I was going to change the world

[musicheck]

I'm an idealistic 20 year old just starting my junior year of college who is similarly idealistic. Am I doomed to failure? My plan is econ phd and then either professor or work at an ngo or international organization (world bank, the fed, wto all seem pretty cool).

 

[nonsequitur]

I used to want to change the world, but that went away when I entered college. No, more specifically, I used to want to change people. I've always wanted to HELP people. Whether it was my initial dream of medical school (got shot down by my family) or to find cures for diseases through biomedical research, my aims were always very centered on curing people.

I gradually came to believe that "changing the world" means absolutely nothing. Nothing changes about people. Curing people may be a measurable means of "progress" as does increasing the speed of communications, or participating in politics. But human nature, our desires, our baseness, our goodness doesn't change. It doesn't change with education, or with policy. Someone might be able to cure cancer, but somewhere else in the world, someone else will be shooting his/her own family members or raping children. I became unconvinced that "curing" people would constitute "progress", or something good.

Similarly, politically, it seemed to me to be simply symbol against symbol, abstraction against abstraction. Good against evil. Us VS them. All in maintenance of the status quo. I have no interest in participating in that.

So I decided, rather than attempt to "change" the world or people, the first thing that I should set out to change is my own attitude towards life and people around me. This I can do regardless of what my job actually is, and I chose scientific research because I happen to be good at it (which I can take no credit for).

Some of my friends from grad school said "if you're in science, you must be doing it for either a) the fame b) the knowledge or c) for altruistic reasons because it sure as hell ain't for the money". I disagreed, because my aims are just to do my best (regardless of what field I'm in), and to try to enjoy the ride/people along the way. To try to be kind/helpful to people around me, and do what I can for them. That, to me, is more meaningful than dreaming of changing the world - especially since we're gone in like, 7-8 decades (on average) anyway, and can't control what happens afterward.

 

[Athenian200]

I used to want to change the world, but that went away when I entered college. No, more specifically, I used to want to change people. I've always wanted to HELP people. Whether it was my initial dream of medical school (got shot down by my family) or to find cures for diseases through biomedical research, my aims were always very centered on curing people.

I gradually came to believe that "changing the world" means absolutely nothing. Nothing changes about people. Curing people may be a measurable means of "progress" as does increasing the speed of communications, or participating in politics. But human nature, our desires, our baseness, our goodness doesn't change. It doesn't change with education, or with policy. Someone might be able to cure cancer, but somewhere else in the world, someone else will be shooting his/her own family members or raping children. I became unconvinced that "curing" people would constitute "progress", or something good.

Similarly, politically, it seemed to me to be simply symbol against symbol, abstraction against abstraction. Good against evil. Us VS them. All in maintenance of the status quo. I have no interest in participating in that.

So I decided, rather than attempt to "change" the world or people, the first thing that I should set out to change is my own attitude towards life and people around me. This I can do regardless of what my job actually is, and I chose scientific research because I happen to be good at it (which I can take no credit for).

Some of my friends from grad school said "if you're in science, you must be doing it for either a) the fame b) the knowledge or c) for altruistic reasons because it sure as hell ain't for the money". I disagreed, because my aims are just to do my best (regardless of what field I'm in), and to try to enjoy the ride/people along the way. To try to be kind/helpful to people around me, and do what I can for them. That, to me, is more meaningful than dreaming of changing the world - especially since we're gone in like, 7-8 decades (on average) anyway, and can't control what happens afterward.

You're an INTJ?

Can you explain how the bolded terms make sense in context of your being an NTJ? It... really doesn't make much sense at first glance. Trying to figure out how Te could work that way is hurting my brain...

 

[nonsequitur]

You're an INTJ?

Can you explain how the bolded terms make sense in context of your being an NTJ? It... really doesn't make much sense at first glance. Trying to figure out how Te could work that way is hurting my brain...

I'm definitely INTJ, just based on my interactions with people. I had to figure it out along the way, and my need to cure/help people was catalysed by a single, traumatic event that changed my perspective when I was 15. It stemmed basically from the feeling of being helpless, and being unable to do anything as someone died in front of me within minutes. I wanted the knowledge to make sure that it would never happen again.

(Also, while I'm an INTJ by most accounts, I don't place much stock in the MBTI anymore. I'm not a walking stereotype and I have my various inconsistencies.)

 

[Alchemiss]

La La La, I Have *NO* idea what your talking about here...
I think you have me slightly beat, I spent 6.5 years in grad school with just a masters to show for it. Many of my colleagues at ym second grad school seemed to get there PhD's in 5 years. Not to sound whiny, but I felt like many of them were nowhere near as motivated as I was, they just kinda bent over and took it more???

