This is Paul Graham.

You can't think well without writing well, and you can't write well without reading well.

To do something well you have to like it.

What should you do if you're young and ambitious but don't know what to work on? What you should not do is drift along passively, assuming the problem will solve itself. You need to take action. But there is no systematic procedure you can follow. When you read biographies of people who've done great work, it's remarkable how much luck is involved.... See more

The trouble with planning is that it only works for achievements you can describe in advance. You can win a gold medal or get rich by deciding to as a child and then tenaciously pursuing that goal, but you can't discover natural selection that way.

I think for most people who want to do great work, the right strategy is not to plan too much. At each... See more

Work on hard problems, driven mainly by curiosity, but have a second self watching over your shoulder, taking note of gaps and anomalies.

The questions depend on inspiration, but the answers can be got by sheer persistence.

Our early training and our self-centeredness combine to make us believe that every judgement of us is about us. In fact most aren't.

Art has a purpose, which is to interest its audience.

Good art (like good anything) is art that achieves its purpose

particularly well.