Tracking my interests through my heroes
Recently, I had to decide whether to spend a good amount of money to meet one of my heroes or not. While thinking through the decision, a thought struck me: who are my heroes? Shouldn’t I make a list?
Before I even started making the list, I knew it's going to change every year or two. When I was learning about finance, Charlie Munger and Warren Buffett were on top of my list. When I was learning about Indian modern history, Gandhi and Nehru were my heroes.
This aligns with Derek Sivers’ theory that your heroes show which way you are facing. He noticed that most of his heroes were writers, which hinted at his desire to write.
But before I write the list, let’s try to define the term ‘hero’.
A hero is someone you admire, perhaps for their work or their character. You respect them. You are inspired by them. You want to emulate them in some way. You don’t think about your heroes daily, but you encounter them often. Sometimes consciously, sometimes subconsciously, they influence who you are.
Now, here is the list:
- Derek Sivers: He thinks from alternative points of view. I don’t know anyone who is as unorthodox as Derek.
- Kailash Nadh: A great programmer who brings philosophy to his code. The mix of his coding skills, his consistency, and his philosophy makes him a force of nature.
- Ajay Shah: A renaissance polymath. When Ajay talks, you shut up and listen.
- Amit Varma: A great podcaster. Best at understanding and explaining things from first principles.
- Guy Spier: Following him makes you want to behave ethically, work harder, and become a lifelong learner.
- Mohnish Pabrai: Has a charming personality. His brilliance at copying people makes him a unique person.
- Morgan Housel: Everyone reads books but no one reads like Housel. He’s too good at reading something and connecting that to a seemingly unconnected area of life. Also has an amiable personality.
- Krish Ashok: His love for science proves that you don’t need to be a researcher to include science in your life. Also a fun guy.
- Charlie Munger: A billionaire, a smart businessman, a lifelong learner, and a dang interesting guy. Many of my heroes consider him a hero. What more to say?
What does the list tell about me? Well, I’ll keep that to myself.