Reading & Thoughts from June
Issue #9 // *|DATE:F j, Y|*
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"If I have an hour to solve a problem, I'd spend 55 minutes thinking about the problem and 5 minutes thinking about the solution" -- Albert Einstein
#READING
Make Something Different Out Of Yourself Every 3 Years (5 min read)
//dariusforoux
Summary: Knowledge has an expiry date. Every 3-4 years you should make a BIG change. Make something different of yourself, don't become too comfortable
Reinvent yourself, learn something new every day—it compounds. Experiment, get excited, try new things; you’re worth it. If you’re doing the same thing over and over, you’re doing yourself a disservice. You will become like all others: obsolete, irrelevant.
All Strength Comes From Repetition (3 min read)
//dariusforoux
Summary: Repeat The Basics. Stay A Beginner. Be Great. Stay Great.
Always be and stay a beginner. You may be a senior manager that doesn't need to do any more individual contributer work, but does that mean you shouldn't? Things change, your mind deteriorates, you can always improve the basics.
Remember the ‘10,000 Hours’ Rule for Success? Forget About It (8 min read)
//nytimes
Summary: Being a generalist has its merits, and it may be the best path to become great at something. Firstly, sample widely (generalist), and then focus narrowly (specialist). Examples of such cases are Roger Federer and Vincent van Gogh.
I've been accused of being a generalist many times, but I embrace it, it is part of who I am (although I prefer the terms philomath and polymath to describe myself). Although, I may not be the best at one specific thing, I am able to quickly pick up a working knowledge of a topic in order to intelligently discuss it. I have found that becoming too specialized in a certain topic actually hinders my ability; I become less creative and it leads to indecision because I am thinking through every possible scenario. Instead, by being a generalist, I am able to quickly pick up on the most important aspects that will get me 80-90% of the way there.
P.S. Listen to the podcast "Wide or Deep?" below if you liked this article.
How To Frame A Problem To Find The Right Solution (7 min read)
//forbes
Summary: Spending time defining a problem is vital for successful change. If you cannot keep a problem simple, you have not reached the roots of it. Answering the right problem depends on the correct framing for it.
Simplify, simplify, simplify. Indecision and complication comes from large problems. Inherently, most problems we think of are large problems. In order to find the right solution, you must break it into smaller chunks. I am a believer in getting to the least common denominator or first principle of anything, in order to get there, I keep asking myself "why" in my head (and sometimes aloud) until I cannot go any further. It really helps me challenge assumptions and get to what really matters.
How to do hard things (7 min read)
//drmaciver
Summary: In order to do hard things, you need to have a system that makes things seem easy. Systems are not a short cut, it is still going to be a lot of work, but systems will allow you to do work that is useful. The system presented in the article is:
Find something that is like the hard thing but is easy.
Modify the easy thing so that it is like the hard thing in exactly one way that you find hard.
Do the modified thing until it is no longer hard.
Systems are a big part of my life, and I have a similar system to this one to accomplish the hard things. Hard things seem so unattainable at first, but breaking it down to first principles and smaller chunks helps and incredibly amount. If you're struggling with decision fatigue or are frustrated with "out-of-this-world" ideas, then give this a read. It won't be easy, this is a lot of work to implement this system and it all comes from repetition. Generally, during my system, I would start by ideating the ideal (the sexy ideas) and then once I write it down, I will take break it into attainable chunks and an MVP (minimum viable product). After that process, I start doing. It is still an unbelievable amount of work, but the key part is that it gets you started.
#PODCASTS
David Epstein - Wide or Deep?
//investlikethebest
Listen on Spotify Podcasts
Listen on Apple Podcasts
The 10,000 hour-rule isn't necessarily true
People need to be able to sample different things early in life in order to determine what areas fit them best
You should think about careers like dating; test the waters before committing to one thing for life
Learning Hacks
Test yourself before you study any material, this will prep your brain to look for answers to retain
Given enough time between periods of practice to absorb materia
“We learn who we are in practice, not in theory”
Do more things that are essentially little experiments
On Conciousness | Annaka Harris
//afteron
Listen on Spotify Podcasts
Listen on Apple Podcasts
To gauge consciousness, ask: “Is there something that it’s like to be X right now? Is X having an experience?”
Everything you think, feel, and experience is at some level a product of your brain processing
You aren't really in control
Studies have shown that if you separate the hemispheres of the brain, each hemisphere "has its own conciousness"
Conciousness is not understood well, it's not conclusive that it even serves a purpose
The mind is expensive metabolically, conciousness must serve some sort of purpose
#RANDOM
The shittiest project I ever worked on
//plover
Steal Million Dollar Homepage Pixels
//pixelpirate
The worst morale boosting gesture I've experienced
//shkspr
150k Small Business Website Teardown 2019
//freshchalk
Apple’s new Mac Pro would not actually grate cheese that great
//youtube
The 70-year-old retiree who became America’s worst counterfeiter
//thehustle