[bitbasher]

This article is quite shallow. It's essentially saying, in order to excel at something it needs to become a part of you.

There's some truth there, but Charles Bukowski said it much better and more succinctly with, "Don't try." [1]

1: https://poets.org/poem/so-you-want-be-writer

[raincole]

I couldn't disagree this poem more.

> if it's hard work just thinking about doing it,

> don't do it

If it's hard work just thinking about doing it, it's a very good sign that it's something worth doing.

(I know I shouldn't take motivating quotes literally)

[lithocarpus]

I have a rule that for any profound statement there exists an equally profound contradictory statement.

[aklemm]

No there isn't.

[TeMPOraL]

It's not necessarily a problem - both resonate with different people in different situations.

Well, except that Bukowski/Yoda quote. It's literally too short to be meaningful.

[adamhartenz]

I never understood why people want to work so hard on things they are not good at. On the surface it seems obvious that you should do that. But I would rather put that time into getting even better at the stuff I am already good at.

[skeeter2020]

I think this tends to happen naturally because the feedback loop works better, but there are some things that just hook you and if you can get through the grind they pay-off is just so, so much sweeter.

[cm2012]

Telling people to ignore things they dont like thinking about is completely terrible advice. Its almost the worst possible advice.

[bitbasher]

I don't think he meant to not try. I think he meant you shouldn't have to try. Trying implies some resistance or conformity. To him, art and creation was something that was there and natural. You just did it. You were mad with it [1].

It reminds me of nights when I was a teen hacking away at some computer games or writing my first emulator. There was no class, no jira tickets, no books. Just a teen struck with a madness.

1: https://bookshavepores.tumblr.com/post/9013559249/charles-bu...

[Swizec]

As the saying goes: don’t write unless you can’t not write.

There are so many better ways to spend your time. Pushing a boulder uphill is hard. If it never gets over the hump and starts pulling, find a different boulder!

[PandaRider]

I think the problem statement is: How do you know when to Let Go of the current boulder?

The poem suggested many many many possible when. Here's one: "unless it comes out of / your soul like a rocket,".

Unfortunately (or fortunately), in life, there is no methodology to prove that a given search problem is futile (e.g. NP-complete)... so we have to take our chances and choose. I believe that's the beauty of life: choice.

[gridspy]

Either that or specialization