
Ask HN: What are the most uplifting comments you've read on HN? - J-dawg
I was searching for something on HN and I happened upon this thread:<p>https:&#x2F;&#x2F;news.ycombinator.com&#x2F;item?id=2262527<p>I thought the top comment by neilk was just beautifully written and really encouraging (with the slight irony that he encourages the OP to stop reading HN!). I have bookmarked it and resolved to re-read it when I&#x27;m feeling low.<p>It got me thinking, there&#x27;s a lot of introspection and self-criticism here on HN, but there&#x27;s even more wisdom and kindness. What are the most positive and uplifting comments you&#x27;ve read?<p>And to neilk and people like you, thanks. You&#x27;ve probably helped more people than you realise.
======
peterjmag
"+100. I can tell the guy writing this essay is young. Not that there's
anything wrong with that, I'd love to be young again too. But when I look back
over my twenties I don't find myself wishing I had worked more hours on my
startup." [1]

Perhaps not "uplifting" on the surface of it, but it had a rather profound
impact on me nonetheless when I stumbled across it about three years ago. (See
my reply[2] and the rest of the thread for a bit more context.) However
indirectly, drumdance (among others) made me realize that I still had a chance
to make my own path through my twenties.

A couple months later, I decided to pick up and move to Berlin. Today, my life
is full of the things that I decided would make up my personal definition of
happiness:

"I want to take advantage of my youth to discover more things that make me
happy. I want to travel—a lot. I want to learn new languages. I want to meet
amazing people. I also want to design and build things, but I don't think that
it has to take over my life." [2]

(Forgive me for quoting myself!)

So thank you drumdance, mrooney, simonsarris, neilk, and michaelochurch. I'm
fairly sure I wouldn't be where I am today if I hadn't read your critical yet
encouraging words.

[1]
[https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=4341926](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=4341926)

[2]
[https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=4342680](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=4342680)

~~~
bhayden
>I want to travel—a lot. I want to learn new languages. I want to meet amazing
people. I also want to design and build things

It's cool if someone can do this, but who can afford to, especially in their
20s?

~~~
grecy
> _It 's cool if someone can do this, but who can afford to, especially in
> their 20s?_

I spent 2 years driving from Alaska to Argentina and repeatedly had people ask
"Who has the time and money for that".

It's a myth that travel is expensive.

I managed a hostel in Ecuador for 5 months, and I would say the average
backpacker was spending $10,000 USD / year to travel the world. And I mean the
entire world. The vast majority of backpackers are somewhere in the 19-35 year
old range. Though there is a good smattering of > 55 too.

$15,000 USD / year and you travel WELL - i.e. no shared rooms, lots of
alcohol, 'fancy' restaurants etc. etc.

I know hostels are not popular in North America, trust me though, once you get
out of there you'll catch on quickly.

For reference, I spent $13,000 USD / year TOTAL on my drive, which includes
all expenses for the Jeep. Gas, parking, shipping from Panama->Colombia,
insurance, etc. etc. Driving gets much cheaper per person when there are two
of you (though to be clear, I was solo).

[http://theroadchoseme.com](http://theroadchoseme.com) is my blog of the
drive, if you're interested.

I'm about to set off on a 2 year drive around Africa in my Jeep, I'm aiming to
spend less than $20k / year. (Africa is more expensive to drive due to visas,
price of gas, paying for secure camping, etc.)

~~~
fragmede
Well, $15,000 + the opportunity cost of not working for a year.

Let's say you've just graduated with a bachelors in computer science, and have
a job offer for $70k. By going on this road trip for a year, you've lost $85k,
$70k from not working, plus the $15k it actually cost you, not to mention
interest on any loans taken out for school.

$10,000 may not sound like much when you make more than 10x that per year, but
remembering back to when I was 20, $10,000 was a _fortune_ that would have
taken forever to earn.

~~~
grecy
If you want to look at it that way (which I think is unproductive) you should
at least be accurate.

Nobody takes home their entire "income". You need to deduct taxes, rent (which
you won't be paying on the road), food (which comes out of the $10k, so it
should come out here), transport to/from work, entertainment, etc. etc.
Essentially, you need to deduct every single cent that is spent.

I traveled for 3 straight years from age 22-25, then did that 2 year drive
from 27-29. $10k is not _that_ much money, even for a 21 y/o.

