Came across this tweet from Varun and it got me thinking… what are the different perspectives to view this theory.

My perspective

“if any behaviour or trait is expensive to produce → they act as reliable indicator.”

And my first thought was -

Q. does an individuals disciplined routine show an expensive behaviour? And disciple in what terms? daily routine? coding for extensive hours? working out? eating healthy?

And what kind of indicators?

I went on to link it to an analogy I had seen on a reel - ”With the rise in use of Ozempic, anyone can easily lose fat. Hence, others, in an attempt to set themselves apart, have pivoted to associating themselves to “group” which have - “the pilates body.” A toned body that can only be achieved by persistent workouts. “

In an attempt to understand this better, I went on to ask GPT to give me few examples -

1. Hunting as a Signal of Skill and Strength
   • In many small-scale societies, men hunt large or dangerous prey even when easier food sources exist.
   • This “show-off” behavior costs extra effort, risk of injury, and time-resources that less-skilled hunters can’t spare.
   • Successfully hunting tough game signals physical prowess, leadership, and ability to buffer risks, making the hunter more attractive as a mate or cooperative partner. \

Q. - So what about the time, when kings/monarchs/nobles used to go for hunting? Was it just recreation, a get together with like minded individuals, or another way to signal?

Then I tried thinking about this from Varun’s perspective -

This theory maps neatly onto content creation - you invest significant time, effort, and the related risks to produce high-quality content.

One needs to deeply research threads, make high-production videos, write engaging scripts. What one ends up sending is a credible signal of authenticity, and commitment.

Varun persona centers on experimentation. He has invested significant time in demos, AI-powered toys, gaming snippets, especially with this up-coming game. And all these experiments incur real cost (hence the signal of endurance). I mean, he doesn’t even know if the game will do well.

If you have any thoughts on this - dm me on https://x.com/aryar_ai I love listening to other peoples perspective.