Paul Graham: Quotes about thinking

Paul Graham is English programmer, venture capitalist, and essayist. Explore interesting quotes on thinking.
Paul Graham: 86   quotes 4   likes

“The most important thing is to be able to think what you want, not to say what you want.”

Paul Graham

"What you can't say" http://www.paulgraham.com/say.html, January 2004

Thinking

“Architects know that some kinds of design problems are more personal than others. One of the cleanest, most abstract design problems is designing bridges. There your job is largely a matter of spanning a given distance with the least material. The other end of the spectrum is designing chairs. Chair designers have to spend their time thinking about human butts.”

Paul Graham

"Five Questions about Language Design" http://www.paulgraham.com/langdes.html, May 2001

Problem , Thinking , Time , Personality

“When you tread water, you lift yourself up by pushing water down. Likewise, in any social hierarchy, people unsure of their own position will try to emphasize it by maltreating those they think rank below. I've read that this is why poor whites in the United States are the group most hostile to blacks.”

Paul Graham

"Why Nerds are Unpopular," February 2003

Hostility , People , Thinking , Water

“A programming language is for thinking of programs, not for expressing programs you've already thought of.”

Paul Graham

"Hackers and Painters" http://www.paulgraham.com/hp.html, May 2003

Thinking

“Being mean makes you stupid. That's why I hate fights. You never do your best work in a fight, because fights are not sufficiently general. Winning is always a function of the situation and the people involved. You don't win fights by thinking of big ideas but by thinking of tricks that work in one particular case. And yet fighting is just as much work as thinking about real problems.”

Paul Graham

"Mean People Fail", November 2014

Hate , People , Stupidity , Idea

“When those far removed from the creation of wealth -- undergraduates, reporters, politicians -- hear that the richest 5% of the people have half the total wealth, they tend to think injustice! An experienced programmer would be more likely to think is that all? The top 5% of programmers probably write 99% of the good software.”

Paul Graham

"How to Make Wealth" http://www.paulgraham.com/wealth.html, May 2004

People , Thinking , Wealth

“Someone trying to live well would seem eccentrically abstemious in most of the US. That phenomenon is only going to become more pronounced. You can probably take it as a rule of thumb from now on that if people don't think you're weird, you're living badly.”

Paul Graham

"How To Lose Time And Money", July 2010

People , Thinking

“I think the way to "solve" the problem of procrastination is to let delight pull you instead of making a to-do list push you.”

Paul Graham

"Good And Bad Procrastination", December 2005

Way , Problem , Thinking