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Perspectives

Only Read the Fine Quotes #8

Very smart people tend to be weird since they insist on thinking everything through for themselves.
— Naval Ravikant

Only Read the Fine Quotes #6

If you crush a cockroach, you’re a hero. If you crush a beautiful butterfly, you’re a villain. Morals have aesthetic criteria.
— Friedrich Nietzsche


For the record, I’m not sure I completely agree. Generally, right is right and wrong is …

Only Read the Fine Quotes #4

Great minds discuss ideas; average minds discuss events; small minds discuss people.
— Eleanor Roosevelt…

Wishful Significance: Common Ways We Get Things Wrong

This is a great summary of a few reasons why people make mistakes when assessing the significance of new information. I find the bits about “non-sentient messengers” especially timely.

Only Read the Fine Quotes #3

Life isn’t about finding yourself. Life is about creating yourself. —George Bernard Shaw…

Beware the Spotlight Effect

Good news: no one is actually paying close attention to you.

I know that sounds cynical but it can save you a lot of stress. Why worry about things no one is going to notice?

Understand Risk vs Uncertainty

The distinction between risk and uncertainty is one of those things you’ve probably never thought about but that can help you understand the world more effectively once you’re aware of it. A subtle but powerful idea.

Get Better Perspective with The Wheel of Life

The Wheel of Life can provide some great perspective on how you see yourself, what’s important to you, and where to go from here.

Happiness is Picking Your Problems

Or, Life is a Big Game of Whack-a-Mole

The first of The Three Most Important Things is that the whole point of life is to be happy. But what is happiness?

For an answer to that I’ll turn to one …

The Only Read the Fine Print Reading List

Below is a short list of books that I highly recommend, roughly organized by the chapter in Only Read the Fine Print to which they relate. They all contain important and valuable lessons.

The Three Most Important Things (Chapters 1