✳flâneur — a map of the web's best reading

"What's my goal?" — LessWrong

lesswrong.com · 1,630 words · saved by 1 readers

This is my most common opening-move for Instrumental Rationality. There are many, many other pieces of instrumental rationality. But asking this question is usually a helpful way to get started. Often, simply asking myself "what's my goal?" is enough to direct my brain to a noticeably better solution, with no further work. I'm playing Portal 2, or Baba is You. I'm fiddling around with the level randomly, sometimes going in circles. I notice I've been doing that awhile. I ask "what's my goal?" And then my eyes automatically glance at the exit for the level and realize I can't possibly make progress unless I solve a particular obstacle, which none of my fiddling-around was going to help with. I'm arguing with a person, poking holes in their position. I easily notice considerations that feel really compelling to me that reinforce that my side is correct. I notice it's getting heated. I ask "what's my goal?" And then realize I had basically been trying to look smart and "win" some kind of

x "What's my goal?" — LessWrong Step by Step Metacognition Summoning Sapience Rationality Frontpage 2025 Top Fifty: 18 % 132 "What's my goal?" by Raemon 2nd Jul 2025 3 min read 9 132 The first in a series of bite-sized rationality prompts [1] . This is my most common opening-move for Instrumental Rationality. There are many, many other pieces of instrumental rationality. But asking this question is usually a helpful way to get started. Often, simply asking myself "what's my goal?" is enough to direct my brain to a noticeably better solution, with no further work. Examples Puzzle Games I'm play

Explore this link on the map →

related reading