I got to use rationality techniques to not only solve a friend’s problem that had been ongoing for months, but also managed to completely change the way he thought about problem-solving in general. Not sure if that second part will actually stick.
On a related note, that was when I found out that I’ve internalised the basics of how to REALLY approach a problem with the intent of solving it, to such a degree that I’d forgotten that my thought process was unusual.
The main technique I used was bypassing the “trying to try” fallacy, as well as some HPMOR-style thinking; Obstacles mean you get creative, rather than give up. The most important thing was just not giving up upon finding the first reasonable-sounding solution, even if it’s chances of success wasn’t particularly high.
As to how I applied it, that was the best part, and what the second paragraph alluded to; it was my default response, to the point where I was briefly stunned when my friend was throwing up easily circumventible roadblocks to my ideas as if they were impossible obstacles. (And I did talk to him, in case he had other motives for wanting to not do the plan and was thus actively trying to come up with reasons not to do it.)
It was only then that I reviewed my own thinking and realised how far I’ve come since I first found HPMOR and LessWrong; I’d ceased to think of this particular method as unusual, I thought it was how any intelligent person attempted to solve their problems, but my friend matches me intellectually.
If you meant “how” as in specifics; my friend needed to earn extra money, and his reasonable-sounding solution was to find employment, despite the poor prospects for it in his area, and despite the fact that he’d looked before and hadn’t found anything. To him, the solution stopped at there, because it could work, whereas that didn’t meet my goal of solving my friend’s problem on it’s own due to it’s unreliability. So I helped him leverage some of his other talents, in addition to looking for work. (Which is a good plan, just not sufficiently reliable on it’s own.) None of my ideas were particularly brilliant, but I wouldn’t have found them if I’d stopped at the reasonable-sounding solution and decided that was sufficient effort for victory.
Honestly, it’s still weird to me right now. I was actually embarrassed writing this comment, because writing it out made it seem so trivial and not worth being proud about, and I had to remind myself that if it really was that obvious, my friend would have done it himself. Not to mention that a couple of years ago I’d have done the exact same thing in his position.
I got to use rationality techniques to not only solve a friend’s problem that had been ongoing for months, but also managed to completely change the way he thought about problem-solving in general. Not sure if that second part will actually stick.
On a related note, that was when I found out that I’ve internalised the basics of how to REALLY approach a problem with the intent of solving it, to such a degree that I’d forgotten that my thought process was unusual.
What techniques did you use, and how did you apply them?
The main technique I used was bypassing the “trying to try” fallacy, as well as some HPMOR-style thinking; Obstacles mean you get creative, rather than give up. The most important thing was just not giving up upon finding the first reasonable-sounding solution, even if it’s chances of success wasn’t particularly high.
As to how I applied it, that was the best part, and what the second paragraph alluded to; it was my default response, to the point where I was briefly stunned when my friend was throwing up easily circumventible roadblocks to my ideas as if they were impossible obstacles. (And I did talk to him, in case he had other motives for wanting to not do the plan and was thus actively trying to come up with reasons not to do it.)
It was only then that I reviewed my own thinking and realised how far I’ve come since I first found HPMOR and LessWrong; I’d ceased to think of this particular method as unusual, I thought it was how any intelligent person attempted to solve their problems, but my friend matches me intellectually.
If you meant “how” as in specifics; my friend needed to earn extra money, and his reasonable-sounding solution was to find employment, despite the poor prospects for it in his area, and despite the fact that he’d looked before and hadn’t found anything. To him, the solution stopped at there, because it could work, whereas that didn’t meet my goal of solving my friend’s problem on it’s own due to it’s unreliability. So I helped him leverage some of his other talents, in addition to looking for work. (Which is a good plan, just not sufficiently reliable on it’s own.) None of my ideas were particularly brilliant, but I wouldn’t have found them if I’d stopped at the reasonable-sounding solution and decided that was sufficient effort for victory.
Honestly, it’s still weird to me right now. I was actually embarrassed writing this comment, because writing it out made it seem so trivial and not worth being proud about, and I had to remind myself that if it really was that obvious, my friend would have done it himself. Not to mention that a couple of years ago I’d have done the exact same thing in his position.