Good Traits

Every once in a while, I meet a person who radiates joy. These are people who seem to glow with an inner light. They are kind, tranquil, delighted by small pleasures, and grateful for the large ones. These people are not perfect. They get exhausted and stressed. They make errors in judgment. But they live for others, and not for themselves. They’ve... See more

On lucky occasions, you’ll meet someone who just gets it . They pick up on your subtle hints and drop you some of their own. They understand the games of life, and are often very good at them. They are rabidly curious, sharply witty, and brightly playful. This person is lucid .

Sometimes I’ve had this feeling like someone is so much smarter than me and therefore I have no hope of competing. But usually what is really going on is that they are just more obsessed than me. Intelligence is good, and some amount is required, but the obsession is better.

Design talk: Too much consistency will ruin your app. Humans are naturally drawn to experiences that create a strong sense of place. This demands variety, and it’s a critical concept many designers miss. Here’s one of my go-to frames I use with teams to master this… Think of each section of an app like a room in a house. All rooms should belong... See more

People exist on a spectrum between fast-twitch and slow-twitch thinking.

Fast-twitch people speak fast, work fast, and crave novelty. Socially, they're quick and witty. Throw a problem their way and they'll come up with 3–5 solutions in a matter of minutes. They're the people you want in the room when you're brainstorming an idea.

Slow-twitch people ... See more

2. Personality predicts lifespan length. The most important traits for living a long life are high conscientiousness, positive emotionality (extraversion), low levels of hostility, and low levels of neuroticism.

The biggest sign of competence in any role, in any level of seniority: the prompt reply to an email / text / DM. Even just a “will read and get back soon”. The biggest sign of incompetence: a lack of prompt reply or acknowledgement. I’ve noticed this pattern for near 20… Show more