I’ve recently started doing a bit of study on the mechanics of film, reading up on stuff like camera angles, lighting, transitions etc. and I’m noticing that it’s starting to change the way I approach watching movies. I’m getting glimmers of awareness of how certain technical processes in film are designed to evoke certain feelings within the audience and when a particular shot is done especially well or poorly. It occurs to me that people who have gotten really good at this approach watching a movie completely different from that of the average person.
So I was wondering, for the thing you’re really good at, how has it changed your perception and experience going about the world?
For me:
Being a really good cook means:
[ul]
[li]I almost never voluntarily go to mid-range restaurants. If I go out, it’s usually to a cheap ethnic place that does something difficult to make really well (eg: pho). Occasionally, I will splurge on a high end dining experience. But every time I go to a restaurant in the range of $15 - $50 a plate, I’m inevitably disappointed that I could have made the same thing at home better and at 1/3rd the price.[/li][li]Whenever I’m tasting something, I’m breaking it down into it’s component flavors and textures and I immediately notice any flaws and errors. I’m usually processing in my head what is required to make the dish better.[/li][li]When I read a recipe, I don’t read it as a list of ingredients and instructions. Instead, I’m placing it within a taxonomy, trying to understand the lineage, what the basic skeleton is and where there’s a notable divergence from other examples in the past. This allows me to keep far more recipes in my head and also to understand how to tweak a recipe towards my liking.[/li][li]Knowing a lot about food helps as an entree into learning about other cultures. It’s useful to use food as a lens from which to view a culture’s history, class distinctions, outlook on life and other factors.[/li][/ul]
Being a good designer means:
[ul]
[li]I’m acutely aware of encountering bad design in the world and I’m constantly critiquing and trying to redesign instances of poorly thought out objects.[/li][li]I view products from the perspective of problems they are trying to solve and I’m delighted when I find a new or novel approach towards solving a particular problem and I try to keep a mental database of interesting approaches used.[/li][li]I’m fascinated by human behavior and I’ll often seek to understand and predict how people react to certain circumstances.[/li][/ul]
What is it like to be really good at the thing that you’re good at?
For me? It means not getting ripped off buying silly things for my skin that dont work, since I can make it better myself. An expensive avocation for sure, but finding the right ingredients and putting them in the right formulations is rewarding and fun and makes my skin behave. I suppose its like you not wanting to spend $50 on a dish in a restaurant that you could make yourself 20x better at home.
Debunking the ridiculous advertising claims is entertaining as well!
You’ve probably heard of the research that debunks the notion of being “in the groove.” Basketball players who feel that they have “hot hands” aren’t really scoring any higher than those who don’t have that feeling.
But the feeling is definitely real, even if the results are only illusory.
So, I’d say, it feels GREAT to be doing something and know you’re doing it well. If this be illusion, make the most of it! Some times, we labor and sweat and groan, and everything seems too damn hard. Other times, it’s like magic, and the results just flow. Looking back, the results of the two kinds of creativity may not actually be much different, but, oh! the joy of the latter kind of work!
For me, it is that I am acutely aware how many people can’t do elementary arithmetic. I don’t recall the context now, but a reporter recently described something as costing .003¢ when he really meant .3¢ or, most likely $.003. I see this, and much worse, all the time.
That drives me nuts and I know it bothers my new employees (and my old ones) when I make them remark things that they marked .50¢. Most of them really don’t understand what the big deal is. Even though in all the time I’ve been there we’ve never been called on that, it still looks sloppy. 50¢ or $0.50 “A cent sign or a decimal, but not both, we don’t sell anything for less than a penny.” Once in a while, after a few months I’ll have someone say “Ya know, I just got that” and in my head I’ll think “What, are you in third grade, did you just start fractions, it’s not that complicated” but people don’t understand it to the point that they actually resent me for making them do it. I’ve had some say “Here’s the price gun, YOU set it” And it’s because they truly don’t understand what the difference is between .50¢ and 50¢, to them those are the same number.
For the record, if the price gun (for all of you that spent your high school years stocking shelves, you’ll know this) was set to, say $1.49, getting the decimal out of there is a whole extra step and can be a PITA. I understand, I just don’t care.
I really enjoy writing software. I am quite good at it. I should be after all the years I have done it. If I weren’t really good at it by now, I probably should have chosen something else like being a butcher or a plumber. The act of creating something out of nothing is quite unique. I get it when I write music or create a piece of art, but the complexity of creating a useful system is hard to beat.
It feels great when you are setting new records but it can also be a bit lonely at the top when you realize there really is almost no one you can carry on a coversation with at the level you would like. It can also be humbling when you realize that even though you are one of the best you are still very far from perfect. Sometimes it takes pretty extensive knowledge to realize how much you don’t know.
