timtyler comments on Rationality is Systematized Winning - Less Wrong

48 Post author: Eliezer_Yudkowsky 03 April 2009 02:41PM

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Comment author: thomblake 03 April 2009 08:45:33PM 1 point [-]

The question was about admonitions. I commented based on that. I didn't mean anything further about instrumental rationality.

Comment author: timtyler 03 April 2009 09:08:16PM 4 points [-]

OK. I don't think we have a disagreement, then.

I consider it to be a probably-true fact about human psychology that if you tell someone to "try" rather than telling them to "win" then that introduces failure possibilites into their mind. That may have a positive effect, if they are naturally over-confident - or a negative one, if they are naturally wracked with self-doubt.

It's the latter group who buy self-help books: the former group doesn't think it needs them. So the self-help books tell you to "win" - and not to "try" ;-)