Dec 11 2022
Man in the arena
A trend I’ve noticed in myself over the past year is a decrease in my tolerance for cynicism. I just don’t see point of it in the vast majority of cases. I’m tired of NYT hit pieces and critiques of billionaires, techno-pessimists and doomsday prophets, smug dunkings and pretentiousness, and—most of all—uncharitable interpretations of people taking big risks to do things they believe in.
Something I come back to often is Theodore Roosevelt’s “man in the arena” quote:
Cynicism, especially from people who haven’t done anything, is confusing. What is the purpose of it? What value does it create?
There are people who believe the future is something to be created, and are trying to create things to make it better. Does it matter if they are partly motivated by money? Or if their idea isn’t perfect? Maybe their approach isn’t the most effective, but it’s certainly more of a net-positive on humanity than a shitty piece of activist “journalism.”
Regardless of if an idea is truly “good” or “bad,” I think approaching people building things with optimism and open-mindedness is a more effective mindset to have. It makes the world more interesting and exciting. People who are willing to take risks and do hard things will find something worthwhile to work on. People who criticize and feel superior might not ever.