40 Bits of Advice That, in Murky Light, Might Pass as Wisdom
40 Bits of Advice That, in Murky Light, Might Pass as Wisdom
Tags: musings
Published on Monday, July 20, 2026
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I recently turned 40. With many folks warning me about the looming<br>midlife crisis, whose<br>onset I do not remotely feel at the moment, I was told that I now had<br>only a restricted number of options: I could get into sports cars,<br>artisanal coffee, or gravel cycling.<br>I rejected all of these options and chose something different instead,<br>more in line with the usual propensity of an academic to indulge in<br>navel gazing. Here then,<br>is my attempt at a list of 40 bits of advice that, in murky light and<br>with a lot of forgiveness on the side of the reader, might pass as wisdom.
(I am of course wont to ignore my own advice but when I do, I always find<br>that it would have been smarter had I heeded it.)
I sincerely hope these bits are high-entropy for you, enjoy!
Admitting your own ignorance is a sign of strength. Do it more<br>often. If you do not feel your own ignorance every once in a while,<br>consider tackling harder tasks. Prefer looking foolish and naïve<br>every once in a while to pretending that you know all the answers.
Do not be afraid of rejection, in any area of life. If you do not ask,<br>you will not receive. However, learn to always take rejection well.
Everyone in academia is smart. Strive to be known for your intellect<br>and integrity.
Being kind is not the same as being nice.
The journey is often much more important than the destination<br>because it changes you. (But: The toughest climbs lead to the best<br>views.)
You get to define what success means for you.
You can always quit. Knowing when is a superpower, but you can<br>learn to develop it.<br>There are cases in which persisting just drags you down; if you<br>recognize them, you can bail out early.
Even if you only practice a little bit every day, the effects<br>typically compound. Do not underestimate what you can achieve if you<br>stick with it.
It is good to look back every once in a while, but reserve any “What<br>if?” questions rather for the future than the past.
In many areas of life, it is surprisingly easy to become excellent.<br>This is because many people are not actively trying to improve<br>some skills, unfortunately. For instance, in academia, for all our<br>formal training, we typically do not practice giving good and<br>informative talks—and it shows. Investing a little bit into this<br>skill yields large returns.
If you want to become good at something, you have to care about it.<br>If you do not care about anything you are doing, you need to change<br>something.
Not everything you do has to be quantified. (And not everything that matters can be quantified.)
Not everything you do has to be immediately useful. You are allowed to enjoy things.
“The best way to have great ideas is to have lots of bad ones.” (Linus Pauling)
Read broadly, especially when you are a “knowledge worker.” It helps<br>you connect the dots.
If you are always too important for the little tasks, you do not<br>deserve to handle the big ones.
Your first draft or version of everything is going to be bad, but it<br>is infinitely better than having nothing at all. You can always<br>iterate and improve.
Every talk is a job talk.
Showing up is half the battle in order to get something done. No<br>productivity tool will force you to actually do the work.
Talk about problems while they still feel too small to talk about.<br>Waiting for too long makes you argue about patterns instead of<br>problems and completely changes the dynamic.
Random acts of kindness are severely underrated. If you like<br>something, write a brief note to the person who created it, for<br>instance. In many areas of life, people only speak up when something<br>is going wrong, meaning that the person(s) in charge only ever get<br>negative feedback. You can counter that trend!
Acknowledge those who have helped you.
Many things that seem like a “big deal” will, in fact, not be a big deal<br>after some time has passed.
Have high standards but reject perfectionism. Remember that<br>“Shipping is also a feature.” (Joel Spolsky)
You have more agency than you think.
Humility means thinking of yourself less, not thinking less of<br>yourself.
Failure is normal. Even if you do everything right, you might still<br>fail—but that is just part of being human.
Do not play silly games with your sleep schedule.
Stepping away from a problem is hard sometimes but you have to give<br>your subconscious some time to work on it.
Most of life does not happen in dramatic scenarios but in the<br>ordinary ones. Being there in a crisis for your loved ones is easy.<br>Being there on a random Tuesday is optional, which is why it counts.
Give advice freely but be aware that what works for you may not work for others.
Working long(er) hours should never be a goal in and of itself.<br>Rather take a look at what you accomplish...