Brain Food – No. 564 – February 18, 2024
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Timeless ideas and insights for life. (Read the archives).
FS
“Some decisions are consequential and irreversible or nearly irreversible – one-way doors – and these decisions must be made methodically, carefully, slowly, with great deliberation and consultation. If you walk through and don’t like what you see on the other side, you can’t get back to where you were before. We can call these Type 1 decisions. But most decisions aren’t like that – they are changeable, reversible – they’re two-way doors. If you’ve made a suboptimal Type 2 decision, you don’t have to live with the consequences for that long. You can reopen the door and go back through. Type 2 decisions can and should be made quickly by high judgment individuals or small groups.”
— Jeff Bezos on Reversible and Irreversible Decisions
Insights
1.
“Seinfeld: I’m never not working on material. Every second of my existence, I’m thinking, could I do something with that?
— Jerry Seinfeld talking with Howard Stern on finding the pain you’re comfortable with
Howard Stern: That, to me, sounds torturous.
Seinfeld: Your blessing in life is when you find the torture you’re comfortable with.”
2.
“You are just as likely to solve a problem by being unconventional and determined as by being brilliant.”
— James Dyson on solving problems
3.
“To those who thought [they] were putting water on my fire, you’re really adding gas to it. And now I’m really burning so bright right now.”
— Coco Gauff turning water into fire
Tiny Thoughts
1.
The biggest obstacles are internal.
2.
In the long term, it’s hard to get better results than your consistency.
3.
Not all progress is visible. Not all victories are celebrated.
Just because others can’t see the results doesn’t mean you’re not getting better. Just because someone is ahead of you doesn’t mean you are on the wrong trajectory. Just because no one notices doesn’t mean it doesn’t matter. Just because there is no applause doesn’t mean you didn’t score.
The Best Response
Dr. Becky Kennedy shares three lines you can say to anyone that opens a door for them to talk more. The beautiful first line is, “I’m so glad you’re talking to me about this.”
“It is the most beautiful first line to say to someone when they’re upset because what you’re deeply saying to them and how they receive it is “I am interested in the part of you who’s feeling this way. The part of you who’s feeling this way is connectable to me. … I want to hear more about it. I will attach to this part of you.” And when you tell that to someone, they’re automatically willing to tell you more because it’s like an opening of a door.”
The entire conversation is worth a listen, or just check out this clip.
Thanks for reading,
— Shane
P.S. A panda cleaning.