Reminds me of this quote from Steve Jobs' famous commencement speech:
Remembering that you are going to die is the best way I know to avoid the trap of thinking you have something to lose. You are already naked. There is no reason not to follow your heart.
There's a lot to lose, in fact. Anyone who has lived in deep poverty and watched as loved ones became homeless or suffer from painful/serious health conditions because treatment is too expensive knows how much there is to lose.
Having seen both sides of this first hand, I certainly agree that the world can put a lot of pressure on you to behave or not behave in certain ways. You may need to take a job that you don’t like instead of starting a business.
But if you want to get unstuck and break free from that rut, it’s important to take risks. Hard work and determination only gets you so far, you also need imagination and willingness to step outside of your comfort zone.
Exactly, it's extremely privileged to believe one has nothing to lose, because it implies they won't be that bad off if they fail.
I grew up in poverty and fought to get out of it. I am well aware at any point I could fuck up and fall back into it permanently. I have everything to lose and long term stability is more important than taking risks in the hope they work out.
Given that the quote is talking about following your heart, I think the intention is to combat the idea of "I want to follow my heart but am scared of losing what I have". So the quote's intention would be "you might lose everything due to other unforeseen circumstances anyway so just follow your heart".
Just as there are different descriptions of reality depending on the scale under discussion - quantum vs cosmological and everything in between - there are different scales to describe experience and, in particular, suffering. I think this is what Jobs was getting at, albeit it perhaps a bit too obliquely.
A very serious and/or disabling health condition could deplete your savings in a few months even if you are considered middle class and have health/disability insurance. There's no guarantees there. Also, becoming homeless is extremely unlikely as long as you are healthy and able to work. Even a $15/hr job can put a roof over your head and buy you food.
> Even a $15/hr job can put a roof over your head and buy you food.
That's iffy, you might need to pick one, but "healthy" is also a pretty wildly varying thing and being able to work doesn't mean someone will give you work. Ya, maybe a temp agency will get you something if you're lucky, but then you also need to get rather lucky to get a place even if you can pay for it sometimes.
Sucks to say it, but if the majority of your work history is as a programmer and you fall on hard times, you're not at the top of any hiring list for a low-wage entry-level position.
I think this is a good coping mechanism, though I disagree that you should always follow your heart. We are often not mature or knowledgeable enough, and our heart makes dumb, impulsive decisions which can hurt us and the ones we love. Our practical, rational side is there to temper that part of us.
Cultivate wisdom so that you can live a good life and die without regrets is better to me than following your heart.
So let’s use drugs today and gamble everything I have at the casino because I know I am going to die one day and there is nothing to lose ? Sounds rhetorical but not practical