(also, as an aside, I don't make anywhere near 10x $10,000 now)

~~~
hobs
First of all, I think you made the right choice, gaining money (especially
when you talk about the incremental gains of the vast majority of the work
force) doesn't mean gaining happiness.

Have you found a trade off between networking with people "out there" and the
fact that you are not "home" and accumulating contacts/experience? I could see
how this kind of long term exploration could either help or hurt your job
prospects for your entire life, or help if you met the right people.

------
nosuchthing

      "If I could talk to my 14 year old self, I wouldn't 
      recommend any particular books.
    
      
    
      I would say, "Don't stress and worry so much about school 
      or your grades, because absolutely none of that is going 
      to matter in 10 years. Learn how to make things. Start 
      now, and never stop. Learn how to use technology to the    
      fullest, both software and hardware. Learn how to write, 
      speak and communicate ideas as effectively as possible. 
      Learn how to hack people and understand how social 
      structures work. Take that seriously. Most importantly, 
      don't let anyone change who you are. Choose a path and 
      follow it doggedly."
    
      
    
      Ironically, some of the best advice I've seen came from a 
      book: "Who you will be in five years is determined by who 
      you meet today and what you read today" [0]. But a 14 
      year old doesn't need to read a whole book to gain that 
      particular pearl of wisdom, or many of the others. I read 
      a lot now, several of the books mentioned on this thread 
      and many others. But that's because I'm old, and it's too 
      late 
      for me. If I could talk to my 14 year old self, or any 
      14  
      year old, I would tell them that there is significantly 
      more to life than what can be learned in a book.
    
    
      [0] The Creative Habit, by Twyla Tharp " 
    
    

[via]
[https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=9268981](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=9268981)

~~~
Red_Tarsius
I 100% agree. I can't believe I was so stressed out for p.e.r.f.e.c.t grades.
They HAD to be perfect. The extrinsic reward destroyed the very purpose of
schools: learning.

------
patrickk
This comment by jasonlbaptiste in response to "Ask HN: How to become a
millionaire in 3 years?":

[https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=1447467](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=1447467)

Best comment I've ever read here.

~~~
bhayden
I don't think this is very useful. There are a lot of opinions here and I
could guarantee there's plenty of successful people who would advocate the
opposite.

The real useful advice here can be summarized:

* Look in obscure places

* Productize a service

* Stick with it

~~~
eli
I think the point isn't so much "obscure" places as it is "unsexy". As a
trivial example, developers who set out to work on payroll register software
tend to make more money than those who set out to build video games.

------
protomyth
I'm not sure its uplifting but it made me chuckle and is some pretty good
advice
[https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=287767](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=287767)

anamax 2424 days ago | parent | flag

If they don't have the money to pay you, you're not an employee, you're a
founder and you get the same deal that they get.

If they balk, suggest that they find another code monkey while you find
another biz monkey and let the market decide who ends up with the bananas.

------
Red_Tarsius
I have a whole folder of help seeking _Ask HN_ s. I think they are a big part
of what makes HN a true _community_ , not just a news stream.

This whole discussion on depression was insightful and inspiring.
[https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=7891017](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=7891017)

------
gits1225
DanielBMarkham's comment:
[https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=1474454](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=1474454)
in the thread Ask HN: What were your naivetés in your twenties?:
[https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=1474094](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=1474094)

~~~
whoeverest
I've had it printed and placed on the wall for over 5 years

------
bcgraham
This one from zedshaw immediately came to mind:
[https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=6805807](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=6805807)

~~~
marktangotango
The world is full of people like Zed, only people like Zed don't typically
hang around on the internet. They're at the bar, or playing is a softball or
bowling league, yelling at enlisted in the military, pulling over speeders,
driving taxis in New York, or selling pizza by the slice at a pizzeria. what
ever. These guys don't give an damn about your sensibilities, they're going to
tell you what they think, whether you want to hear or not, and if the language
is too coarse, too bad.

Dude can be an asshat no doubt. But that's allowed in my book.

~~~
auxym
The great thing about these people, I think, is that they're going to tell you
what they think about you, no BS, but they also expect the same from you: you
can be 100% straight up with them.

Reminds me of a good friend and also of a regretted uncle. People I learned a
lot from and who certainly played a part in making me who I am.

------
nsainsbury
I've got this comment from Jonathan Blow bookmarked and I like to read it from
time to time:
[https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=7789438](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=7789438)

~~~
cgag
Jonathan Blow's stuff (posts / talks) seem to be consistently excellent.

------
mion
PG's answer to my silly self-doubt question:
[https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=5220936](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=5220936)

------
shrikant
Patio11 on going to university:
[https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=1182552](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=1182552)

~~~
rndn
I also liked this comment by sillysaurus3:
[https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=8592888](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=8592888)

------
magic_beans
Vijucat's comment (top comment) on this article really reworked my own
perspective. I think it's probably the most inspiring comment I've read on HN:
[https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=9337863](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=9337863)

------
h34t
Eight years ago I was burning out in China and started a thread to ask for
help. The comments were exceedingly insightful (the top-listed comment rang
especially true for me):
[https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=69097](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=69097)

------
shubhamjain
The thread itself and all of the comments :

"I quit my job last March and it was a bad idea"
([http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=3102143](http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=3102143)).

------
minimaxir
Here's a spreadsheet of the most upvoted HN comments each month, which gives a
sample size of good comments:
[https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1ZwonVX_KlDYhuhPnAAnV...](https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1ZwonVX_KlDYhuhPnAAnVpdVRgu4LxldP74-c_kvOd5k/edit?usp=sharing)

Note: said comments may not be considered "uplifting."

------
LVB
I bookmarked this one from Arjuna as an antidote for bouts of "woe is me,
everyone has more time and does more than me than me"-itis:
[https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=7076143](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=7076143)

A taste: "You have to do the work. There is no one else that can do it for
you. It is entirely up to you; actually, it has only ever been you, because it
is you that rolls out of bed early to bring it. No one is going to do that for
you. If you want to do it, then you will figure out a way to make it happen."

------
Anand_S
[https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=9325068](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=9325068)

~~~
acqq
Thanks, the answer of the user blueprint is genuinely inspirational.

~~~
bentcorner
I'm personally having a hard time grokking what blueprint is saying here. An
example of formulating "good problems" would be somewhat helpful, although my
gut feeling is that providing a concrete example would be as helpful as
"giving me a fish" would be.

