emmie

So what should we praise? The effort, the strategies, the doggedness and persistence, the grit people show, the resilience that they show in the face of obstacles, that bouncing back when things go wrong and knowing what to try next.

The world’s most successful people tend to be extremely curious, and if you can tell them something interesting and true they didn’t know, you have their attention.

You have to be curious about the world in which you live. Look things up. Chase down every reference. Go deeper than anybody else—that’s how you’ll get ahead.

How can we apply the growth mindset to creativity in practical terms? In my experience, it comes down to one thing: the willingness to look bad when pursuing an activity.

Attraction is about energy . And that kind of presence? You can’t fake it.

The computer brings out the uptight perfectionist in us—we start editing ideas before we have them. The cartoonist Tom Gauld says he stays away from the computer until he’s done most of the thinking for his strips, because once the computer is involved, “things are on an inevitable path to being finished. Whereas in my sketchbook the possibilities... See more

How to Practice Deep Thinking

Most knowledge workers train like amateurs. Economist Tyler Cowen treats thinking like elite athletics. Core training principles:

• Write daily from opposing viewpoints, not just your own

• Ask "what did I learn today?" every single evening

• Crack cultural codes across disciplines for universal insight

• Review weak responses

... See more