Thoughts on Personal Growth

Deep learning achieved major breakthroughs in 2012. ChatGPT emerged in early 2023. OpenAI’s latest models capture public attention in 2026.

These milestones represent three stages: theoretical foundations, practical applications, and widespread adoption. Each wave attracts researchers, founders, and engineers—each pursuing a different path.

People in each domain work intensely and make progress within their territory. Transitioning between fields requires a fundamental identity shift because daily work and thinking patterns differ significantly. For researchers, the priority is solving novel problems—intellectually demanding work. For engineers, the priority is accumulating practical project experience. Each path demands commitment that can disrupt the rhythms of the other, and choosing one affects what you can achieve in the other.

Kaiming He became a leading researcher but not a billionaire like Yiming Zhang (ByteDance’s CEO). Sam Altman became a public figure and policy maker, not primarily an intellectual scholar. These paths all lead toward personal growth and satisfaction, but each person must recognize which path suits them naturally.

Elon Musk, Sam Altman, and Steve Wozniak—three influential figures with distinct personalities and skill sets. Each thrived by staying true to their nature, not by trying to become someone else.

Consider your ultimate pursuits: solving unknown scientific problems, tackling real-world challenges amid financial and political constraints, or building cutting-edge products for a broad community.

These aren’t mutually exclusive—people can blend them. But over 5, 15, or 25 years, your primary focus will shape your life’s trajectory.

My past shapes who I am today, affecting the choices I make right now. At career crossroads, I should choose based on my job expectations and personal purpose—not external pressure.

Beyond money or fame, success depends on three deeper factors: mastery, autonomy, and contribution. Mastery is becoming extremely skilled at something meaningful. Autonomy is having control over your work and decisions. Contribution is knowing your work improves the world or helps others. In practice, people feel successful when they use their full abilities, create real value, and see long-term progress in their work.

My path is becoming clearer. I need to develop strong foundations in mathematics and coding within my chosen area—a foundation that will serve me as a student, researcher, and future leader.

Any individual contribution alone is small — even influential figures like Sergey Levine needed teams. Progress comes through consistent effort and building strong collaborators. As teams improve and iterate together, the collective impact grows.

This purchase order solved the key financial problem. Jobs took the order to component suppliers and explained that he already had a confirmed buyer. Because the order value was around $25,000, suppliers were willing to provide parts on 30-day credit.