A “razor” is a rule of thumb that simplifies decision-making.
7 razors that are more useful than a $50,000 philosophy degree:
The Sunk Cost Fallacy
Don’t waste time on something because you’ve already spent a long time on it.
What you've invested is irrelevant to whether you should continue investing.
Remove attachment to past decisions.
The Dunning-Kruger Effect
The less competent someone is, the more they overestimate their competence.
The novice who claims mastery is forever trapped.
True experts know the limits of their knowledge.
Stay humble.
Occam's Razor
When faced with competing hypotheses, choose the one with the fewest assumptions.
Do simple better instead of overcomplicating your life.
Occam's Razor cuts through complexity.
This explanation from @sahilbloom is perfect:
Hanlon's Razor
Never attribute to malice what can be explained by stupidity.
Most mistakes and failures are due to incompetence, not ill intent.
Assume good faith first.
This razor allows you to keep the peace when life gets crazy.
@leecronin using this razor in action:
Grice's Razor
In conversation, say only what is true, relevant, and clear.
Avoid deception, irrelevance, ambiguity, and verbosity.
Quality communication is concise and honest.
Grice's Razor slices away the noise to reveal meaning.
Hitchen's Razor
What can be asserted without evidence can be dismissed without evidence.
The burden of proof is on the one making the claim.
Hitchen's Razor cuts down unfounded arguments and superstition.
Demand data, not conjecture.
The Arena Razor
This is something I learned at a young age.
Pay more attention to people who have skin in the game and face the consequences of failure.
Ignore the pundits and commentators.
@jordanbpeterson talks about this in his self-help advice:
To become someone who makes money and succeeds in the modern world, you need to develop a mind that can study the past to predict the future.
If you look around, you’ll see these Razors everywhere in your life.
Use them to make the world more comprehensible.
Thanks for reading.
Follow @everhusk for more content like this.
And feel free to RT if you found this helpful:
Share this Scrolly Tale with your friends.
A Scrolly Tale is a new way to read Twitter threads with a more visually immersive experience.
Discover more beautiful Scrolly Tales like this.