A thread on 100+ timeless wisdom by Nassim Nicholas Taleb (@nntaleb), an original thinker who writes with his scars:
MUST READ 🙏🙏
1/
A good book gets better at the second reading.
A great book at the third.
Any book not worth rereading isn't worth reading.
MUST READ 🙏🙏
1/
A good book gets better at the second reading.
A great book at the third.
Any book not worth rereading isn't worth reading.
2/
Intelligence consists in ignoring things that are irrelevant.
Intelligence consists in ignoring things that are irrelevant.
3/
The tragedy of our time is the monoculture of ideas: all people are forced to believe the *same* bullshit.
The tragedy of our time is the monoculture of ideas: all people are forced to believe the *same* bullshit.
4/
People focus on role models; it is more effective to find antimodels - people you don't want to resemble when you grow up.
People focus on role models; it is more effective to find antimodels - people you don't want to resemble when you grow up.
5/
Advice given to any young person:
"I can't tell you what to do. I can tell who what I've done. I've instinctively never gotten into a zero-sum business, such as academia, sports, bureaucracy, etc. The mark of a zero-sum business is hierarchy."
Advice given to any young person:
"I can't tell you what to do. I can tell who what I've done. I've instinctively never gotten into a zero-sum business, such as academia, sports, bureaucracy, etc. The mark of a zero-sum business is hierarchy."
6/
The problem with experts is that they do not know what they do not know.
The problem with experts is that they do not know what they do not know.
7/
If your approach to mathematics is mechanical not mystical, you're not going to go anywhere.
If your approach to mathematics is mechanical not mystical, you're not going to go anywhere.
8/
Daily news and sugar confuse our system in the same manner.
Daily news and sugar confuse our system in the same manner.
9/
Missing a train is only painful if you run after it!
Likewise, not matching the idea of success others expect from you is only painful if that’s what you are seeking.
Missing a train is only painful if you run after it!
Likewise, not matching the idea of success others expect from you is only painful if that’s what you are seeking.
10/
It is capitalism that pulled billions out of poverty. Not vapid virtue signaling.
It is capitalism that pulled billions out of poverty. Not vapid virtue signaling.
11/
A book is something that can be read ten years after publication.
A real book, twenty.
Otherwise it is a magazine report with bookbinding.
A book is something that can be read ten years after publication.
A real book, twenty.
Otherwise it is a magazine report with bookbinding.
12/
I know that history is going to be dominated by an improbable event, I just don’t know what that event will be.
I know that history is going to be dominated by an improbable event, I just don’t know what that event will be.
13/
If you reject unfounded blame, you must also reject unjustified praise.
If you reject unfounded blame, you must also reject unjustified praise.
14/
They will envy you for your success, your wealth, for your intelligence, for your looks, for your status - but rarely for your wisdom.
They will envy you for your success, your wealth, for your intelligence, for your looks, for your status - but rarely for your wisdom.
15/
It is much harder to become independent if you are wealthy than to become wealthy if you are independent.
It is much harder to become independent if you are wealthy than to become wealthy if you are independent.
16/
Only the autodidacts are free.
Only the autodidacts are free.
17/
A society is as advanced as its treatment of its weak, its handicapped and incapacitated.
A society is as advanced as its treatment of its weak, its handicapped and incapacitated.
18/
It takes extraordinary wisdom and self-control to accept that many things have a logic we do not understand that is smarter than our own.
It takes extraordinary wisdom and self-control to accept that many things have a logic we do not understand that is smarter than our own.
19/
The difference between successful people and really successful people is that really successful people say no to almost everything.
The difference between successful people and really successful people is that really successful people say no to almost everything.
20/
If you have earned your self-respect, respect by others is a luxury; if you haven't, respect by others is a necessity.
If you have earned your self-respect, respect by others is a luxury; if you haven't, respect by others is a necessity.
21/
If something looks irrational —and has been so for a long time —odds are you have a wrong definition of rationality.
