handoflixue comments on Useful maxims - Less Wrong

26 Post author: ciphergoth 11 July 2012 11:56AM

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Comment author: wedrifid 12 July 2012 02:42:44PM *  0 points [-]

My version: You will regret missed opportunities far more than anything you actually do.

Totally not true. Things I actually do have far more salience. Things I don't actually do I usually don't even remember and if I do they certainly don't drag around much in the way of emotional weight. Perhaps my regret mechanism is different?

Comment author: handoflixue 18 July 2012 08:25:37PM 0 points [-]

I tend towards inaction, so I tend to regret inaction more than action - there's often been situations where I think I probably could have made a difference if I'd just gotten involved. That said, actions occasionally explode in BIG ways and form very lasting, intense regrets. I seem to handle the latter MUCH better than the former, though, so I'd still rather push towards action over inaction.

But, ideally, I'd like to push for "action, with 5 minutes of sane contemplation beforehand", because I almost never regret that - I often still have "learning experiences", but it's much easier to say to myself "Well, I did the best I could with the information I had at the time, and now I'll have a better model in the future".