I know exactly what you mean. I worked for years in research in a problem I was not sure it could be solved. Here is the advice I could offer you:
- Determine what is the problem. Easier said than done. You most likely don't understand the problem. Finding the right abstractions to understand what is the problem is half the work. Focus on that a lot early on.
- You will not solve the problem by sitting for two hours and trying to think of a solution. Accept that. If it is a hard problem, it will take you months of thinking, writing prototypes/solutions, trying different angles. And then, at a random moment it will click, and the solution will feel obvious.
- Iterate a lot. Start with something small, solve it, and do it again and again. Accept that you will fail hundreds of times until finding the right solution. Try to make the process enjoyable. If it is a research project, break it into parts, where the solution of each small part provides value (a paper), so that you can enjoy some success that keep you working. If it is a startup, build products that provide value and are in the road to solving the big product.
- Some problems can be solved in a phd, some in a career, some in a generation. If you are targeting poverty, accept that you will spend your life on that with the hope of making small progress.
> Iterate a lot. Start with something small, solve it, and do it again and again.
> Accept that you will fail hundreds of times until finding the right solution.
This sounds exactly how Starship is being built. And this is why the first prototype not making orbit is not "a failure" but rather another step in the path to success.
- Determine what is the problem. Easier said than done. You most likely don't understand the problem. Finding the right abstractions to understand what is the problem is half the work. Focus on that a lot early on.
- You will not solve the problem by sitting for two hours and trying to think of a solution. Accept that. If it is a hard problem, it will take you months of thinking, writing prototypes/solutions, trying different angles. And then, at a random moment it will click, and the solution will feel obvious.
- Iterate a lot. Start with something small, solve it, and do it again and again. Accept that you will fail hundreds of times until finding the right solution. Try to make the process enjoyable. If it is a research project, break it into parts, where the solution of each small part provides value (a paper), so that you can enjoy some success that keep you working. If it is a startup, build products that provide value and are in the road to solving the big product.
- Some problems can be solved in a phd, some in a career, some in a generation. If you are targeting poverty, accept that you will spend your life on that with the hope of making small progress.