After blogging for a while, I’ve started to notice that there tends to be a lot of asymmetry in the communication.
I want to provide value to others, but I also want to learn and listen. So for this post, rather than trying to talk about things I know, I’m going to just write down a lot of the kinds of questions I tend to think about, or the things I’d like to learn. I’m going to talk about the things well outside my wheelhouse!
- What are good ways to discover your natural talents? You can’t hope to try even a fraction of all the things you might be good at in your limited lifespan. What are good ways to discover your passions? I love to hear stories where people discovered their calling in life in unusual or serendipitous ways.
- Is your mid-thirties too late to learn to play the piano? I love piano music and have always had tremendous respect for people who play well. That’s true of any musical talent, really, but I’ve always thought the piano was especially awesome.
- What makes people complain? Is there some evolutionary reason some people are inclined to do it, or have they been conditioned to believe it will help their situation somehow? I almost never complain about things, but it isn’t because I’m somehow more noble or anything, it’s just because I can’t envision a series of events where me complaining leads to anything improving – and I can imagine many series of events where it makes things worse, because people will want to interact with me less. So what causes that impulse – nature or nurture?
- Advanced mathematics is so fascinating to me. I read Michael Huemer’s Approaching Infinity last year, and while it was endlessly interesting, it was also one of the most challenging books I’ve read in a while, since I have zero background in mathematics. But just knowing how vast and deep the field is makes me want to plunge in.
- I’d really like to learn more about religion and its history. Due to my endless fascination with anything people care deeply about, this topic holds a lot of appeal to me. But I’ve always felt like something of an outsider looking in when it comes to religious topics. Maybe I’m doing it wrong.
- What other questions should I be thinking about? The search for truth and wisdom isn’t really the search for answers – it’s the search for better questions. That’s why I love philosophy – what new ways can I stress-test my thought patterns?
There’s a glimpse into the kinds of things that just run through my mind on a regular basis. There’s so much to learn.
What kinds of questions do you love?