If something looks irrational —and has been so for a long time —odds are you have a wrong definition of rationality.
22/
More data—such as paying attention to the eye colors of the people around when crossing the street—can make you miss the big truck.
More data—such as paying attention to the eye colors of the people around when crossing the street—can make you miss the big truck.
23/
It is as if the mission of modernity was to squeeze every drop of variability and randomness out of life— with the ironic result of making the world a lot more unpredictable, as if the goddesses of chance wanted to have the last word.
It is as if the mission of modernity was to squeeze every drop of variability and randomness out of life— with the ironic result of making the world a lot more unpredictable, as if the goddesses of chance wanted to have the last word.
24/
Atheists are just modern versions of religious fundamentalists: they both take religion too literally.
Atheists are just modern versions of religious fundamentalists: they both take religion too literally.
25/
Never read a book if you don't expect to be surprised by something in it, while reading it.
Never read a book if you don't expect to be surprised by something in it, while reading it.
26/
Trust none of what you hear, half of what you read, most of what you see.
Trust none of what you hear, half of what you read, most of what you see.
27/
It is easiest to do the most when you have nothing to do.
It is easiest to do the most when you have nothing to do.
28/
You are free in inverse proportion to the number of people to whom you can't say "fuck you".
You are free in inverse proportion to the number of people to whom you can't say "fuck you".
29/
If we've been eating animals for > 300 million years & some "study" says it's "unhealthy", odds study is wrong/misspecified.
If we've been eating animals for > 300 million years & some "study" says it's "unhealthy", odds study is wrong/misspecified.
30/
Progress, like evolution, must be neither too slow nor too fast.
Too slow means extinction from lack of adaptation.
Too fast prevents retaining the benefits of past improvements, hence, again, extinction.
Progress, like evolution, must be neither too slow nor too fast.
Too slow means extinction from lack of adaptation.
Too fast prevents retaining the benefits of past improvements, hence, again, extinction.
31/
The opposite of education isn't ignorance but miseducation.
The opposite of education isn't ignorance but miseducation.
32/
Freedom is never free. It requires risk taking.
Freedom is never free. It requires risk taking.
33/
Genius is the side effect of madness, rather than the reverse.
Genius is the side effect of madness, rather than the reverse.
34/
You will be civilized on the day you can spend a long period doing nothing, learning nothing, and improving nothing, without feeling the slightest amount of guilt.
You will be civilized on the day you can spend a long period doing nothing, learning nothing, and improving nothing, without feeling the slightest amount of guilt.
35/
If the professor is not capable of giving a class without preparation, don't attend.
If the professor is not capable of giving a class without preparation, don't attend.
36/
No, do not join an NGO to save the world. Just take risks, start a business.
No, do not join an NGO to save the world. Just take risks, start a business.
37/
Steve Jobs, Bill Gates and Mark Zuckerberg didn't finish college.
Too much emphasis is placed on formal education - I told my children not to worry about their grades but to enjoy learning.
Steve Jobs, Bill Gates and Mark Zuckerberg didn't finish college.
Too much emphasis is placed on formal education - I told my children not to worry about their grades but to enjoy learning.
38/
There is something common to modern "liberal" and Sunni-Salafi education: They teach students answers rather than how to ask questions.
There is something common to modern "liberal" and Sunni-Salafi education: They teach students answers rather than how to ask questions.
39/
Wisdom that is hard to execute isn't really wisdom.
Wisdom that is hard to execute isn't really wisdom.
40/
Abundance is harder for us to handle than scarcity.
Abundance is harder for us to handle than scarcity.
41/
We humans are the victims of an asymmetry in the perception of random events.
We attribute our successes to our skills, and our failures to external events outside our control, namely to randomness.
We humans are the victims of an asymmetry in the perception of random events.
We attribute our successes to our skills, and our failures to external events outside our control, namely to randomness.
42/
Don't cross a river if it is four feet deep on average.