~~~
blueprint
I think there are three questions at essence here.

1\. What constitutes a good problem?

A: Every problem/question includes its own answer. This is very helpful to
realize. There's a principle by which the world operates. The principle of the
world means that results are determined by problems of what happened. In fact,
if you open your eyes to this principle, it will also be possible for to see
the answer in any question without having actually learned that subject
before. The quality of the answer we can get from a question depends on the
quality of the question itself. Good questions are substantial, concrete, and
precise. They contain matters, which can be confirmed. So, once this is
understood, we can see that a good problem is simply one which has a good
result/outcome/answer. You should know what result you want in order to check
if your existing problems have results which match what you want.

2\. How to distinguish good from bad?

A: What are the criteria of good and bad? According to what I have learned,
the more genuine something is, the better it is. For people, a person can only
be a good person if they are truthful. Going to school, we might have
different scores in different subjects, e.g. an A in English, a B in math, and
a C in physics. But human beings are different. Every characteristic of an
individual keeps up with every other characteristic within them. Would you
suppose that it's possible for a person to be wise and yet not true? True and
yet not conscionable? How about true but not courageous? To have a large
amount of (bad) karma and yet be true? All the features of something which is
good or bad are determined by degree of truthfulness. Incidentally, it's only
possible to become more truthful after you undergo a particular essential
process of learning by which you first realize that you don't actually
perceive anything as it is, and later, after things that exist become visible
to your eyes, you finally come to be able to speak about things that you
really know. Generally, it's only possible to undergo this process when you
meet and make yourself learn continuously from a truthful teacher. But
undergoing this process is necessary in order to become someone who can be
contributive to oneself and others. That is to say, we don't have the ability
to guide our own lives contributively until we perceive what exists. What
exists itself must be the standard for any judgement which is to be
appropriate and contributive to existing circumstances. It's impossible to see
what exists without truthfulness.

3\. How are questions/problems themselves formulated?

A: Quite simply, any problem is made by putting at least two things into
contact. For (contrived) example, let's say I have some things that I have
kept inside my consciousness from the past (causes), represented by the
numeral 2. Let's suppose I meet a teacher, who could be represented as the
numeral 3. The result/effect I'll naturally come to gain through the process
which is determined by the factors in the problem will be 5. You can make
problems that you need in order to get results you want by fixing (i) the
causes you have in you at the moment, and (ii) the result you want, and
algebraically solving for the cause you need to contact. In order to contact a
cause you need you either need to find out how to form it through existent
things, or you need to find it among what exists and go there. As mentioned,
one of the real problems that general people face is that they can't see the
causes they have in themselves.

Does that help?

------
omgitstom
I like comments that hop out and look at the meta. I also like comments that
confirm that I'm not the only one that thinks about things a certain way.

For example, dimillian comment:
[https://news.ycombinator.com/reply?id=9341181&goto=item%3Fid...](https://news.ycombinator.com/reply?id=9341181&goto=item%3Fid%3D9338812)

------
classicsnoot
I am going to take a slightly different position. I am very new to all of
this, and i learn more from the arguments that occur than the back slapping.
This is because i am nearly ignorant of all the things i am interested in
[crypto, mesh nets, managing Devs] and i personally learn more when verbal
sabers are crossed. Obviously, i am talking fact +opinion v. fact + opinion,
not troll v. snipe. i completely believe that positive comments have a larger
net positive splash and i think the positivity push here on HN is great.

Edit: Spelling

------
bhayden
Third comment, but I wanted to share this too:

[https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=9086475](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=9086475)

It was the discussion asking founders what their lifestyle is like. I found it
to be a really good glance inside their lives and it helps motivate me to
continue working.

------
gfisher
Every few months I go back and read this thread to help center me again on
expectations:
[https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=7473787](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=7473787)

I have about 10 threads bookmarked, but this one gets the most views over
time.

~~~
antocv
Care to share more of your bookmarks?

------
timdaub
These from swamp40 and junto about habits, summing up the related article
perfectly:
[https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=8852430](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=8852430)

------
0xdeadbeefbabe
Most of the comments here
[https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=9291040](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=9291040)
as they were quoting poetry.

------
legedemon
This comment from antirez:
[https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=8433770](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=8433770)

------
bhayden
There was a discussion about the age of startup founders:
[https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=9086670](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=9086670)

I found this uplifting because being constantly barraged with the success of
people 2/3rds your age can be depressing.

------
bhayden
I really liked this comment from graycat, who was advocating for being a solo
founder (which is what I'd like to do):

[https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=8640126](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=8640126)

------
oxplot
grandalf's comment on procrastination:

[https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=9285481](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=9285481)

