Entrepreneurial Skills Learned

Summary

The speaker shares their journey from studying psychology at Harvard to becoming an intuitive programmer. They discuss their early interest in programming, which began at age 10, and how this skillset evolved over time through creating various projects, many of which were just for personal interest. They highlight how one of their random projects unexpectedly turned into a success, emphasizing that it was more about the time spent experimenting and creating rather than formal education. Despite not having a clear plan, they managed to succeed by following their curiosity and making things that intrigued them.

Takeaways

• 🎓 Studied psychology at Harvard, not computer science, but had a background in programming since age 10.
• 💡 Psychology studies led to an intuitive understanding of people issues, which was useful in university and beyond.
• 🛠️ Created a website in a few weeks without initially anticipating its success.
• 🚫 Initially planned to abandon the project after a short time for another idea.
• 🎉 Glad not to have scrapped the project, as it turned out to be successful.
• 🤔 Emphasizes the importance of how one spends their time and the types of projects undertaken.
• 👀 Made numerous projects at Harvard, most of which were personal and not seen by others.
• 🎧 Developed a natural language interface for playing MP3s and other personal projects.
• 🚨 Created a 'hot or not' program that almost got him expelled from Harvard.
• 🔨 Enjoys making random things and believes this habit honed his skills for future projects.
• 🙅‍♂️ Admits to having no idea what he's doing when managing the process of his projects.

Q & A

What did the speaker study at Harvard University?

The speaker studied psychology at Harvard University, not computer science.

How long has the speaker been programming?

The speaker has been programming since they were around 10 years old.

Did the speaker's programming skills reach a level of intuition?

Yes, the speaker's programming skills reached a point where it became intuitive and they didn't have to consciously think about it.

What made the speaker interested in combining psychology with programming?

The speaker became interested in the people issues and interactions while studying psychology and being at a university, which led them to combine it with their programming skills.

How long did it take the speaker to create the site they mentioned?

It took the speaker a couple of weeks or even less to throw together the site.

What was the speaker's initial intention after creating the site?

The speaker initially planned to scrap the site after a hacker day and pursue a different idea.

What type of projects did the speaker make while at Harvard?

The speaker made a variety of random projects, many of which were not meant for others to see and were created for personal interest.

Can you provide an example of one of the projects the speaker made?

One example is a natural language interface to play the speaker's MP3s.

What was the 'hot or not' program the speaker mentioned?

The 'hot or not' program was a project created by the speaker before it became popular, and it almost got them kicked out of Harvard.

How did the speaker's experience at Harvard influence their ability to create the site?

The speaker's experience making various projects at Harvard helped them become well-tuned towards creating the site, even though they did not have specific training in managing such a process.

What was the speaker's attitude towards their own capabilities in managing the site creation process?

The speaker admits they had no idea what they were doing, indicating a sense of learning and discovery throughout the process.

Outlines

00:00

🎓 From Psychology to Programming

The speaker discusses their background in psychology at Harvard and how their early interest in programming since the age of 10 became intuitive. They mention that their understanding of people issues from psychology led to the idea of creating a site, which they accomplished in a matter of weeks without any prior expectation of success. They also reflect on their time at Harvard, where they made numerous projects, most of which were personal and not intended for public viewing, but contributed to their skills in creating the successful site.

Keywords

💡Psychology

Psychology is the scientific study of the human mind and its functions, particularly those affecting behavior in a given context. In the video, the speaker studied psychology at Harvard, which influenced their understanding of people issues and likely contributed to their intuition for social dynamics, a key aspect of the video's theme about creating a successful site.

💡Computer Science

Although not the speaker's major, computer science is the study of computers and computing systems, including their design, development, and use. The speaker mentions programming since the age of 10, indicating a foundational skill set that became intuitive over time, essential for the technical development of the site discussed in the video.

💡Intuition

Intuition refers to the ability to understand or know something immediately, without the need for conscious reasoning. The speaker describes reaching a point where programming 'went into their intuition,' suggesting that their technical skills became second nature, allowing them to create the site with relative ease.

💡Programming

Programming is the process of creating a set of instructions that tell a computer what to do. The speaker's early start in programming at the age of 10 laid the groundwork for their later success in creating a site, as it became an intuitive skill.

