Friction
Considering friction
Friction
Named after the economist Charles Goodhart, the principle states, “When a measure becomes a target, it ceases to be a good measure.” Measurement is only useful when it guides you and adds context to a larger picture, not when it consumes you. Each number is simply one piece of feedback in the overall system.
James Clear • Atomic Habits
- To prevent an effect from occurring at all requires a force equal to the cause of that effect, but to give it a new direction often requires only something very trivial.
Georg Christoph Lichtenberg • The Waste Books
The idea that eliminating friction can cause problems might sound unusual, as we’re used to thinking about more efficiency producing more effectiveness, but among engineers like me, this concept is commonly understood. Too little friction can lead to feedback loops that spiral out of control, as happens when a microphone gets too close to a speaker
... See moreCal Newport • A World Without Email
Begin therefore with little things. Is a little oil spilled or a little wine stolen? Say to yourself, “This is the price paid for peace and tranquillity; and nothing is to be had for nothing.”
Epictetus • The Enchiridion
But friction is the teacher. It tells us where we’re stuck, and where we’re unclear. It’s how we build an actual perspective. And when we remove it, we lose the pause that allows deeper noticing. We lose the opportunity to make meaning through the act of making. What erodes isn’t just a single skill - it’s an entire network of disciplines that used... See more
The Act of Building Builds Us Back
About half of my friends kind of hate their jobs, so they're moderately unhappy most of the time, but never unhappy enough to leave. This is the mediocrity trap : situations that are bad-but-not-too-bad keep you forever in their orbit because they never inspire the frustration it takes to achieve escape velocity.
The mediocrity trap is a nasty way t... See more
The mediocrity trap is a nasty way t... See more
Adam Mastroianni • So You Wanna De-Bog Yourself
I’ve taken those and added them to my existing list of domains to block within Kagi, you can find the list here, Flamed Fury Kagi Blog List. You can copy and paste these directly into the Kagi blocked domains in your settings page.