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Welcome to The Nonlinear Library, where we use Text-to-Speech software to convert the best writing from the Rationalist and EA communities into audio. This is: Doing 1-on-1s Better - EAG Tips Part II, published by kuhanj on March 24, 2022 on The Effective Altruism Forum. Context Many EAGx and EAG conferences are coming up (EAGx Oxford March 26-27, EAGx Boston April 1-3, and EAG London April 15-17), and attendees are often encouraged to spend most of their time at the conference in 1-on-1 meetings. However, the case for why 1-on-1s are so valuable is not often clear to attendees, nor is the process for setting up 1-on-1s. We (Kuhan and Akash) thought it would be useful to share some thoughts on why we think 1-on-1s are so valuable, who to set up meetings with, and how to get the most out of them. Why 1-on-1s/meetings can be one of the best uses of time Here are a few reasons why we think 1-on-1s are often valuable: 1-on-1s offer a unique opportunity to get personalized feedback and information that is helpful for your top priority questions, uncertainties, career plans, and more, unlike talks and workshops that aren’t specifically catered to you. People often think better when talking to others. Perhaps most importantly, you get very quick feedback loops on your thinking, which are harder to get in other formats - mistakes, alternatives, and potential improvements to your ideas and their communication can be pointed out quickly They offer a uniquely good setting for asking and being asked/answering really good questions. It can be easier to stay focused when talking to someone else and being regularly required to actively contribute Conversations can force you to refine your thinking and communication of ideas, since your conversation partner needs to understand what you’re saying. You can incorporate new perspectives/information from your conversation partner quickly Easy accountability for ideas that come up - ideas can turn into concrete plans, which your conversation partner can provide accountability for. 1-on-1s can turn into long-lasting friendships, professional connections, references/referrals for job/project/internship opportunities 1-on-1s provide data for how to communicate better moving forward, not just in future conversations but also for writing and presentations We’ve unsurprisingly learned the most about how to talk, write, and present about EA, longtermism, AI safety, and more from many individual conversations, more so than feedback on writing/blogposts and presentations. Find the right people to have 1-on-1s with Given the ways 1-on-1s can be valuable, think about who to set up 1-on-1s with. Conferences like EAG/(x) are a great time to meet lots of people, but most community members I know are happy to have calls/in-person meetings outside of conferences as well. Here are a few tips to brainstorm good people to reach out to: Considering your areas of expertise and background, reach out to people who might benefit a lot from talking to you. Examples might include: People interested in doing something similar to your current (or a previous) work who have less experience (e.g. junior AI safety researchers or group organizers). People with smaller networks who would benefit from being introduced to people in yours People from your city/university/country if you’re a group organizer (remember to look up your city/university/country on Swapcard and see if there are people you should reach out to/catch up with) People who would benefit from learning how you think about important topics you have expertise in (both people who have different opinions/models and people who haven’t thought much about the topic but would benefit a lot from learning more about it). Given your most important uncertainties/questions, reach out to the people best suited to address your most important questions/uncertainties. It can be good to reach out to people who you expect will have complementary knowledge and perspectives (e.g. tal...