I know that lukeprog’s comment is mostly replying to the insecurity about lack of credentials in the OP. Still, the most upvoted answer seems a bit ironic in the broader context of the question:
If you read the comment without knowing Luke, you might be like “Oh yeah, that sounds encouraging.” Then you find out that he wrote this excellent 100++ page report on the neuroscience of consciousness, which is possibly the best resource on this on the internet, and you’re like “Uff, I’m f***ed.”
Luke is (tied with Brian Tomasik) the most genuinely modest person I know, so it makes sense that it seems to him like there’s a big gap between him and even smarter people in the community. And there might be, maybe. But that only makes the whole situation even more intimidating.
It’s a tough spot to be in and I only have advice that maybe helps make the situation tolerable,at least.
Related to the advice about Stoicism, I recommendviewing EA as a game with varying levels of difficulty.
Because life isn’t fair, the level of difficulty of the video game will sometimes be “hard” or even “insane”, depending on the situation you’re in. The robot on the other hand would be playing on “easy”, because it would never encounter a lack of willpower, skills, or thinking capacity. So don’t worry about not being able to score too many points in the absolute sense, and focus instead on how many points are reachable within the difficulty-level that you’re playing on.
1. Get Skilled: Use non-EA opportunities to level up on those abilities EA needs most.
2. Get Humble: Amplify others’ impact from a more junior role.
3. Get Outside: Find things to do in EA’s blind spots, or outside EA organizations.
4. Get Weird: Find things no one is doing.
Of course, for some people, it may feel like the only useable advice is “Get Humble.” However, I think at least “Get Skilled” is also advice that should always work, and people who feel discouraged about it may want to start working on developing a bit more of a growth mindset* and combine the search for useful skills with “Get Humble” (i.e., look for skills that are in reach).
*There’s no use in feeling bad about not having as much of a growth mindset as others, because that’s also a trait that varies among people, just like intelligence. And a growth mindset most likely comes easier to highly intelligent people.
I think “Get Outside” can also work out well because altruistically motivated people who think carefully about the impact of their role are in rare supply outside of EA. However, there might be a problem where doing well in roles outside of EA isn’t very compatible with the typical identity of going to EA Global and talking about cause priortization and so on. I think that’s a tricky situation. Maybe it makes sense for EAs in this sort of situation to meet up, compare experiences, and see if they find ways of dealing with it better.
I have the maximum amount of respect for anyone who is motivated to spend a large portion of their time and resources to do the most good they can, no matter what their personal situation turns out to be. Especially if people are honest with themselves about personal limitations.
I know that lukeprog’s comment is mostly replying to the insecurity about lack of credentials in the OP. Still, the most upvoted answer seems a bit ironic in the broader context of the question:
If you read the comment without knowing Luke, you might be like “Oh yeah, that sounds encouraging.” Then you find out that he wrote this excellent 100++ page report on the neuroscience of consciousness, which is possibly the best resource on this on the internet, and you’re like “Uff, I’m f***ed.”
Luke is (tied with Brian Tomasik) the most genuinely modest person I know, so it makes sense that it seems to him like there’s a big gap between him and even smarter people in the community. And there might be, maybe. But that only makes the whole situation even more intimidating.
It’s a tough spot to be in and I only have advice that maybe helps make the situation tolerable, at least.
Related to the advice about Stoicism, I recommend viewing EA as a game with varying levels of difficulty.
I also like the concrete advice in the post SHOW: A framework for shaping your talent for direct work, by Ryan Carey and Tegan McCaslin.
Of course, for some people, it may feel like the only useable advice is “Get Humble.” However, I think at least “Get Skilled” is also advice that should always work, and people who feel discouraged about it may want to start working on developing a bit more of a growth mindset* and combine the search for useful skills with “Get Humble” (i.e., look for skills that are in reach).
*There’s no use in feeling bad about not having as much of a growth mindset as others, because that’s also a trait that varies among people, just like intelligence. And a growth mindset most likely comes easier to highly intelligent people.
I think “Get Outside” can also work out well because altruistically motivated people who think carefully about the impact of their role are in rare supply outside of EA. However, there might be a problem where doing well in roles outside of EA isn’t very compatible with the typical identity of going to EA Global and talking about cause priortization and so on. I think that’s a tricky situation. Maybe it makes sense for EAs in this sort of situation to meet up, compare experiences, and see if they find ways of dealing with it better.
I have the maximum amount of respect for anyone who is motivated to spend a large portion of their time and resources to do the most good they can, no matter what their personal situation turns out to be. Especially if people are honest with themselves about personal limitations.