Blog September 4, 2020

50 Life-Changing Ideas

This is a list of concepts and ideas that have helped shape my thinking.

I’ve titled them as life-changing because in many ways they’ve served as a roadmap guiding me through life. I’m hoping each one, in some fashion, piques your curiosity.

The Sunk-Cost Fallacy — We’re most reluctant to abandon things we’ve heavily invested in despite unrecoverable costs. Therefore, we hang onto things even when current costs outweigh the benefits.

Fredkin’s Paradox — The more similar two choices seem, the less the decision should matter, yet the harder it is to choose between them. As a result, we often spend the most amount of time on decisions that matter the least. H/T to Gurwinder Bhogal

The Pareto Principle — Known as the 80/20 rule, the Pareto principle states that roughly 80 percent of effects come from 20 percent of the causes. For example, 80 percent of this site’s traffic comes from 20 percent of the essays. More importantly, 20 percent of our work leads to 80 percent of the most impactful outcomes. Do the things that matter. Ignore the rest.

Indecisiveness — Ultimately, time cures indecisiveness. If you don’t make decisions, time will do it for you. Not making a choice is a choice.

Addition by Subtraction — We gain from what we remove. When getting healthy, remove sugar versus adding vitamins. When improving relationships, end toxic ones before starting new ones. For better finances, quit needless spending before addressing consumer debt.

Papert’s Principle — Many of the most vital steps in cognitive growth are based not on learning new things, but on finding new ways to use what we already know.

The Stockdale Paradox — It is imperative to maintain faith in oneself while simultaneously confronting the brutal reality of one’s current state.

The Lindy Effect — The longer a thing exists, the longer it will likely continue because its age shows its ability to endure trends, erosion, diminution, and, obsoletion. For example, the longer we maintain a habit, the longer the habit will likely continue, and so forth.

Parkinson’s Law — Work expands to fill the time allotted. If we have an hour to complete a task, we’ll take an hour to do it. If we have six months to complete a task, we will drag it out for six months.

Goal setting — Most people aim for mediocrity convinced they are incapable of accomplishing extraordinary things creating a fierce level of competition for ‘realistic goals’ making them the most time and energy-consuming. The loftier the goal, the less competition there is. Pursue what others ignore. H/T to Tim Ferris

Pivoting — Not every choice is clear-cut. When you feel like quitting, you may just need to pivot. Take a side step and gain more information. Pivoting can also be considered a half measure. There are times when you should just quit.

Half measures — Be careful when taking a half measure. Most of the time, what we need to take is a full measure.

Moderation — Many things are good in moderation. Few things are easy to moderate.

The Barbell Strategy — In most cases, avoid the middle. For example, purchase high-quality items or cheap throwaway items — nothing in between. The middle is an item that is neither inexpensive nor high-quality. The Barbell Strategy can be applied to life. Either be fully engaged in work or fully involved in leisure. The middle is mediocre. H/T to Richard Meadows

The Law of Diminishing Returns — Most things have ceilings. A point where personal growth is no longer possible. Chances are, at some point, you extracted most of the value out of whatever you’re doing. This idea includes careers, hobbies, and social environments.

Crab Mentality — When a crab in a bucket tries to escape, the other crabs will reach up and pull it down ensuring collective demise. So much so, that if you have a bucket of crabs, there’s no need to put a lid on it. On a mission of self-improvement, most people will try to pull you down and keep you at their level.

Change — “What got you here won’t get you there.” The ability to conceive and embrace ‘change’ is a marker of one’s adaptability.

True Cost — Everything has a true cost and it’s more than money. It is freedom, mental bandwidth, and a portion of our time on earth.

Politics — You shouldn’t have to rely on your government nor should you have to pay much attention to what they are doing.

Luck Potential — If given two options, choose the one with more luck potential. For example, going to a party versus staying home and watching television. H/T to David Perell

The Compound Effect — Small actions build up over time. One small action has little effect yet 100 small actions can build up creating large results. Seemingly insignificant improvements have a greater outcome when consistency is applied.

Have to’s — “There are no have to’s, just choices.” — Eleanor Roosevelt

Opportunity Cost — By choosing to do one thing, we choose not to do another. By saying yes, we are effectively saying no to something else. Everything works like this. We can’t have both.

Thinking Through Writing — Clear writing is a function of clear thinking. If you want to understand a topic, write about it. If you can’t write it, you don’t fully understand it.

