Here are 13 things that every skilled chaos-surfer understands:

1. How something appears to you may not be how it is.


2. What is said or shown may not be all there is.


3. What is true for me may not be true for you.


4. The same words may mean different things to different people.


5. What people say may not be what they mean. Because comms is lossy and language is

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Many people who are talented in their various fields have access to insight they can’t share with others. They simply see something we can’t. They try to describe it—picture any Paris Review interview—and often hearing them talk about their process is interesting and informative. But they’re unable to describe the core thing—what gives them the... See more

So instead of being like a computer with a Terminal window, our minds are more like medieval fiefdoms. On the outskirts are fields and villages, almost entirely undefended. These are beliefs we don’t mind changing: your friend has a new phone number, your mom is arriving on Thursday instead of Friday, the sushi restaurant down the street was... See more