8: What advice would you give to a smart, driven college student about to enter the “real world”?

Today we’re up to the 8th question in “Tribe of Mentors” by Tim Ferriss ( see all previous questions here). Today is:

What advice would you give to a smart, driven college student about to enter the “real world”? What advice should they ignore?

We’ll start with a great answer from Annie Duke:

First, seek out dissenting opinions. Always try to find people who disagree with you, who can honestly and productively play devil’s advocate. Challenge yourself to truly listen to people who have differing ideas and opinions than you do. Stay out of political bubbles and echo chambers as much as possible. Feel good about really hearing those who disagree with you. Try to change your mind about one thing every day. The fact is that when two extreme opinions meet, the truth lies generally somewhere in the middle. Without exposure to the other side, you will naturally drift toward the extremes and away from the truth of the matter. Don’t be afraid of being wrong. Because being wrong is just an opportunity to find more of the truth.

Jason Fried gave a great answer, separating the ideas of time and attention: