This essay was edited by GPT-4. I think a lot of meaning and what I meant to say was lost in translation, but it is clearly a better writer than I and is much more digestible.
Part 1
“Of three metamorphoses of the spirit do I tell you: how the spirit becomes a camel, the camel a lion, and the lion at last a child. Many heavy things are there for the spirit, the strong reverent spirit that would bear much: for the heavy and the heaviest longs its strength.”
- Nietzche, Thus Spoke Zarathustra
Overcoming: Nietzsche's Metamorphoses
Nietzsche, in "Thus Spoke Zarathustra," presents a symbolic understanding of personal growth through the metamorphoses of the spirit: the camel, the lion, and the child. These stages represent survival, freedom, and creation, respectively. By overcoming obstacles and mastering various aspects of life, we can progress from one stage to the next.
Adulthood: The Absence of a Test
As we transition into adulthood, the structured and directed nature of our earlier years fades, leaving many of us struggling to determine our purpose. The lack of a clear test or goal in life can lead to feelings of aimlessness and confusion.
Finding Meaning in a Dynamic World
While it may seem impossible to find a definitive meaning for our existence, we can create our own meaning by embracing our innate drive and the values that resonate with us. This can manifest through various philosophical and religious constructs, but ultimately, what matters is practicing what we believe and determining what we believe in.
A Dynamic Approach to Self-Actualization
Instead of pursuing a fixed state of self-actualization or nirvana, we can adopt a dynamic approach to life's meaning and purpose. This involves recognizing the ever-changing nature of our desires and ambitions, and continuously adapting to the evolving circumstances of our lives. By embracing growth, understanding, and self-improvement, we can enjoy the journey of self-discovery without fixating on a specific endpoint.
The Third Way: Balancing Ambition and Contentment
In this dynamic approach, we can strike a balance between ambition and contentment, acknowledging our achievements while still striving for growth and development. This allows us to accept the fluidity of life and better navigate its challenges and obstacles, leading to a more fulfilling and meaningful existence.
Conclusion: A Continuous Journey of Growth
The process of self-discovery and self-improvement is a continuous journey that should be approached with a dynamic mindset. By embracing change, adapting to new circumstances, and constantly reassessing our values and beliefs, we can find meaning and fulfillment in our lives without being limited by a fixed notion of self-actualization.
Part 2
Life as a Compounding Investment
Life can be viewed as a compounding investment, a perspective that transcends one's profession or academic background. This mindset allows us to evaluate the trade-offs between short-term benefits and long-term achievements.
The Content Life vs. The Aspirational Life
The content life prioritizes immediate gratification, often at the expense of long-term gains. Conversely, the aspirational life involves short-term sacrifices in pursuit of significant accomplishments. Both lifestyles come with their own consequences: the content person may have little to show for their life, while the aspirational person may never feel satisfied.
The Third Way: Balancing Sacrifice and Enjoyment
A balanced approach involves making strategic sacrifices early in life to reap the rewards later on. By gradually decreasing the level of sacrifice at each stage, individuals can enjoy more of their life while working towards their goals. This strategy encourages a focus on optimizing the net future value of one's life.
Influential Figures and Their Lifestyles
Successful figures like Jeff Bezos and Paul Graham embody this balanced approach, prioritizing aspects such as sleep, creativity, and personal fulfillment. They are only able to afford these, because they had sacrificed early in their career. They demonstrate that hard work and success can coexist with a well-rounded and enjoyable life.
Determining Life Goals in a Changing World
Deciding what to do with one's life is a complex and ever-evolving question. To find one's calling or life's work, it is essential to identify passions that align with one's skills, have potential for financial stability, and provide value to others – the Japanese concept of "ikigai."
The Quest for Uniqueness and Creativity
The most celebrated figures in history were often pioneers in their fields, demonstrating unmatched creativity and originality. Finding a unique niche or area of expertise that sets us apart from others is a key part of discovering our life's work.
Factors Influencing Interest in Specific Fields
Our attraction to specific fields can be influenced by a combination of personal experiences, cultural and societal factors, and the desire to overcome personal challenges or gain a deeper understanding of the world. Capitalism also plays a significant role in shaping our interests and how we view our life's work.
The Role of Money and Practicality
While some interests may not be financially lucrative, it is important to consider the balance between passion and practicality. Our current socio-economic system may influence our interests and life goals towards capital accumulation, but ultimately, the decision to pursue a certain path depends on personal beliefs, abilities, and the potential for success.
The Three Components of Interest
The convergence of our beliefs, abilities, and potential can be viewed through three lenses: philosophy (what should be done), science (what can be done), and engineering (what we can do). Aligning these components with the concept of Ikigai can help individuals find their true calling and achieve a fulfilling life.
Part 3
Step functions
While working tirelessly to start my previous startup, Nephra, I made numerous mistakes. However, I don't regret them. These important mistakes taught me valuable lessons that helped me recalibrate my life. For example, I learned that a functional and aligned team, leadership skills, and technical innovation are essential components of progress. I also learned that you need to lift your head up sometimes and understand that working hard for the sake of working hard is not scalable. By experiencing great challenges and making sacrifices, I gained a stronger understanding of the world, enabling me to continue growing and improving.
As I mentioned in my "YEAR OF STARTUPS" essay, many aspects of life are step functions. Whether it's "fake it till you make it" or forming knowledge abstractions for future decision-making, perseverance and time are crucial. Experienced board members offer pattern recognition, providing valuable advice based on experience that came from the hard work of their successful careers.
These individuals also value their time differently, and I've learned to think differently about time as well. One subtle lesson is that work transitions from brute force to more valuable tasks as your career progresses. Your accumulated experience becomes an asset, marking the beginning of the lion stage. Additionally, intellect is more valuable than physical strength, as it is scalable. In today's society, some people can make millions with just a few calls.
Another lesson I learned from Nephra is the importance of skillsets. It's not enough to want to start a company in an area you believe in; you must embody that mission and know everything about your field. In established fields like law and finance, being a leading expert is critical. However, in emerging fields, you become an expert as you go, embracing uncertainty and forging new paths.
Choosing your skillset wisely is essential, but it is something you'll develop throughout your life and can only connect the dots looking backwards.
Your Career
At this stage of my life, I'm focused on how to spend my time in order to become the person I want to be. This involves a combination of learning, gaining experience, and building a network. Both what you do and how you do it are important.
Making money is of course also a goal, aiming to maximize the net future value of earnings. This involves a tradeoff between learning and earning throughout your career, with an emphasis on learning in the beginning and earning later.
You represent your own brand. Your network, skills, and potential earnings have value.
I'm drawn to biotech innovation, as I believe it will change the world. I prefer being a generalist rather than a specialist. As Hamming said, "Having a vision is what separates the leaders from the followers," so it's important to have convictions and strive for the change you want to see in the world.
I enjoy exploring new and uncertain areas, mapping out emerging fields, and organizing cluttered information into a coherent vision of the future. I believe anyone can have a view of the future, but the real challenge is in engineering it. Personally, I would like to develop this skill in my life, although I recognize that the best CEOs are often technical.
When facing indeterminacy, focus on learning; when facing determinacy, focus on execution.
Work should be seen as an exchange of time and focus for money. If fortunate, you can also build skills and networks. If even luckier, you can pursue your ikigai with ownership, control, and equity.
I enjoy solving problems, building, philosophizing, and pursuing ambitious goals.