Good Traits

People with very high expectations have very low resilience

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 .

Let the flame of Definite Optimism burn away the Mimetic virus. Use the Internet to curate your environment, so you can be hyper-mimetic towards the rare few who are anti-mimetic. Copy the people who don’t copy people. Take risks. Build a differentiated skillset. Pursue timeless wisdom, not intellectual fashions. Be skeptical of convention, and... See more

The returns to factual knowledge are falling, continuing a trend that started with databases, search engines and Wikipedia. It is no longer so profitable to be a lawyer who knows a large amount of accumulated case law. Instead, the skills of synthesis and persuasion are more critical for success.