High Agency

High agency is a crucial personality trait that distinguishes proactive individuals who take control of their lives and circumstances. Here's a framework to understand and develop high agency:

Core components of high agency

• Locus of control: Belief in one's ability to influence outcomes
• Intentionalism: Clear direction and goals
• Resourcefulness: Capability to achieve desired outcomes
• High bias for action: Immediate and consistent execution

Characteristics of high agency individuals

• Energy distortion field: Ability to energize others after interactions
• Non-conformity: Opinions and behaviors that don't align with stereotypes
• Immigrant mentality: Willingness to relocate and start from scratch
• Contrarian thinking: Going against social incentives when necessary

Identifying high agency

• Weird teenage hobbies: Early signs of unconventional thinking and action
• Ability to overcome obstacles: Finding ways around "impossible" situations
• Constant movement: Always working on projects or ideas
• Surprising opinions: Views that don't fit expected patterns

Developing high agency

• Avoid making someone "low agency":
  • Don't be overly general
  • Use deadlines
  • Provide step-by-step instructions
• Learn from high agency role models:
  • Observe their values and behaviors
  • Reverse engineer their approach to problems
• Treat decisions as experiments:
  • Reduces analysis paralysis
  • Encourages action and learning