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Ask HN: What cool skill or project interests you, but feels out of reach?

124 points akktor | 2 comments | 09 Jun 25 12:41 UTC | HN request time: 0.535s | source

This question's for all those cool projects or skills you're secretly fascinated by, but haven't quite jumped into. Maybe you feel like you just don't have the right "brain" for it, or you're not smart enough to figure it out, or even worse, you simply have no clue how or where to even start.

The idea here is to shine a light on these hidden interests and the little (or big!) mental blocks that come with them. If you're already rocking in those specific areas – or you've been there and figured out how to get past similar hurdles – please chime in! Share some helpful resources, dish out general advice, or just give a nudge of encouragement on how to take that intimidating first step.

Let's help each other get unstuck!

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brailsafe ◴[11 Jun 25 00:44 UTC] No.44243104[source]▶
There's a few that come to mind, but none that feel actually as daunting intellectually as much as they are qualified by other factors.

I'd like to go from indoor bouldering to rock climbing, but coordinating with a belayer doesn't seem super interesting and otherwise it's just a matter of expense, gear, and a slight pivot in my leisure time to start going at it.

Otherwise, the skill that seems most out of reach is keeping a job for longer than a year. I'm in a decent spot now, after a year and a half prior of being unemployed, and I feel like this might be my last real shot at a career of any kind. Other people seem to handle it fine, but this is the thing that seems most out of reach. Unlike engineering problems that are made up of abstractions with ways to break them down and piece together systems, keeping a job is as opaque of an abstraction as I'm aware of, that doesn't necessarily depend on a measurable skill or even on anything within one's control. I've never once felt stability or been able to bet on money coming in next year, and if I had the money for a mortgage, I'd be stopped by the knowledge I can't count on an income flow at any time in the future. I'm thankful for what I have and what I've learned nonetheless.

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1. thorin ◴[11 Jun 25 15:28 UTC] No.44248688[source]▶
I would encourage you to speak to the wall first in case they run outdoor sessions or see if there are any clubs in your area. This assumes you live in an area with some outdoor climbing. Outdoor bouldering can be done with little equipment, but you need to start way easier than what you'd do at the wall. The ground is surprisingly hard and I've seen someone break their ankle right in front of me a few times and it does not look fun.

Outdoor sport climbing is pretty easy to get into if you have bolted climbing in your area, but as you get higher the ground gets even harder so make sure you know what you're doing. Lots of good books and resources available.

If you really want to get into trad climbing be prepared for a longer apprenticeship, take your time and start easy.

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2. brailsafe ◴[12 Jun 25 22:18 UTC] No.44263795[source]▶
Yep, this is pretty much the process I had in mind for going about it, and yes all the other variables are conveniently in place. I have a lot of respect for nature, mountains, and difficult potentially dangerous recreational sports, so I don't mean to trivialize the endeavor. I should have articulated the thought in a slightly different way, such that I meant something more akin to "One of the things I'd like to pursue is outdoor climbing, but I have a sense of the path to doing that, it's not as much of a mystery as this other thing"