One thing you learn to do when studying physics is how to simplify problems by looking for symmetries. It’s hard sometimes to explain to people that a certain conclusion they are trying to draw is simply impossible because it would violate the symmetry inherent in the problem we’re trying to solve.
Or, there are certain people I work with who don’t really understand the principles behind what they are doing, although they know how to apply a formula. But if some key input is missing, they can’t improvise to get the answer anyway by going back to first principals and just using simple math to get there by another route (usually just algebra or geometry).
How do you explain quality of craft to people who don’t even grasp that craft is at play? Everybody listens to music - trying to explain, I dunno, good guitar playing…it’s hard. I try to respect that and just pick my moments. Until people choose to listen, it’s kinda not worth talking.
As a published author and professional freelance writer, I sometimes want to spit in the face of two kinds of people: those who want my very best work for less than minimum wage and those who can’t write for shit but are grateful for such a wage. I write for two reasons. I write to make money and I write because I have something to say and sometimes I am pretty good at saying it. Give me something important to write about, something deserving of passion and intensity that serves a cause I find worthy. In turn, I will write you a piece that will do anything you want it to and I will do it for you at minimal cost. But give me something unimportant, something boring that you think is only worthy of a lousy penny a word and I will give you penny a word work. Complaining you got mediocrity when you did not pay for anything but mediocrity is my single biggest professional complaint with the world right now.
Writing is an art. It is a craft. It requires years of study, hard work and even talent. When I am not writing, I am reading, often with an eye to learning something from another writer. I am so sick right now of people who want my art and want it for less than Mark Twain was paid. You cannot have a society where literacy is expected yet those who practice the art of literacy are paid the same as the teenager who babysits your kids.
Where you been? The thread is four hours old, and I expected something along these lines to be the first or second response.
It is crazy to me how many people admire good writing yet find it completely without value. I like good car and bike journalism and the constant forum argument for not buying magazines is “everything’s on the net.” That’s true, but it’s true for everything - why listen to professionally produced music when you can watch to some teenage girl do a cover on YouTube with a ukulele?
I fly airplanes for a living, mostly doing flight instruction. This question is a bit dicey for pilots, because complacency and thinking you’re invincible are deadly. There are even statistics showing that pilots with a moderate amount of experience are at greater risk for accidents than beginners. But that being said…
When I walk out to an airplane that I know well, under reasonable (or at least known and understood) weather conditions, I have a feeling of confidence but not cockiness. I have a fair bit of experience and have responded appropriately to several abnormal and emergency situations in the past. So my feeling is that I have a decent shot at handling whatever comes along short of a wing falling off.
I use that confidence to make passengers and students feel at ease and let them concentrate on learning and enjoying the flight. But I’m always watching myself for signs of cockiness, at which point I remind myself of several dumb things I’ve done in airplanes over the years. And of better pilots than me who have bought it.
I think people admire quality writing. The problem is they think a) anyone can write well and b) no one should have to pay much for good writing. I had some plumber literally steal an article I wrote without permission. When I contacted him and asked him to stop he offered to hire me. His desired rate? Five bucks for five hundred words. I told him I would write for that wage if he would agree to come to my house and fix my leaking sink for the same five bucks. I never heard from him again.
I would think that good writers would get a lot of offers from start up companies to write presentations and such on a commision type basis. Lack of good writing abilities has kept many good ideas from becomming realities.
I’m confused by the second bit. What’s wrong with bad writers who write anyway…for low wages?
I definitely agree that the first class of people are rotters: they want too much and are willing to pay too little.
But why would you have disdain for the poor work-for-hire schlubs who turn out schlock and boilerplate and crap copy, in return for crap wages? Seems like any other low-end job. Pizza delivery or washing cars or whatnot. I’m unclear why you would want to spit in their faces?
They don’t see it as being a decimal point, to them it’s purely functional, a separator between dollars and cents.
You should try being an artist. Because a good artist can make it seem so effortless, and in their own life it’s just doodling, they don’t take it seriously as a real skill. Talent, yes, but you don’t pay for talent. They underestimate the time it takes, and that it can be a real job. This despite the fact that there isn’t a single occupation anywhere that does not require the services of an artist or designer in some way, from the signwriter and logo designer, the clothing designer, the video editor, to the advertising companies that promote their product or service.
Anyways. Re: the OP. When I started 3D modelling I began to appreciate the construction of things, like how a house is assembled in its various pieces and structures, in a particular order; or the way a good tool or machine is designed.
This. I find it really difficult to explain good software engineering techniques to less experienced programmers. Sure, it’s easy to point out technical errors, but there’s a certain beauty and craftsmanship to a well-designed piece of code or an overall design. A lot of times I can’t really articulate why something is wrong, and yet it’s obvious to me when it is.
And sometimes outside your field of expertise. I’m good with software, and can hold my own in a few related areas like digital electronics. Somehow this means people seek my guidance in all kinds of barely-related areas.