Don't cross a river if it is four feet deep on average.
43/
What America does best is produce the ability to accept failure.
What America does best is produce the ability to accept failure.
44/
The only thing you can learn from a business school professor is how to become a business school professor.
The only thing you can learn from a business school professor is how to become a business school professor.
45/
The process of discovery (or innovation, or technological progress) itself depends on antifragile tinkering, aggressive risk bearing rather than formal education.
The process of discovery (or innovation, or technological progress) itself depends on antifragile tinkering, aggressive risk bearing rather than formal education.
46/
We are quick to forget that just being alive is an extraordinary piece of good luck, a remote event, a chance occurrence of monstrous proportions.
We are quick to forget that just being alive is an extraordinary piece of good luck, a remote event, a chance occurrence of monstrous proportions.
47/
This is the tragedy of modernity: as with neurotically overprotective parents, those trying to help are often hurting us the most.
This is the tragedy of modernity: as with neurotically overprotective parents, those trying to help are often hurting us the most.
48/
The excess energy released from overreaction to setbacks is what innovates.
The excess energy released from overreaction to setbacks is what innovates.
49/
Primitive societies are largely free of cardiovascular disease, cancer, dental cavities, economic theories, lounge music, and other modern ailments.
Primitive societies are largely free of cardiovascular disease, cancer, dental cavities, economic theories, lounge music, and other modern ailments.
50/
Contra the prevailing belief, "success" isn't being on top of a hierarchy, it is standing outside all hierarchies.
Contra the prevailing belief, "success" isn't being on top of a hierarchy, it is standing outside all hierarchies.
51/
The idea of Skin in the Game is that people judged by reality and P&L, instead of peers or supervisors, are vastly more open-minded.
The idea of Skin in the Game is that people judged by reality and P&L, instead of peers or supervisors, are vastly more open-minded.
52/
You can't industrialize, commoditize, & scale knowledge without destroying it at is core.
Scholarship is fundamentally an artisanal-style pursuit.
You can't industrialize, commoditize, & scale knowledge without destroying it at is core.
Scholarship is fundamentally an artisanal-style pursuit.
53/
You never cure structural defects; the system corrects itself by collapsing.
You never cure structural defects; the system corrects itself by collapsing.
54/
In real life exams someone gives you an answer and you have to find the best corresponding questions.
In real life exams someone gives you an answer and you have to find the best corresponding questions.
55/
Study something old but not visibly useful (classics), something modern and useful (accounting, coding),
never something new and not visibly useful.
Study something old but not visibly useful (classics), something modern and useful (accounting, coding),
never something new and not visibly useful.
56/
It is said that the best horses lose when they compete with slower ones and win against better rivals.
Undercompensation from the absence of a stressor, inverse hormesis, absence of challenge, degrades the best of the best.
It is said that the best horses lose when they compete with slower ones and win against better rivals.
Undercompensation from the absence of a stressor, inverse hormesis, absence of challenge, degrades the best of the best.
57/
You can tell people who come from countries with rent seeking; they think that business is zero-sum: wealth is money taken from others.
You can tell people who come from countries with rent seeking; they think that business is zero-sum: wealth is money taken from others.
58/
A man without a heroic bent starts dying at the age of thirty.
A man without a heroic bent starts dying at the age of thirty.
59/
An economist is a mixture of 1) a businessman without common sense, 2) a physicist without brain, and 3) a speculator without balls.
An economist is a mixture of 1) a businessman without common sense, 2) a physicist without brain, and 3) a speculator without balls.
60/
Information is antifragile; it feeds more on attempts to harm it than it does on efforts to promote it.
Information is antifragile; it feeds more on attempts to harm it than it does on efforts to promote it.
61/
Being nice counts the most when you are nice to people ignored by others.
Being nice counts the most when you are nice to people ignored by others.
62/
A bureaucrat is judged by other bureaucrats. That's the root of the problem.
A bureaucrat is judged by other bureaucrats. That's the root of the problem.