💡People Issues

People issues generally refer to the challenges or dynamics that arise from interactions among individuals. The speaker's background in psychology gave them insight into these issues, which played a role in the conceptualization of the site, as it likely involved understanding user behavior and social interactions.

💡Harvard

Harvard is a prestigious university known for its rigorous academic programs. The speaker attended Harvard, where they studied psychology and made various projects, including the one discussed in the video. This context provides a backdrop for the speaker's educational and creative journey.

💡Site

In the context of the video, 'site' refers to a website that the speaker created. The process of creating the site and its subsequent success is the central narrative of the video, illustrating the speaker's technical and intuitive skills.

💡Success

Success, in this video, is associated with the unexpected popularity and impact of the site the speaker created. Initially, the speaker did not anticipate the site's success, which became apparent over time, highlighting the unpredictable nature of creative endeavors.

💡Project

A project, in this context, refers to a specific task or endeavor that the speaker undertook while at Harvard. The speaker mentions making many projects, most of which were personal and not intended for public viewing, indicating a history of creative and technical experimentation.

💡Natural Language Interface

A natural language interface allows users to interact with a system using normal, spoken or written language. The speaker created such an interface to play their MP3s, showcasing their ability to combine technical skills with user-friendly design, a concept that likely influenced the creation of the site.

💡Hot or Not Program

The 'Hot or Not' program mentioned by the speaker is an example of an earlier project that almost got them into trouble, indicating a history of pushing boundaries and exploring social dynamics through technology, which may have contributed to the conceptual foundation of the successful site.

Highlights

The speaker studied psychology at Harvard, not computer science, but has been programming since age 10.

Programming became intuitive for the speaker, not something consciously thought about.

Interest in people issues and psychology led to the idea of creating a site.

The speaker had the technical skills to create the site and did so in just a couple of weeks.

There was no initial expectation of success when the site was first created.

The speaker considered abandoning the site after the first day but is glad they didn't.

The speaker believes success is more about how you spend your time rather than specific college learning.

During college, the speaker made many random projects, most of which were not meant for others to see.

Creating things for personal interest and enjoyment was a significant part of the speaker's college experience.

The speaker's background in making various projects helped when it came time to create the successful site.

The speaker admits to not having a clear idea of what they were doing when managing the site creation process.

The speaker created a natural language interface to play their MP3s as one of many personal projects.

A 'hot or not' program created by the speaker almost got them kicked out of Harvard.

The speaker enjoys spending time making random things, which contributed to their project success.

The speaker emphasizes the importance of personal interest and enjoyment in creating projects.

The speaker's approach to project creation was more intuitive and less about formal learning.

Transcripts

I actually studied psychology at Harvard

not computer science although a little

bit of computer sign I've been

programming since I was like 10 and I

think that it kind of like went just

kind of reached a point where it went

into my intuition I wasn't really

thinking that much about it consciously

so that was pretty good and then I mean

when I started thinking about all the

people issues doing psychology and like

being at a university and directing with

a lot of people it just kind of occurred

to me that this would be something that

was interesting and I mean like I knew

how to do it so I just did I mean it

took me like a couple of weeks or even

less to throw together the site and I

mean I remember that by the time I was

done throwing together the site I didn't

know I had no idea how successful it

would end up being and I was actually

thinking that after like a hater day

nine I had a different idea that I

wanted to do and I was going to scrap it

not do this so I'm happy that I didn't

do that but um so I think that it's more

of like how you spend your time doing

stuff type of question there to answer

then like something that I learned

specifically specifically from college I

all like I made a ton of random things

when I was at Harvard and most of them

no one ever saw like a lot of them just

weren't meant for other people to see

and there were just things that I made

for myself because I thought that they

would be cool I used to make stuff like

a natural language interface to play my

mp3's you know or the thing I made

before this was a hot or not program out

of everyone's ideas at Harvard that

almost got me kicked out but I'm like so

I don't know I mean I just like to I

spent a lot of time making random stuff

you know and I think that that

definitely made it so that by the time

it came like by the time it came time to

like make this random project I was

pretty well tuned towards making that

you know in terms of managing this whole

process nothing you know no like I have

no idea what I'm doing you know