Christopher Mowla
Premium Member
I wrote a handful of posts like this in the past and only do this once in a while, due to the headache it gives me (both in writing it, and with the feedback I receive afterwards). The content in this post shifts from one aspect to another, so for those who can actually read, just bare with me. (If you want a TLDR version, then you clearly don't have what it takes to convince others to become speedcubers!)
We need to define what we mean by "Cubing community". Also, there needs to be a reason for why people should participate or do cubing-related stuff when they can be doing other things that other people can relate to/value. Because if the common human goal was to be a loner and/or do something that most of the world will view as playing with a toy (by default... and there is no convincing most of them that this isn't the case), then I guess we wouldn't have to try so hard to get people into cubing. I mean, we are all geniuses, but we can't convince someone to put down their phone and pick up a cube???
But seriously, something that does not (in anyway) put someone up for financial success and/or fame is not something that most people are going to aim to participate in, period.
And if you forget even those two main (disadvantages) of dedicating your life to speedcubing, there's the fact in life that people are so hard to impress that they will give those who go to specific high schools priorities over others (let alone universities). Parents pay $$$ for private schools not just for their children to be exposed to (supposedly) more successful peers, but also for the reputation of the school itself (for college applications and even for future employers). Think about it. Two kids both worked as hard as possible in school. One gets a job, the other doesn't. Why? Because one went to school X, and the other went to school Y.
All in all, there are a lot of cubers who are not (and will never aim to be) "speedcubers". And quite frankly, I believe if you wanted to get the largest increase in interest, you would first need to be able to convince those people (like me) that speedcubing is not only cool, but cool enough to make it one of the priorities in their lives. If you cannot convince them (who are already interested in the cube and possibly other twisty puzzles), how can you expect to convince the general population (make cubing "main stream")? And even if you convinced them, that's over 5% of the world's population. So I think that's a good goal to obtain (be a good start)!
As the very first post of this thread implied (aside the betting aspect), if the speedcubing aspect of cubing was to be the part of the cubing world to get the word's long-term interest, chances are, you all would need to make them fans of you guys, rather than be actual participants.
The initial (logical) idea would be betting, because that's what many people do with all other kinds of sports. (But as another member pointed out, that's out of the question, due to the majority of cubers being minors.)
But if not betting, perhaps the speedcubing community would need to make a reality TV show of some kind. Something that has a similar vibe to "America's got talent". But those are very big shoes to fill, because shows like that have something different to show quite often. It's not always the same thing over and over. (Boring!) And unlike acts on shows, the best of the best cuber's will complete the act within seconds. So fast, that many people will not realize that the solving started before it has finished! So where is there time even for them to "gain the excitement"/be entertained? I can understand people enjoying a 30 second solve over and over (and only for a limited time at that), but a 3 second solve? I think that gets old (unless you're spiderman), because you can't really see much of anything before the puzzle is already completed! To me, that reminds me of when clowns turn around and make a dog ballon and then turn back facing you when they are finished. Entertaining, right? But for how long? How many times do you need to see a clown make a dog baloon before it gets old?
The people need to have someway to "participate" or at least "feel" like they are participating in the competition. (Just like good movies make the viewers "feel" as those they are the protagoinist.) To them, you guys are like Tom Cruise in Mission Impossible. But unlike movies, which most people can relate to much more, most people will not relate to hype that you guys feel or the emotions that you go through for such a niche hobby. But if someone is going to lift 400 kilograms over his head, everyone can at least relate to that a little, because they have lifted something over their heads in their lifetime.
Let's forget about "relating", appreciating, etc. the act of speedcubing and see (objectively) why many cubers out there don't go to competitions:
If a cube scramble wasn't interpreted as what algorithms from methods x, y, and z can I do to solve it as fast as possible, but an actual mathematical problem that can be solved by applying actual mathematical rules... an actual puzzle (like Sudoku), etc., (rather than a 1-2-3 muscle memory recipe in which performance is highly dependent on being able to take stress and keep focus and/or get lucky) then perhaps that would peak the interest of many more people. Because then it can be feasible for anyone who likes to "think" and solve actual puzzles to be interested. (Rather than training their fingers to do the thinking.)
Fewest moves is the only thing that comes close to the above criteria (but it is more of trial and error rather than an actual mathematical problem, and luck is also a factor). How many of you are into fewest moves? And if you're not, why do I need to convince you at all to become interested in it? It's a part of "cubing", isn't it? And for those who are, have you been able to convince most (if not all) other speedcubers to become interested in it? And if not, how do you expect to convince "outsiders" to become interested in a hobby in which literally needs to become their life in order to be "successful" (and only for a brief time at that)? That they would need to be willing to sacrifice many other life-goals (that they already had prior) in order to consider the one that you are proposing (which has literally no gain for their future well-being, and is more than likely going to be a threat to their mental health rather than a help)!
We need to define what we mean by "Cubing community". Also, there needs to be a reason for why people should participate or do cubing-related stuff when they can be doing other things that other people can relate to/value. Because if the common human goal was to be a loner and/or do something that most of the world will view as playing with a toy (by default... and there is no convincing most of them that this isn't the case), then I guess we wouldn't have to try so hard to get people into cubing. I mean, we are all geniuses, but we can't convince someone to put down their phone and pick up a cube???