63/
Never ask your client for advice.
Never ask your client for advice.
64/
A heuristic on whether you have control of your life: can you take naps?
A heuristic on whether you have control of your life: can you take naps?
65/
It is as hard to fake indifference when you are interested as it is to fake interest when you are indifferent.
It is as hard to fake indifference when you are interested as it is to fake interest when you are indifferent.
66/
Society is being destroyed by schools and college teachers.
Your children are indoctrinated by people who are doing what they are doing because of their limited intellect and practical skills.
And the costs TO YOU of such indoctrination are ballooning.
Society is being destroyed by schools and college teachers.
Your children are indoctrinated by people who are doing what they are doing because of their limited intellect and practical skills.
And the costs TO YOU of such indoctrination are ballooning.
67/
One only criterion for (material) success: not having a schedule.
One only criterion for (material) success: not having a schedule.
68/
When people call you intelligent it is almost always because they agree with you.
When people call you intelligent it is almost always because they agree with you.
69/
And no, most humans do NOT want to be liberated from monotonous tasks, except for (parts of) the weekend.
Most want the soothing predictability of a schedule, even those who call themselves "adventurers".
And no, most humans do NOT want to be liberated from monotonous tasks, except for (parts of) the weekend.
Most want the soothing predictability of a schedule, even those who call themselves "adventurers".
70/
A good man is warm and respectful towards the waiter or people of supposedly lower financial and social condition.
A good man is warm and respectful towards the waiter or people of supposedly lower financial and social condition.
71/
The beauty of physics is that it can rigorously predict things nobody has seen before, before the emergence of any empirical evidence.
Compare to fraudulent fields like psychology that overfit from naive "empirical evidence" to predict nothing.
The beauty of physics is that it can rigorously predict things nobody has seen before, before the emergence of any empirical evidence.
Compare to fraudulent fields like psychology that overfit from naive "empirical evidence" to predict nothing.
72/
Don't disturb complicated systems that have been around for a very long time.
We don't understand their logic.
Don't pollute the planet.
Leave it the way we found it, regardless of scientific 'evidence'.
Don't disturb complicated systems that have been around for a very long time.
We don't understand their logic.
Don't pollute the planet.
Leave it the way we found it, regardless of scientific 'evidence'.
73/
A philosopher uses logic without statistics, an economist uses statistics without logic, a physicist uses both.
A philosopher uses logic without statistics, an economist uses statistics without logic, a physicist uses both.
74/
For an honest man, freedom requires having no friends; and, one step above, sainthood requires having no family.
For an honest man, freedom requires having no friends; and, one step above, sainthood requires having no family.
75/
Bitcoin is the beginning of something great: a currency without a government, something necessary and imperative.
Bitcoin is the beginning of something great: a currency without a government, something necessary and imperative.
76/
Being an entrepreneur is an existential, not just a financial thing.
Being an entrepreneur is an existential, not just a financial thing.
77/
Anything that provides you with very, very stable income, very stable conditions, maybe generally stable, that often, it masks real risks, risks of blow-ups.
Anything that provides you with very, very stable income, very stable conditions, maybe generally stable, that often, it masks real risks, risks of blow-ups.
78/
And prosperity is best achieved by preventing bureaucrats from interfering with things they will never understand.
And prosperity is best achieved by preventing bureaucrats from interfering with things they will never understand.
79/
The dream of having computers behave like humans is coming true, with the transformation, in a single generation, of humans into computers.
The dream of having computers behave like humans is coming true, with the transformation, in a single generation, of humans into computers.
80/
Socrates used to walk around the house delaying his meal as he held that hunger was the best seasoning.
Fasting can turn any meal into a Michelin 3 star.
Socrates used to walk around the house delaying his meal as he held that hunger was the best seasoning.
Fasting can turn any meal into a Michelin 3 star.
81/
Never read a book written by a journalist.
Never read a book if you understand the table of contents.
Never read a book written by a journalist.