This. Beyond some basic aptitude, "taking it" was the key to getting through from what I saw. Plus whether your advisor had funding. One guy I knew worked toward his Ph.D. for a decade before he abandoned. Average was about 5 years but they felt more like dog-years than people-years.

 

[lamp]

I change the world on what seems like a constant basis. I simply walk out my door, think of something and the world has changed accordingly. Meaningful, yes. But not in anyway something I care much about. I mean, if the world is simply a place where your thoughts or dreams become manifest, what's the point? To me what this means is that we really are alone here, and I mean alone, creating, by virtue of our thoughts. What's the fucking point. You can make anything and everything you want, but... IT'S NOT REAL!

I gradually came to believe that "changing the world" means absolutely nothing.

I don't think I ever desired to change the world. It'd sure be nice.. but I'm fine not being a major cog in the machine of humanity.

I flirt with nihilism, and spend a lot of time thinking about knowledge/understanding/meaning. I feel like there is a dense fog I need to move through before I could ever influence anything outside of myself. And perhaps it is incorrect to say 'influence', maybe 'understand' is the better word. Things are so nuanced, interconnected, chaotic, transient. I do have a drive though, it may be goal-oriented but is not results oriented. I think I see 'changing the world' as a result . . . so my thoughts are: do not worry about changing the world, seek simpler/more basic goals.

sometimes I wish I could stop time. then i might be able to write out posts with fully expressed and complete ideas . . . time to go

 

[Litvyak]

I always wanted to be a politician, aiding the creation of a large esperanto-speaking supranational organization stronger than the UN. Questions like reusable energy sources or space exploration are easier than they seem to be - we don't lack technology, we lack political power to reunite the scattered resources. We already have the answers we need.

I'm currently studying international relations (and physics), so my dreams may actually come true. Who knows?

 

[Snow Turtle]

I'm still dreaming of changing the world. Part of me realises the professions that I'm aiming for don't really allow this. I had thought about becoming a headteacher and creating my own teaching objectives in some rural location where I won't be pinned down by red tape.

But at the end of the day, while it's a major change and the sort of thing that will have huge impacts on people. It's not the sort of thing that changes the world on a local scale, let alone national/global scale.

Guess in some ways the idea of inspiring someone is quite nice, but is it enough? I don't feel satisified with the dream, but I can't think of anything bigger.

 

[Scott N Denver]

This. Beyond some basic aptitude, "taking it" was the key to getting through from what I saw. Plus whether your advisor had funding. One guy I knew worked toward his Ph.D. for a decade before he abandoned. Average was about 5 years but they felt more like dog-years than people-years.

To quote one of my non-official-former-advisors "Having a PhD doesn't mean your smart, its just means your really bull-headed." I'd add "a glutton for pain" , "don't have or want a social life" , maybe some other things too.

 

[yenom]

What follows is a career related entry in my journal:



Thoughts?

Anyone have a similar story they could share?
Anyone have a very different story they could share?

I think it would be interesting to collect peoples career arcs (so far). We could collect stories of disillusionment and hope regarding peoples careers. I think we can all learn from them.

The only way to change the world is with money and knowledge.
especially the former. If you lack it, you can't do anything.

What is it you want to change? how do you plan to change it?

I have my own story which is similar to yours, but I won't disclose anything here because I don't want anyone to know what I am planning rto do.

My advice to you is don't be disillusioned and keep dreaming.

 

[luvfreedom]

The best way to begin to change the world is with your voice, put something in writing (your theory, idea, novel), tell every person you meet what you want to do. This is hard for me because I am very paranoid of people taking my ideas. However, as I have gotten older and have felt as if I am running out of time, I have started speaking up and I was amazed at how much people have offered, referred, and contributed to what I want to do. The best example I can use is Ghandi, Martin Luther King...Most who have changed the world in a real way have been very poor, overlooked, or misrepresented by the media. Those who you "think" have changed the world or who the media has put out there are usually front people for the people behind the scenes.

So NEVER pattern yourself after anyone or think that you have to do something big to change the world. You do NOT need money! All you need is a great idea and someone will give you money for it.

 

[sofmarhof]

I find it interesting that so many of the people you (OP) cite as having changed the world are scientists... Einstein, Edison, Watson & Crick. I don't think of them as people who set out to change the world, just people who sought knowledge for its own same and happened to make a famous discovery.

