or Chesterton’s fence we don’t know about yet.
Both of these statements sound right! Most of my theater friends from university (who tended to have very good social instincts) recommend that, to understand why social conventions like this exist, people like us read the “Status” chapter of Keith Johnstone’s Impro, which contains this quote:
We soon discovered the ‘see-saw’ principle: ‘I go up and you go down’. Walk into a dressing-room and say ‘I got the part’ and everyone will congratulate you, but will feel lowered [in status]. Say ‘They said I was old’ and people commiserate, but cheer up perceptibly… The exception to this see-saw principle comes when you identify with the person being raised or lowered, when you sit on his end of the see-saw, so to speak. If you claim status because you know some famous person, then you’ll feel raised when they are: similarly, an ardent royalist won’t want to see the Queen fall off her horse. When we tell people nice things about ourselves this is usually a little like kicking them. People really want to be told things to our discredit in such a way that they don’t have to feel sympathy. Low-status players save up little tit-bits involving their own discomfiture with which to amuse and placate other people.
Emphasis mine. Of course, a large fraction of EA folks and rationalists I’ve met claim to not be bothered by others bragging about their accomplishments, so I think you’re right that promoting these sorts of discussions about accomplishments among other EAs can be a good idea.
Both of these statements sound right! Most of my theater friends from university (who tended to have very good social instincts) recommend that, to understand why social conventions like this exist, people like us read the “Status” chapter of Keith Johnstone’s Impro, which contains this quote:
Emphasis mine. Of course, a large fraction of EA folks and rationalists I’ve met claim to not be bothered by others bragging about their accomplishments, so I think you’re right that promoting these sorts of discussions about accomplishments among other EAs can be a good idea.