The Science Of Habit Formation And Change
From The Power of Habit: Why We Do What We Do in Life and Business Chunking — The Root of Habits The process—in which the brain converts a sequence of actions into an automatic routine—is known as …
Book-notes
An Incredible Offer — But Wait…There’s More
You’ll never look at infomercials the same after reading this post. Robert Cialdini calls But Wait…There’s More “A wholly fascinating account of a wholly fascinating …
Poaching Stars is a Terrible Idea to Improve Performance
In an effort to improve performance we often turn to the simple answer of trying to hire a star from another organization. This sounds like a great idea, is hard to argue with, and offers the promise …
Seneca on Clemency, Blood, Happiness, and Anger
Susanna Braund‘s translation of Seneca’s De Clementia, is well worth the read. Seneca addresses De Clementia to the young Roman emperor Nero, with the aim of depicting the ideal ruler. …
Thomas Kuhn: The Structure of Scientific Revolutions
“The decision to reject one paradigm is always simultaneously the decision to accept another, and the judgment leading to that decision involves the comparison of both paradigms with nature and …
We’re in the (bad) Habit of Associating Value with Scarcity
James Gleick, author of The Information: A History, A Theory, A Flood, says: We’re in the habit of associating value with scarcity, but the digital world unlinks them. You can be the sole owner of a …
David Quammen on Why Big Populations Survive and Small Ones Go Extinct
“Big populations don’t go extinct. Small populations do. It’s not a surprising finding but it is a significant one.” *** Why do small populations go extinct? While the answer …
Why is it so Hard to Kill a Cockroach with your Shoe?
The Cockroach Papers by Richard Schwied is an interesting book if you are looking to learn more about biology or evolution. Cockroaches are built for survival no matter what the world throws at them. …
Is Everything Obvious Once You Know The Answer?
We often think we can rely on common sense. But in a complex world, common sense is not always sufficient. *** Duncan Watts new book Everything is Obvious: Once You Know The Answer explores the limit …
Vaclav Smil: Why America is not a New Rome
On television, modern histories of Rome lead one to think that Romans were rather well off, enjoyed a lot of free time, and commanded the largest and most powerful empire in the history of the world. …
Future Babble: Why expert predictions fail and why we believe them anyway
Future Babble has come out to mixed reviews. I think the book would interest anyone seeking wisdom. Here are some of my notes: First a little background: Predictions fail because the world is too …
James March: On Leadership
After reading The Ambiguities of Experience, I set out to read another book by James March: On Leadership. The genius of March takes a while to appreciate. I assure you, however, this …
The Science of Obesity
One thing that has always baffled me is how we get fat. Why We Get Fat by Gary Taubes unearths the biological truth around why we’re getting fat. In the process, Taubes dispels many accepted …
James March: The Ambiguities of Experience
How do our experiences help us learn? We’re often told that experience is the best way to learn. We might see this play out when someone gives us advice which we ignore, until experience teaches us …
Why You Are Not As Ethical As You Think
Ethical infractions are rooted in the intricacies of human psychology rather than integrity. We are wired far more strongly for unethical behavior than for integrity. Max Bazerman and Ann Tebrusnel’s …
The Art and Science of Asking Better Questions
At the recommendation of Warren Buffett’s Biographer, Alice Schroeder, I’ve been reading The Craft of Interviewing. Schroeder seems pretty crafty at knowing when, what, and how to ask …