关键要点
- 各领域都存在同一模式：很多人努力，但被探索的可能性空间只是一小部分，因为大家都在做相似的事。
- 即使最聪明、最有想象力的人，在决定做什么时也出奇地保守——平时绝不追时髦的人，也会被吸进时髦问题里。
- 想找冷门问题，可以去人们以为已被完全探索的领域找新切入点（如 essays、Lisp、venture funding）；大而看似被玩透的领域，发现的价值会被其巨大的表面积放大。
- 抵御跟风的最佳保护是真正热爱所做的事：即使犯了和别人一样的错误、觉得它太边缘，也会继续做下去。
—— 本文选自东西书院 dongxishuyuan.com
PG 原话
即使最聪明、最有想象力的人，在决定做什么时也出奇地保守。那些在其他方面绝不会追逐时髦的人，也会被吸进时髦问题里。
Even the smartest, most imaginative people are surprisingly conservative when deciding what to work on. People who would never dream of being fashionable in any other way get sucked into working on fashionable problems.
我在许多不同领域都见过同样的模式：尽管很多人努力耕耘，但可能性空间中被探索的只是一小部分，因为大家都在做相似的事。
Ive seen the same pattern in many different fields: even though lots of people have worked hard in the field, only a small fraction of the space of possibilities has been explored, because theyve all worked on similar things.
出处
- 英文原题：Fashionable Problems（2019年12月）
- 原文：https://www.paulgraham.com/fp.html
- 本书院编译 · 底本为 paulgraham.com 英文原典
中文为本书院编译（意译），关键英文术语保留原文；英文引文逐字核验为原典连续子串。
延伸阅读 · 跨篇互见
英雄下：去找那些没人意识到是问题的问题
做大事的路径：寻找那些人们还没意识到是问题的问题；人生只有一次，为什么不做件大事——范式转移始于无人提问处。
But Wodehouse didnt give a damn what anyone thought of him. He wrote exactly what he wanted.
To do really great things, you have to seek out questions people didnt even realize were questions.
场景交集：寻找创意、选择方向、决策出处：Some Heroes · paulgraham.com 原文 ↗
想赚大钱就去创业，而发现创业想法的最好方式，就是做自己真正感兴趣的事。
Many if not most of the biggest startups began as projects the founders were doing for fun.
So theres something like a midwit peak for making money.
场景交集：寻找创意、选择方向、决策出处：When To Do What You Love · paulgraham.com 原文 ↗
组织在弱化、独立工作在增强：用好奇心导航、追求卓越、做多个并行下注。
When in doubt, follow your curiosity. It never lies, and it knows more than you do about whats worth paying attention to.
if you come across something thats mediocre yet still popular, it could be a good idea to replace it.
场景交集：寻找创意、选择方向、决策出处：Superlinear Returns · paulgraham.com 原文 ↗
别人眼中的工作在你眼中不算工作，那就是你适合做的事；口味越怪，证据越强。
If something that seems like work to other people doesnt seem like work to you, thats something youre well suited for.
The stranger your tastes seem to other people, the stronger evidence they probably are of what you should do.
场景交集：寻找创意、选择方向、决策出处：What Doesnt Seem Like Work? · paulgraham.com 原文 ↗
本区为 L2 延展案例（跨篇互见）：PG 其他原典中的相关论述，仍属原典直读；引文均为逐字核验。解读与主编观点见 L3（筹备中）。