Think From First Principles Before You Google
I find for myself that my first thought is never my best thought. My first thought is always someone else’s; it’s always what I’ve already heard about the subject, always the conventional wisdom. It’s only by concentrating, sticking to the question, being patient, letting all the parts of my mind come into play, that I arrive at an original idea. B... See more
Farnum Street • How to Think: The Skill You've Never Been Taught
Reasoning by analogy, or copying what others are doing, is sort of like being a cover band where you’re playing somebody else’s music. Whereas with first-principles thinking, you go back to the fundamental raw materials of music, which are the notes, and then you build an original song from scratch. That is first-principles thinking.
Lenny Rachitsky • First-Principles Thinking
If you can break inaccurate mental models, life becomes easier to navigate. But how do you do that? I know two ways.
- Find people who understand things better than you and read what they have to say. Read with the intention of answering your questions. If you can’t find the answers, email them.
- Perform experiments. By this I don’t mean do random thing
Henrik Karlsson • Almost Everyone I’ve Met Would Be Well-Served Thinking More About What to Focus On
