Originally posted on the EA Forum
Today I talked with a friend who just started a new job at an organization focused on existential risk. Two pieces of advice I gave:
- This is a fast-moving, ambitious organization where people have short AI timelines. It is not trying to guard you against burnout. You have to be in charge of deciding how much to guard yourself there. (It doesn't really matter which organization this is - if that description applies, the advice probably does too.)
- This is a setting where work, housing, dating, friendship, and social scene are closely entwined for a lot of people. When you're deciding how entwined they should be, consider how past things have gone for you: if you've had acrimonious breakups or clashes with housemates or coworkers, probably err on the side of keeping things more separate. Also consider that people you're not very entwined with now might be different in six months or a year (when you end up working in the same chain of management, etc.)