Shane Parrish Quotes

I believe in the discipline of mastering the best of what other people have figured out.

Scientific Theory of Management by Frederick Taylor, which had factory managers breaking down tasks into small pieces, forcing their workers to specialize, and financially incentivizing them to complete those tasks efficiently. It was a brute force method, but it worked pretty well.

When failure is expensive, it’s worth investing in large margins of safety.

In life and business, the person with the fewest blind spots wins.

Nếu bạn chờ đợi, cho đến khi bạn sẵn sàng, bạn sẽ phải chờ đến hết cuộc đời.

First, we’re so afraid about what others will say about us that we fail to put our ideas out there and subject them to criticism. This way we can always be right. Second, if we do put our ideas out there and they are criticized, our ego steps in to protect us. We become invested in defending instead of upgrading our ideas.

The core of Bayesian thinking (or Bayesian updating, as it can be called) is this: given that we have limited but useful information about the world, and are constantly encountering new information, we should probably take into account what we already know when we learn something new. As much of it as possible. Bayesian thinking allows us to use all relevant prior information in making decisions. Statisticians might call it a base rate, taking in outside information about past situations like the one you’re in.

Understanding is not enough However, understanding reality is not everything. The pursuit of understanding fuels meaning and adaptation, but this understanding, by itself, is not enough. Understanding only becomes useful when we adjust our behavior and actions accordingly

Another reason we tend to push back against change is that doing something different might lead to worse results. There is an asymmetry to change — we take negative results to heart more than positive ones. Worse results make us stand out for the wrong reasons. Why risk looking like an idiot when you can remain average? We’d rather be average than risk the possibility of landing somewhere below average.

We need to look at the results of applying the model over the largest sample size possible to be able to refine it so that it aligns with how the world actually works.

Complaining is not a strategy. You have to work with the world as you find it, not as you would have it be. — JEFF BEZOS[1

What happens in ordinary moments determines your future. We’re taught to focus on the big decisions, rather than the moments where we don’t even realize we’re making a choice. Yet these ordinary moments often matter more to our success than the big decisions. This can be difficult to appreciate.

«Ignorance more often begets confidence than knowledge.»

When things happen in accord with our view of the world we naturally think they are good for us and others. When they conflict with our views, they are wrong and bad. But the world is smarter than we are and it will teach us all we need to know if we’re open to its feedback — if we keep our feet on the ground.

The most practical skill in life is learning to do things when you don’t feel like doing them. Anyone can do it when it’s easy, but most people drop out the minute it gets hard.