I don't think I ever wanted to change the world. I used to think I wanted to be an artist, since I got over that I never knew what I wanted to be, until I decided I didn't want to be anything.

That's why I left my first school, it was like the school for people who think they will be able to singlehandedly save the world and I couldn't stand being around them all. I never realized it while I was applying but it became clear within weeks of arriving.

Each student was asked if they would be President one day. I was the only student in the class that checked the box, "Yes I will be President one day."

Ha. There was a kid at my school whom all the teachers called "Mr. President" from something like 1st-4th grade. By sixth grade he really, really resented it when anyone called him that.

Then he went on to start a fashion line... strange move.

 

[Scott N Denver]

I find it interesting that so many of the people you (OP) cite as having changed the world are scientists... Einstein, Edison, Watson & Crick. I don't think of them as people who set out to change the world, just people who sought knowledge for its own same and happened to make a famous discovery.

I don't think I ever wanted to change the world. I used to think I wanted to be an artist, since I got over that I never knew what I wanted to be, until I decided I didn't want to be anything.

That's why I left my first school, it was like the school for people who think they will be able to singlehandedly save the world and I couldn't stand being around them all. I never realized it while I was applying but it became clear within weeks of arriving.

dartmouth???

 

[sofmarhof]

Gallatin, NYU.
AWFUL.

 

[Timeless]

As silly as this may sound, I'm 24 and still aiming to be an astronaut. I'm still in school, still taking my time, and I'm glad I didn't graduate too soon with a degree I really knew I wouldn't end up being satisfied with. I had to ask myself what would I really have to do with my life if my death was near? I chose space science.

IMO, nothing else matters.

I could give careless about becoming rich, famous, wealthy or having the sterotypical "American Lifestyle."

Why?

That doesn't matter in the end.

What will it matter if you're the richest, wealthiest, famous, most loved person in the world, when a meteor comes crashing down to not only end your life, but every one including the roaches. Even a surprise Gamma Ray Burst can fuck it all up, we don't know. Most our astronomical information is just based off a real good peeping tom of the universe. Sure it's great, but there is more then just looking and sending robots. On top of that, all I know is flexing my ego or muscles on top of Mt. Everest isn't going to help anyone. Sure it'd feel good, but that will wear off. Not to say that no one should feel good or acquire everything they desire, but what about in the end?

"Oh, maybe someone else can do it," someone might think, yeah if everybody else said that, then Christopher Columbus would have been drinking Captain Morgan in Italy while the Native Americans would cracking jokes while smoking pot in the Redwoods. "Maybe later, not now, we have too many xyz problems here," someone else might say, that's JFK saying "We choose to go to the moon... later, after we're back on track." Later, will forever be in later mode. Also, it is my belief that there will always be something to fix, enhance, add etc., as the saying goes,

"The solution to a problem changes the problem."

Most of todays stuff is trivial in the grand scheme of things, and sure everyone contributes to society, and no one is lesser or greater, but if society is a shoe box, and the universe is a room. How will the world grow? You don't grow by make cooler, smaller things in that box. You don't grow by having new methods of law, or new sport games in that box. You don't grow by being in that box of tradition and "sameness." There is nobody or nothing I'm blaming even though it seems like it is, there is no right way or wrong way to do things, it's more like "opening your eyes to the sky above" type of deal. Doctors, politicians, lawyers, writers, athletes whatever still have the eyes to look above—if you know what I mean.

This is why I mentally orgasm at any discussion about space flight, education, exploration and stuff. As you can see, usually I joke around and banter around this forum, but this is something I feel strongly about

By the way, I agree with that:

Dream big, to live big, or settle down. It's sad to see so many people settling, especially when they know they are.

Oh yeah, since I spent so much time with this post,

I'd like to say:

This post is dedicated to every person, and animal that went to space for pushing the boundaries up there for everybody. From Laika to Neil.

Happy Thanksgiving.

 

[lilikoi]

I can relate.

What follows is a career related entry in my journal:



Thoughts?

Anyone have a similar story they could share?
Anyone have a very different story they could share?

I think it would be interesting to collect peoples career arcs (so far). We could collect stories of disillusionment and hope regarding peoples careers. I think we can all learn from them.

Both to you and the poster that said something along the lines of "I have the capacity to do anything, but I don't have the desire to do anything".

I didn't want to "change the world" until I was well into college. In grade school, I simply focused on the task at hand - getting through school - and did not give much thought to the future. When I was in 3rd grade, I asked my teacher essentially what the purpose of life is and where the end of the universe was. I always enjoyed learning how things work.

