I first heard the term ergodicity in Nassim Taleb’s writing. I first learned of ergodicity economics from this article about its history. Definition from wikipedia: “Ergodicity economics is a school of thought that questions whether expected value is a reliable […]
“Like intellectual boxers; they come to understand ideas by making them fight with each other. Their style of analysis is effective because it’s so bloody. One friend calls his style “violent thinking.” He talks about thinking like a soldier talks […]
This feels related to the idea of using a secret identity or alter-ego to enhance your performance. “Your personality, skills, likes, and dislikes change over time — but that change isn’t out of your control. What can you do to […]
A message for parents. “It seems like it’s really important to you. That the door not be slammed. That the chores be done a certain way. That everything be put away immediately. That feet go on the ground, not the […]
Andrew Chen wrote a post called “Growth Hacker is the VP of Marketing” a decade ago, predicting a sea change in the skills for and approach to successful marketing. For a while, he seemed to be right. “I originally had […]
“Around 2005, Jobs faced a crucial decision. Should he give the task of developing the device’s software to the team that built the iPod, which wanted to build a Linux-based system? Or should he entrust the project to the engineers […]
“We dramatically, repeatedly fail to predict the future. Does that mean “strategy” is senseless? No, it means you need these techniques to navigate a volatile world.” ~ learn more
Interruptions can be so costly for many types of work. Not short mindless tasks like stuffing envelopes, but certainly for complex thought work. This piece explores the two dimensions that can make this costly: fixed startup costs and linear vs […]
This was new advice: “As I start my run, my heart rate spikes and I start sweating. At that point, I start practicing my speech to make it muscle memory, allowing my brain to know that I can calmly get […]
“In 1987, the Chicago Sun-Times had to replace their beloved advice columnist, Ann Landers. A young journalist, Jeff Zaslow, was writing an article about the search and decided to throw his hat in the ring. “How could you have the […]