Up to this point, most my attempts at self-improvement have revolved around explicitly creating heuristics, with the idea being that locally optimal choices and decisions result in optimal patterns (apologies for the terminology, I'm borrowing heavily from CS). I believe this approach has served me extremely well so far, but I'm also starting to feel like I'm missing things because of it; opportunities and paths that I'm not seeing because I'm focusing on solutions that fit nicely into a heuristic mold. Things that require me to think outside the box for each decision instead of making incremental revisions.
The obvious path is to to give those things a try, but I don't know how to begin. If I can't wrap the concept up in a nice heuristic package, I don't know how to apply it to my life.
For example, I know, for the most part, how to be satisfied with my life. What I don't know is how to make it better, to raise the standard that I'm satisfied with, because I can't construct a path to that from heuristics and intuition.
If none of that made any sense, apologies. I find it difficult to explain abstract concepts without relying heavily on terminology and phrasing that were never meant for use outside of CS. And I'm not as articulate as I'd like to be (oh look, another example of what I'm talking about).
Greedy algorithms do fairly well. But as you've pointed out, making locally optimal choices might only get you to a locally optimal solution which may be a far cry from the absolute optimal solution.
I believe you should define your optimal solution first. What is it you most want out of life? At least this way you'll know how effective your heuristics are.
I must say that you present your heuristics as being a bit complex. For instance, I've neglected to attend many work get-togethers because I was afraid that I would be bad company. A reasonable set of heuristics would be the following: * Accept invitations assuming you have the time * Be friendly and courteous * Try to add to the conversation
Of course, at least for me, it's not that simple. So I would first follow some general rules: * Keep up with current events * Diversify interests
That is to say, heuristics shouldn't address the fine-grained details of a problem. Rather, they should be sensible guidelines that drive the solution forward.
I'm not sure what opportunities/paths you think you're missing out on. It would be helpful if you could elaborate.
As far as weighing the importance of something, I would consider its potential for satisfaction. If you don't know how potentially satisfying something may be, you might try a spike solution =P. But otherwise, with a concrete measure of how much satisfaction something brings to your life and an average time length, perhaps you could use a scheduling algorithm to schedule your life.
I wouldn't suggest round robin though. You might end up having to context switch while in the shower .
Don't put much stock into my ramblings though. Despite knowing that your heuristic approach to life would also serve me well, I am stubborn and lazy. /foreveralone
you have an "idea" behind your current relationship?
I think what you need is a buddy or someone who will influence you to loosen up.
But analysis is important there too. I don't think I'm even capable of having a traditional relationship, and defining relationships from scratch takes a lot of thought and communication to work.
I'm a happier person than these posts make me sound >_>
Quote: from Stormblazer at 12:56 am on Jan. 6, 2012 I am those things, I'm the person building those things, thinking about them, and I'm the person those things were built around. I have plenty of personality quirks, I have interests, I have biases, just like other people. Minds are very abstract things, even if they're hosted by the very concrete realities of neurological tissue. It's hard to break them down in nice neat components. That's one of the benefits of setting up rules to follow, if I can be sure that following that rule leads to a desirable outcome, it's pretty easy to stick the rule in and follow it as intuition. Ok so what if your intuition defies the rules you created in your head? Has this ever happened before? If something is negated once, doesn't the foundation crumble?
I am those things, I'm the person building those things, thinking about them, and I'm the person those things were built around. I have plenty of personality quirks, I have interests, I have biases, just like other people. Minds are very abstract things, even if they're hosted by the very concrete realities of neurological tissue. It's hard to break them down in nice neat components. That's one of the benefits of setting up rules to follow, if I can be sure that following that rule leads to a desirable outcome, it's pretty easy to stick the rule in and follow it as intuition.
I am those things, I'm the person building those things, thinking about them, and I'm the person those things were built around. I have plenty of personality quirks, I have interests, I have biases, just like other people.
Minds are very abstract things, even if they're hosted by the very concrete realities of neurological tissue. It's hard to break them down in nice neat components. That's one of the benefits of setting up rules to follow, if I can be sure that following that rule leads to a desirable outcome, it's pretty easy to stick the rule in and follow it as intuition.
Ok so what if your intuition defies the rules you created in your head?
Has this ever happened before? If something is negated once, doesn't the foundation crumble?
The biggest issue is that there often isn't enough motivation to implement a rule effectively. For example, I know that the best way forward right now is to observe, because I need more information on how my mind operates. But I'm having trouble staying motivated to write everything down (because I'm lazy), even though I know the information would be valuable to me.
I think you're thinking what I say too literally. Words aren't good at describing ad-hoc mental constructs.
Quote: from Stormblazer at 4:44 pm on Jan. 6, 2012 Quote: from blue baby at 1:40 am on Jan. 6, 2012 I seriously think you need to chill and stop over analyzing things. It's been bugging me lately, that's all. My existing approach really has served me well, e.g. it's one of the reasons I was able to combat depression so effectively (Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy is like a subset of what I described). I really don't how advise you on that. But really, if you keep analyzing everything to the smallest of things, you might miss out on a lot of fun. I've learned that myself; I used to be like that (I'm a CS major too). Just learn to let go sometimes. Happiness (for me) is made up of little doses of fun. If you want to eat ice cream, then by all means eat and don't worry about tooth decay or whatever. Just remember the general rule: too much of something, anything, is bad. I know I don't make a lot of sense. Sorry.
Quote: from blue baby at 1:40 am on Jan. 6, 2012 I seriously think you need to chill and stop over analyzing things. It's been bugging me lately, that's all. My existing approach really has served me well, e.g. it's one of the reasons I was able to combat depression so effectively (Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy is like a subset of what I described).
I seriously think you need to chill and stop over analyzing things.
It's been bugging me lately, that's all. My existing approach really has served me well, e.g. it's one of the reasons I was able to combat depression so effectively (Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy is like a subset of what I described).
I really don't how advise you on that. But really, if you keep analyzing everything to the smallest of things, you might miss out on a lot of fun. I've learned that myself; I used to be like that (I'm a CS major too). Just learn to let go sometimes. Happiness (for me) is made up of little doses of fun. If you want to eat ice cream, then by all means eat and don't worry about tooth decay or whatever. Just remember the general rule: too much of something, anything, is bad.
I know I don't make a lot of sense. Sorry.
Quote: from Stormblazer at 12:40 am on Jan. 6, 2012 Quote: from agentxprovocateur at 1:38 am on Jan. 6, 2012 damn stormblazer, please tell me you're a psych major Computer Science actually It's just, I have a very analytical mind, this is how I think about stuff aha it seems you would fit right in, you have a very calculating mind.....what I want to know is, how would you be without all these rules, and subsets and "problem solving" guidelines.....who are you
Quote: from agentxprovocateur at 1:38 am on Jan. 6, 2012 damn stormblazer, please tell me you're a psych major Computer Science actually It's just, I have a very analytical mind, this is how I think about stuff
damn stormblazer, please tell me you're a psych major
Computer Science actually
It's just, I have a very analytical mind, this is how I think about stuff
aha it seems you would fit right in, you have a very calculating mind.....what I want to know is, how would you be without all these rules, and subsets and "problem solving" guidelines.....who are you
I am those things, I'm the person building those things, thinking about them, and I'm the person those things were built around. I have plenty of personality quirks, I have interests, I have biases, just like other people. I'm not an easily knocked down vulcan strawman if that's what you were thinking.
I agree with you
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