I have never known what I "want to be when I grow up" - I am still trying to figure it out. When it came time to choose a college major, I picked mechanical engineering because I was weak in the sciences and wanted to gain a better understanding of how the world works from a logical, fact based perspective.

I barely squeaked through because I couldn't see the big picture from the beginning - how basic physics/math/chem/etc was useful in solving the more complicated interesting problems. And, it wasn't "hands on" at all. From the bottom, it looked like a heap of pointless theories. Rather than go to class, I went surfing, and I have many fond memories of those times. Eventually, I got interested in environmental issues and the politics of higher education, and this is how I developed my drive to save the world. I became very aware of injustices and inefficiencies around the world and at home, and it made me very angry. I wanted to change it all. University politics consumed a lot of my time and my grades suffered terribly.

After graduating w/ a BSME (of course now, from the top, I see how all the courses/pieces fit nicely together), I got a job so I could finally make some money but what I really wanted to do was travel. I worked for two years (and squeezed in an African safari, kayaking expedition along a remote coastline, week-long camping trips, and Carribean adventure), and just recently quit. I hate being stuck indoors all day, my bosses were idiots that I couldn't respect, I wasn't learning new things frequently enough, and the job I was doing although decently paying utilized only a few of my skills.

After *much* thought (I call it Phase 2 as I went through this process while in college when I was contemplating switching majors), I've decided that the best way to change the world is to figure out what you are naturally good at and what you are naturally passionate for, and then go do it. You can put a positive spin on everything. You can find a better way to do anything. There is no shortage of problems in this world, limitless angles to approach them from, and they are all equally important and significant. It is most efficient to first do what you are good at and enjoy. If you look, you will find an outlet for changing the world from that angle.

I am in the process of figuring out what I am good at and what I am passionate about. That's how I found this personality type thing, and that's why I joined this forum.

 

[ygolo]

Imho.. What you need to do is figure out HOW you wanted to change the world.

What is it you want to change? how do you plan to change it?

I have thought about this a bit more, and I have come to a tentative conclusion.

I pretty much always knew it would be something science or engineering related, and I thought making better and better computers was the way I would "change the world." However, I think that was too broad, and I only get to participate in an infinitesimal part of what makes a new processor.

Now, I am focused on health care, in particular medical imaging. To be still more specific, focusing on how to bring the costs of the machines and procedures down. In particular, by redesigning the machines to be much cheaper to build, and cheaper/easier to operate, but essentially as effective.

On the one hand, the use of medical imaging can save cost.
See: http://www.medicalimaging.org/documents/Backgrounder_MedicalImaging.pdf

On the other hand the costs of the use of medical imaging itself is quite high and growing, and often cited as being the root of the increase in the costs of medical procedures. The tendency to simply do an imaging only procedure "just to be safe" is another reason for the rate of health care cost growth.

Still, I am not sure I am committed to that route. I would still like to work on things like nuclear fusion or work at the LHC or some other such idea.

It is hard to choose.

I find it interesting that so many of the people you (OP) cite as having changed the world are scientists... Einstein, Edison, Watson & Crick. I don't think of them as people who set out to change the world, just people who sought knowledge for its own same and happened to make a famous discovery.

Yeah, the main people on my list were scientists and engineers.

But regarding that statement that these people did not set out to change the world, I disagree.

I don't think that Einstein, in particular, was after fame or fortune. However, it is clear from his writings that he thought what he was working on was fundamentally important. Curiosity cannot be decoupled from the perception of importance of the questions asked. I am sure he had plenty of trivial problems of interest too. But consider how long he worked on General Relativity.

It is really hard to see how Edison didn't think big. When he was going after the light-bulb, he had in mind a whole infrastructure to produce lighting around the country. He WAS imagining transforming the world (and, I believe, he was after fame and fortune too).

Many of the people who worked on Quantum Mechanics in the early days believed they were changing the world. Many of the people who worked on the early space programs believed they were changing the world...same with those who split the atom...and those working on the Human Genome Project.

Similarly, many of the people working at places like the LHC believe they are changing the world...also others working on the Space Elevator, and other such big ideas. I would like to work on one of those big ideas. However, positions on projects like these are very limited, and require very particular skill sets.

 

[velocity]

.. and then i got knocked up.

 

[theadoor]

... and be even better (successful) than Bill Bernbach. He's the greatest advertiser of all time. Why him? I think advertising, PR and mass media are the greatest instruments how to change society's thought. I do think that ideas change the world, but great marketing makes them alive and without it they wouldn't change the world.