23 Ways To Do Great Work
Inspired by Paul Graham
What do the world’s best artists, scientists, and entrepreneurs have in common? Strip away the specifics, and you’ll find a shared set of principles behind how they work. This is a distilled guide to those principles — a roadmap for doing meaningful, high-impact work in any field.
1. Choose the Right Problem
To do great work, start with the right problem. It should sit at the intersection of three things:
Something you're naturally good at
Something you're deeply curious about
Something that gives you the freedom to do truly impactful work
Don’t overthink the “impact” part — ambitious people often aim too low. Just follow what excites and challenges you.
2. Find Your Curiosity
Most people don’t know what they’re good at when they’re young — and the most important work often hasn’t even been invented yet. So guess. Try things. Build a habit of working on your own ideas. Don’t wait for permission or instructions.
Let your curiosity lead you. What are you so interested in that others would find it obsessive or strange? That’s your engine.
3. Reach the Frontier
Learn enough about your chosen field to get to the edge — the frontier. That’s where the open questions live, where knowledge is incomplete, and where great discoveries are waiting. If something seems strange or unexplained, pay attention. Many breakthroughs begin as odd questions no one else thought to ask.
4. Chase the Gaps
Once at the frontier, start noticing the cracks. These are the ideas, problems, and assumptions everyone overlooks. If a gap feels weird or even wrong, don’t ignore it. Explore it. The best work often feels strange at first.
If you're deeply curious and skilled enough to see what others miss, you're in the sweet spot.
5. Work Hard (But Smart)
Hard work is a given. It’s the price of entry. But it only pays off if it’s directed at something you love. If you work hard on something boring, you’ll burn out. Work hard on something fascinating, and you’ll push through the obstacles naturally.
Big blocks of uninterrupted time are gold. Protect them. And don't worry if it’s hard to start — trick yourself into beginning. Tell yourself you’ll just read over your notes. That’s often enough to get going.
6. Finish Things
Finish what you start. Many of the most important insights come during the final stretch. It’s also okay to lie to yourself about how big a project is just to get moving — just make sure you finish.
7. Avoid the Trap of Fake Work
Be careful of per-project procrastination — when you delay the big project by staying “busy” with smaller tasks. Periodically ask: Am I working on the most important thing right now?
8. Respect the Power of Consistency
Small wins compound. Write one page a day, and you’ll have a book in a year. Learn one new thing a day, and you’ll become an expert. The secret to exponential growth is consistency, especially in the early “flat” phase when it feels like nothing’s happening.
9. Let Ideas Marinate
Great ideas often surface during downtime — in the shower, on a walk, lying in bed. But this only works if you’ve already been working hard. Your subconscious needs raw material.
Avoid distractions that knock your work out of the top slot in your mind. (Except love — don’t avoid that.)
10. Study Great Work
Learn to recognize excellence in your field. Until you know what great looks like, you don’t know what you’re aiming for. Don’t settle for being “good.” Aim to be the best — not for glory, but for clarity. It’s easier to aim high than to aim vaguely.
11. Be Earnest, Not Affected
Don’t try to be impressive. Just be real. Focus on doing the best work you can. That’s what leads to a distinctive style — trying hard, not trying to look a certain way.
Be intellectually honest. Admit when you’re wrong. Drop what doesn’t fit. Strip things to their essence. Elegance is clarity. And often, what looks effortless took years to see.
12. Follow the Weird Ideas
The best ideas are often the ones people think are crazy — at first. If something seems wild but exciting, follow it. New paradigms always look wrong at first. The trick is to spot the right kind of weird — the kind rich in potential.
13. Pick Bold, Overlooked Problems
Most people are conservative when picking problems. But originality in choosing a problem is more powerful than originality in solving one.
Ask yourself: If I could drop everything and just work on something fascinating, what would it be? That’s probably what you should actually be doing.
14. Ask Better Questions
Great work often starts with a question, not an answer. Keep a list of questions that bother or puzzle you. Don’t discard them too quickly. Some of the best work comes from returning to the same question years later.
Curiosity is a creative force. The more questions you chase, the more you’ll uncover.
15. Start Small, Iterate Fast
Great work evolves. Start with the simplest version of your idea and build from there. Don’t wait until it’s perfect. Just ship something, then refine it. Many of the most impactful ideas began as “toys” or side projects.
Being prolific helps. Try lots of things. Most will fail. That’s fine — you only need one to take off.
16. Take Risks, Especially When Young
The best bets are often uncertain ones. Take risks while you can afford them — and young people usually can. Even failed projects will take you places others haven’t gone.
17. Use Your Advantages at Every Stage
Youth brings time, energy, and naivety — use it to try bold things. Age brings wisdom and connections — use those too. Great work often happens when you combine both.
Pay attention to the things that feel “off” when you’re learning something new. That’s often where breakthroughs lie.
18. Unlearn Bad Habits
Schools teach passivity and test-hacking, not real discovery. Life isn’t about solving pre-written problems. You’ll need to figure out the questions yourself — and be okay with not knowing the answers.
Don’t wait for someone to hand you your “big break.” Great work doesn’t come from gatekeepers. It comes from doing the work.
19. Copy to Learn, Then Remix
Imitate others to understand how great work is made — but don’t stay there. Add something new. Even your early "derivative" work will evolve into your own style.
Steal ideas across fields. Some of the best insights come from combining distant concepts.
20. Surround Yourself With Great People
The right peers raise your game. Great work happens in clusters. Choose colleagues who push you, who surprise you, who make you better.
And when possible, go where the best people are. It expands your ambition — and shows you that top people are just people, too.
21. Protect Your Morale
Your mindset is fuel. Morale drives work, and good work feeds morale. Be around people who lift you up. Limit those who drain you. Take care of your body — it’s where your mind lives.
If you're stuck, do something easier to rebuild momentum. And don’t let a setback make you throw away the whole plan. Recover, course-correct, and keep going.
22. Build for a Real Audience
Your audience doesn’t have to be big — just real. Even a few people who truly value your work can keep you going.
If you’re creating for others, start by making something you want. If it excites you, chances are it will resonate with others too.
23. Tune Out the Noise
Don’t chase prestige or status. Don’t follow trends or copy what’s “hot.” Your curiosity knows better. Listen to it.
In Summary:
To do great work, you need ability, interest, effort, and a bit of luck. If you're reading this, you probably already have the first three. The rest is a matter of finding your fit — and giving yourself permission to go for it.
Great discoveries are out there. They don’t care who makes them. Why not you?
Powerful suggestions for doing great work.