But seriously, something that does not (in anyway) put someone up for financial success and/or fame is not something that most people are going to aim to participate in, period.
And if you forget even those two main (disadvantages) of dedicating your life to speedcubing, there's the fact in life that people are so hard to impress that they will give those who go to specific high schools priorities over others (let alone universities). Parents pay $$$ for private schools not just for their children to be exposed to (supposedly) more successful peers, but also for the reputation of the school itself (for college applications and even for future employers). Think about it. Two kids both worked as hard as possible in school. One gets a job, the other doesn't. Why? Because one went to school X, and the other went to school Y.
All in all, there are a lot of cubers who are not (and will never aim to be) "speedcubers". And quite frankly, I believe if you wanted to get the largest increase in interest, you would first need to be able to convince those people (like me) that speedcubing is not only cool, but cool enough to make it one of the priorities in their lives. If you cannot convince them (who are already interested in the cube and possibly other twisty puzzles), how can you expect to convince the general population (make cubing "main stream")? And even if you convinced them, that's over 5% of the world's population. So I think that's a good goal to obtain (be a good start)!
As the very first post of this thread implied (aside the betting aspect), if the speedcubing aspect of cubing was to be the part of the cubing world to get the word's long-term interest, chances are, you all would need to make them fans of you guys, rather than be actual participants.
The initial (logical) idea would be betting, because that's what many people do with all other kinds of sports. (But as another member pointed out, that's out of the question, due to the majority of cubers being minors.)
But if not betting, perhaps the speedcubing community would need to make a reality TV show of some kind. Something that has a similar vibe to "America's got talent". But those are very big shoes to fill, because shows like that have something different to show quite often. It's not always the same thing over and over. (Boring!) And unlike acts on shows, the best of the best cuber's will complete the act within seconds. So fast, that many people will not realize that the solving started before it has finished! So where is there time even for them to "gain the excitement"/be entertained? I can understand people enjoying a 30 second solve over and over (and only for a limited time at that), but a 3 second solve? I think that gets old (unless you're spiderman), because you can't really see much of anything before the puzzle is already completed! To me, that reminds me of when clowns turn around and make a dog ballon and then turn back facing you when they are finished. Entertaining, right? But for how long? How many times do you need to see a clown make a dog baloon before it gets old?
The people need to have someway to "participate" or at least "feel" like they are participating in the competition. (Just like good movies make the viewers "feel" as those they are the protagoinist.) To them, you guys are like Tom Cruise in Mission Impossible. But unlike movies, which most people can relate to much more, most people will not relate to hype that you guys feel or the emotions that you go through for such a niche hobby. But if someone is going to lift 400 kilograms over his head, everyone can at least relate to that a little, because they have lifted something over their heads in their lifetime.
Let's forget about "relating", appreciating, etc. the act of speedcubing and see (objectively) why many cubers out there don't go to competitions:
- There are a lot of families who cannot afford to travel (whether it be time, money, energy, or a combination there of), much less commit to traveling often, just to go to a competition. A cuber is just ONE of the family members. Ask the typical family the question: if you can travel 3 times a year, do you want to go to a random location to see a bunch of nerds solve a cube... or would you rather go see beautiful cities, natural landscape, entertaining resort, etc. (Let's be honest!)
- Most people want to see that there is a realistic end-goal that they can achieve for doing something. If they don't even know how to solve a cube, but see that the WR is something that is as attainable as winning the lottery (and they can lose their status in any moment's notice, should they be fortunate enough to even attain it!) umm yeah.
- There are online commities like this. So why do they need to travel to meet other people, if they can chat with people 24/7 on here? We do live in an age now that one-on-one socializing (in person) is becoming less and less all the time. Not to mention that there are now forum competitons.
If a cube scramble wasn't interpreted as what algorithms from methods x, y, and z can I do to solve it as fast as possible, but an actual mathematical problem that can be solved by applying actual mathematical rules... an actual puzzle (like Sudoku), etc., (rather than a 1-2-3 muscle memory recipe in which performance is highly dependent on being able to take stress and keep focus and/or get lucky) then perhaps that would peak the interest of many more people. Because then it can be feasible for anyone who likes to "think" and solve actual puzzles to be interested. (Rather than training their fingers to do the thinking.)
Fewest moves is the only thing that comes close to the above criteria (but it is more of trial and error rather than an actual mathematical problem, and luck is also a factor). How many of you are into fewest moves? And if you're not, why do I need to convince you at all to become interested in it? It's a part of "cubing", isn't it? And for those who are, have you been able to convince most (if not all) other speedcubers to become interested in it? And if not, how do you expect to convince "outsiders" to become interested in a hobby in which literally needs to become their life in order to be "successful" (and only for a brief time at that)? That they would need to be willing to sacrifice many other life-goals (that they already had prior) in order to consider the one that you are proposing (which has literally no gain for their future well-being, and is more than likely going to be a threat to their mental health rather than a help)!
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