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Comment by zdw | Hacker News Reader

"Find something you enjoy doing. Do it. Over and over again. You will become good at it for two reasons: you like it, and you do it often. Soon, that will have value in itself."

By this logic, a full third of the workforce ought to be professional gamers...

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When people talk about "doing something" they typically mean "create something". The author didn't say "Find something you enjoy consuming. Consume it. Over and over again.". Gaming, reading, watching the news, that's all consumption. Good only in moderation.

There are plenty of people who create stuff of value around popular games, and make a living out of it.

Producing art is far more fulfilling than consuming art.

Shame it never seems like that in the short term though.

If it were, everyone would be doing it.

It's not that it doesn't seem that way. I think people are generally aware that the benefit is greater, but they're also aware that the cost is greater, so it still loses the subconscious cost/benefit analysis. If it were strictly equal in all other respects but more rewarding, everybody would create stuff. But making a video game is way harder and way more expensive than playing one. (This is similar to the reason people drink soda instead of water. They know water is better in the grand scheme of things, but they also know that water means sacrificing temporary happiness for future happiness, and the future happiness doesn't seem enough to compensate.)

Wow, I'd never thought of it like that. However, gaming does require some skill (akin to, say, pool), have a look at professional COD players, for example.

Funny how technology has made "professional player" a zero-income occupation. It used to be so profitable.

Could you please elaborate on that? I'm genuinely curious - I'm not "hardcore gamer" anymore, but I'm still fairly interested in games - but I didn't know that "professional gaming" became zero-income occupation. What happened?

I meant sports. I don't know if professional gaming ever existed.

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