I was just thinking about how they have buried a great product, google hangouts, inside a me too product, google+, and neglected it bc it doesn't have a business model attached. What a waste! Hangouts is much better and more reliable than Skype, but very difficult to find and sign up for. All it needs is its a stage of its own and a business model and it could destroy Skype, which needs to be destroyed imho. Combined with some business features it could rule the meeting room worldwide, then expand into consumer from there.
Of course each iteration of hangouts/voice/contact makes it harder to send an SMS message to someone in your contacts... you now have to type in the number, and if you happen to do it on your android phone from a contact, it tries to send an advite to use hangouts... It's really annoying as a fan of Voice/GrandCentral for years.
Good question. In my view, thinking fast has to do with how well you can process emotion. Do you get stuck in the headlights or do you dive out of the way of the truck coming at you?
That is not a question of preparedness mentally. It is a question of emotional preparedness. As in, how do you process fear?
As to the ability to process information, that is also related to emotion, as in, what do you care to pay attention to and what do you readily discard?
Knowing how you feel and then being capable of processing emotions quickly as they arise is probably the most important skill there is for us humans and that is true whether you lived during the Rennaissance or in a cave or if you work at google.
If you are interested in more about the subject of becoming more capable, let me know. I am writing a book about it presently and would love to share it with you and get your feedback. The results have been pretty great. People say that focusing on capabilities makes them feel lighter and younger. I also feel lighter, my thoughts flow at lightning speed, making me more prepared for change. I can be found at poppitup on twitter. Just follow the cat.
I would like to second this thought. I'm currently doing a masters degree and the examinations are very different to those from undergraduate. Rather, the exam papers are all about applying your knowledge and experience in order to solve unfamiliar questions on familiar content. Therefore, when you write an exam paper you must keep calm. If you let your emotions take control of the situation it can be very hard to recover.
For example: I sat an exam just two days ago when one question offered an unfamiliar ordering of events in an incomplete version of the Paxos consensus algorithm. The question was looking for candidates to identify situations under which the protocol would fail. There is a huge amount of pressure to figure it out in the 20 minutes you have. Getting stressed out and context switching between questions WILL prevent you from getting the answer right. Stay cool, think clearly, and 9/10 you will get the answer.
Conversely, there was a lady sitting next to me in one of my exams this morning. The questions were challenging and largely unexpected. I could see that she was holding back tears and frantically trying to find questions she thought she could answer. As awful as it sounds, she let her emotions take control of the situation and as a result lost at least 30 minutes where she could have been working her way through the exam getting at least partial marks on questions.
I think taking control of your emotions is something you can learn. Whether it is easy or not probably depends on the individual. I am no expert. For me, a masters degree has really helped me take control of high stress situations. I am much more capable at identifying causation, eliminating correlation and finding the answer than I ever was before.
emotion and feeling! this is a wonderful angle to look at the ability of "quickness in thinking". I always suspect there is more to the 'hard' portion(knowledge/experience/skills) that contributes to one's quickness. The 'soft' part might be _more_ important. This is one question needed to be studied. Another question is how to tap into and train the emotion/feeling part to modify/increase/utilize it, or is it mostly innate?
About the "quickness" I am asking for, If a gun is pointed at me and I am forced to come up with an analogy, I would say I am asking for the "quickness" in James Bond's behaviors and handling of situations, not the thoughtfulness and depth of Sherlock Holmes (although he was not slow for sure), if you know what I mean. Sorry for the bad analogy.
very interested in your book, will definitely follow it.
I enjoyed reading your encouraging words. I know it's not encouraged to post 1 up comments, so I have more to add, but before I do, I wanted to pass along that it's nice to hear how supportive you are with regard to your parents and others.
I agree with your comment and I think the thought of ageism is what is intimidating. There is nothing that cannot be accomplished when a person sets their mind to it, regardless of age, but there is a time and energy cost. Young people have more energy, so more effort is required on the part of an older person to appear energetic and desirable. I am 46 and have worked in five different careers. Experience can be demonstrated and comes across as impressive if it is concise and on point, regardless of age. Being both energetic and concise is an art form. But I highly recommend it as a strategy when seeking employment.
I have been using rails for many years now and I'm sad to say I'm leaving it behind in my current/new project :( I will miss the familiar patterns and want to express my gratitude to the team that makes everything work so seamlessly.
Perhaps this is the function of conflict (ideally nonviolent and hopefully led by smart people), to speed up the process of change by injecting humanity's shared model(s) with new ideas. When older models become problematic, people have a duty to overturn them, toppling them like tables outside a synagogue.
"The extent of and continuing increase in inequality in the United States greatly concerns me. … It is no secret that the past few decades of widening inequality can be summed up as significant income and wealth gains for those at the very top and stagnant living standards for the majority. I think it is appropriate to ask whether this trend is compatible with values rooted in our nation’s history, among them the high value Americans have traditionally placed on equality of opportunity." Janet Yellen
The author of "The Other Money Problem," seems to assume readers are not aware of change or that Paul Graham can't continue to be honest and interesting now simply because he makes more money than he did previously. According to this theory, J.K. Rowling would be less interesting to read now that she's rich, but I would argue that her new work is better. Dave Chappelle, Chris Rock, same thing.
Each of Paul Graham's essays were written as he slowly evolved into the man he is today. He was changing the entire time. Also, he knows more now than he did before.
The thing that saddens me is not Paul Graham getting advice from friends, it's people who try to take some of the shine off.
It depends on how you perceive writing. For example, "Old Man and the Sea" might be the greatest essay about criticism ever written, despite the fact that it's not an essay. You have to see through the story to get to the essay.
I think the reason so many people enjoy Paul Graham's writing is not only due to the subject or the genre, it's that he transcends the category, much like Hemingway did when he wrote "Old Man and the Sea."
To your point, if they were just upfront about what they're doing, it wouldn't be an issue.