rePost: How to Become Interesting:Want to Get into Harvard? Spend More Time Staring at the Clouds: » Rethinking the Role of Extracurricular Activities in College AdmissionsStudy Hacks » Blog Archive

How to Become Interesting
Intrigued by Caldwell’s results, I called her to ask if she could distill some lessons from her research. I wanted her advice for a student hoping to become more interesting.
“You need to be exposed to many things – you should expose yourself even though you might not know if you’ll be interested,” she told me.
“You need some time when you turn off the phone and the instant messenger and take a walk to appreciate the world without something in your ear.”
(This should sound familiar to fans of Ben Casnocha, one of the most interesting people I know.)
In other words, to become more interesting…

1. Do fewer structured activities.
2. Spend more time exploring, thinking, and exposing yourself to potentially interesting things.
3. If something catches your attention, use the abundant free time generated by rule 1 to quickly follow up.

via Study Hacks » Blog Archive » Want to Get into Harvard? Spend More Time Staring at the Clouds: Rethinking the Role of Extracurricular Activities in College Admissions.