Never read a book if you understand the table of contents.
82/
Never take investment advice from someone who has to work for a living.
Never take investment advice from someone who has to work for a living.
83/
Individuals should think about the worst-case scenarios and plan for them.
The world will be crazier than you think it will be.
Put money away, and then you can live with much more freedom.
Individuals should think about the worst-case scenarios and plan for them.
The world will be crazier than you think it will be.
Put money away, and then you can live with much more freedom.
84/
The best compliment to me is: you write with your scars. Everything else is verbiage.
The best compliment to me is: you write with your scars. Everything else is verbiage.
85/
There is nothing more hideous than excessive refinement (in food, dress, lifestyle, etc.).
There is nothing more hideous than excessive refinement (in food, dress, lifestyle, etc.).
86/
You have a real life if and only if you do not compete with anyone in any of your pursuits.
You have a real life if and only if you do not compete with anyone in any of your pursuits.
87/
Mathematicians think in proofs, lawyers in constructs, logicians in operators, dancers in movement, artists in impressions, and idiots in labels.
Mathematicians think in proofs, lawyers in constructs, logicians in operators, dancers in movement, artists in impressions, and idiots in labels.
88/
Nature builds things that are antifragile. In the case of evolution, nature uses disorder to grow stronger.
Occasional starvation or going to the gym also makes you stronger, because you subject your body to stressors and gain from them.
Nature builds things that are antifragile. In the case of evolution, nature uses disorder to grow stronger.
Occasional starvation or going to the gym also makes you stronger, because you subject your body to stressors and gain from them.
89/
The general principle of antifragility: it is much better to do things you cannot explain than explain things you cannot do.
The general principle of antifragility: it is much better to do things you cannot explain than explain things you cannot do.
90/
Complex systems are full of interdependencies—hard to detect—and nonlinear responses.
Complex systems are full of interdependencies—hard to detect—and nonlinear responses.
91/
Men destroy each other during war, themselves during peacetime.
Men destroy each other during war, themselves during peacetime.
92/
As countries get rich they start increasing education and the very educated people tend to not like trial and error, because they think they're obligated to use the body of knowledge they have.
As countries get rich they start increasing education and the very educated people tend to not like trial and error, because they think they're obligated to use the body of knowledge they have.
93/
Formal education is credentials plus negative knowledge so it sort of works out on balance.
Formal education is credentials plus negative knowledge so it sort of works out on balance.
94/
A life saved is a statistic; a person hurt is an anecdote. Statistics are invisible; anecdotes are salient.
A life saved is a statistic; a person hurt is an anecdote. Statistics are invisible; anecdotes are salient.
95/
Not seeing a tsunami or an economic event coming is excusable; building something fragile to them is not.
Not seeing a tsunami or an economic event coming is excusable; building something fragile to them is not.
96/
Keeping ones distance from an ignorant person is equivalent to keeping company with a wise man.
Keeping ones distance from an ignorant person is equivalent to keeping company with a wise man.
97/
Any work you do in the comfort of a routine risks is being taken over by a robot.
Any work you do in the comfort of a routine risks is being taken over by a robot.
98/
When you beat up someone physically, you get excercise and stress relief;
when you assault him verbally on the Internet, you just harm yourself.
When you beat up someone physically, you get excercise and stress relief;
when you assault him verbally on the Internet, you just harm yourself.
99/
Prediction, not narration, is the real test of our understanding of the world.
Prediction, not narration, is the real test of our understanding of the world.
100/
The curse of modernity is that we are increasingly populated by a class of people who are better at explaining than understanding, or better at explaining than doing.
The curse of modernity is that we are increasingly populated by a class of people who are better at explaining than understanding, or better at explaining than doing.
101/
Multiplicative generosity: limit your generosity to those who, in turn, given the circumstances, would be equally generous towards others.
Multiplicative generosity: limit your generosity to those who, in turn, given the circumstances, would be equally generous towards others.
