Aphorisms

via The Bed of Procrustes by Taleb:

• You have a real life if and only if you do not compete with anyone in any of your pursuits?
• You don't become completely free just by avoiding to be a slave; you also need to avoid becoming a master
• People focus on role models; it is more effective to find antimodels—people you don’t want to resemble when you grow up.
• Work destroys your soul by stealthily invading your brain during the hours not officially spent working; be selective about professions
• If it costs you your peace, it's too expensive
• Robust is when you care more about the few who like your work than the multitude who dislike it (artists); fragile when you care more about the few who dislike your work than the multitude who like it (politicians)
• An idea stats to be interesting when you get scared of taking it to its logical conclusion
• To bankrupt a fool, give him information.
• You know you have influence when people start noticing your absence more than the presence of others.?
• You can only convince people who think they can benefit from being convinced.
• People feel deep anxiety finding out that someone they thought was stupid is actually more intelligent than they are
• An erudite is someone who displays less than he knows; a journalist or consultant the opposite
• If your anger decreases with time, you did injustice; if it increases, you suffered injustice.
• You want to avoid being disliked without being envied or admired
• When we want to do something while unconsciously certain to fail, we seek advice so we can blame someone else for the failure.
• They will envy you for your success, your wealth, for your intelligence, for your looks, for your status - but rarely for your wisdom
• If you find any reason why you and someone are friends, you are not friends
• Life’s beauty: the kindest act toward you in your life may come from an outsider not interested in reciprocation
• Usually, what we call a “good listener” is someone with skillfully polished indifference
• The test of whether you really liked a book is if you reread it (and how many times); the test of whether you really liked someone’s company is if you are ready to meet him again and again—the rest is spin, or that variety of sentiment now called self-esteem
• A good book gets better on the second reading. A great book on the third. Any book not worth rereading isn’t worth reading
• A mathematician starts with a problem and creates a solution; a consultant starts by offering a “solution” and creates a problem?
• In science you need to understand the world; in business you need others to misunderstand it
• There are two types of people: those who try to win and those who try to win arguments. They are never the same.
• ?By all means, avoid words—threats, complaints, justification, narratives, reframing, attempts to win arguments, supplications; avoid words!
• Asking science to explain life and vital matters is equivalent to asking a grammarian to explain poetry
• What made medicine fool people for so long was that its successes were prominently displayed and its mistakes (literally) buriedFreedom:?You don’t become completely free by just avoiding to be a slave; you also need to avoid becoming a master.