Competition — Our unique qualities, quirks, and eccentricities make us stand out reducing competition. No one can beat you at being you. Inversely, we often hide the very things that make us remarkable.

Digital Haze — It’s difficult to be creative in a stale environment. Yet most of us spend our days swiping and scrolling — seeing the same things over and over. The days pass quickly as we search for something we know is not there. Things become foggy and focus is fleeting. We wonder where the time went and why we can’t gain clarity. We can’t see the trees through the forest because of the digital haze.

Inversion — Consider reframing questions to their opposite counterpart. For example, you can never be sure what is going to work. Instead, try to eliminate things that surely won’t.

Business models — The first thing on a business model should be personal life design. Most entrepreneurs get this backward.

Breaking rules — It’s often more beneficial to break the rules and apologize later. A thoughtful apology is almost always accepted. The upside of breaking a rule is usually greater than the downside of having to say: ‘I’m sorry.’

Boundaries — People will waste your time without knowing they’re doing it. The only way to combat this is by reducing their access to you by setting thoughtful boundaries.

Serendipity — Also known as happy accidents, serendipity occurs at the intersection of wisdom and chance. To create more of it, be curious, consistently learn new things, and experiment.

Luck — Luck is manufactured. It is a function of surface area and a reward for hard work. It comes from taking risks and running the possibility of looking like a fool.

Games — Everyone is playing a game. One that feeds their ego. Some play the economic game, others the intellectual game. There are many types of games. Everyone plays the one they are best at.

Procrastination — Planning, perfectionism, and procrastination are three ways to fail. The first two are symptoms of the third.

Learning — The best way to learn is by taking action. There is no better way. If you want to be a good writer — write. If you want to design websites — design them. Everything is figureoutable and the best way to figure things out is by doing them.

Bestsellers — Just because a product is a bestseller doesn’t mean it’s the best product. The word ‘bestseller’ simply implies ‘most popular’ and doesn’t equate to quality. This idea is relevant to many things. Elected officials are typically bestsellers, but not the best person for the job.

Pre-headline vs Post-headline people — Pre-headline people know about things before they make it into the news. Post-headline people find out about things after they are well-known. Pre-headline people have the advantage. H/T to David Perell

Hick’s Law — Hick’s law states that the more choices that are available, the slower the decision-making process is. If you want people to act fast, give them fewer options.

Littlewood’s Law — Individuals can expect to experience an event defined as a miracle at a rate of about one per month. Miracle: defined as an event with odds of one in a million. Look for the small miracles in life.

Momentum — Without it, planes would crash and bicycles would tip over. Perpetual motion is a safeguard against calamity.

The Paradox of Likability — The traits we hide from others for fear of being unlikable are the very things that attract those who like us.

Current vs Wind — The wind is noisy and gets all of the attention. It howls and gusts, but it is light. The current is quiet yet persistent. It is heavy and relentless. A good strategy is to ignore the wind and focus on the current. H/T to Seth Godin

Emergencies – Most things presented as urgent rarely are.

Sheep — Most people don’t know what they want and follow each other like sheep. They do things with their lives for no other reason than: ‘That’s what people do.’ This explains consumerism and the basis of the advertising industry.

Minimalism — A thoughtfully curated life optimized for agility leaves space for creativity, focus, and an ability to live nimbly. Large physical footprints, an overabundance of stuff, and pointless commitments are counterproductive to living well.

Selling time — Money and time are not co-dependent. You don’t have to sell time to earn money. You can build things that make money while you sleep.

Value of Information — The value of information declines with abundance. Think social media. This is why information on the internet is low-quality. Inversely, because of abundance, quality information has never been easier to find.

Sexual Market Value — Everyone has a number on their forehead. A signal of attractiveness. 2’s partner with 2’s and 10’s partner with 10’s. The numbers can be gamed by resourcefulness and personality. This is how 2’s partner with 8’s. I don’t make the rules.

Age Constraints — As we grow older, age disqualifies us from many activities. There are things we can do in our twenties that we can’t do in our sixties. By putting things off for later, we risk the possibility of age being prohibitive.

Regret Minimization — When making choices, choose things that will produce the fewest regrets regardless of outcomes. At the end of your life, you’ll regret more the things you didn’t do versus what you did.

Thanks for reading 50 Life-Changing Ideas. For thoughts and comments @ me on Twitter.