Fun pattern-matching toolkit to help construct models of the world. ## Elon Algorithm 1. Make the requirements less dumb 2. Delete the part or process step 3. Optimize 4. Accelerate 5. Automate General Elon Advice: - work hard - signal over noise - first principles - take risks ## Feynman Technique 1. Pick and study a topic 2. Explain the topic using simple language 3. Identify gaps in your understanding 4. Return to literature ## Bezos 1. Start with the goal and work backwards 2. Classify the decision 1. irreversible → decide carefully 2. low stakes → move quickly, experiment 3. Debate once everyone has fully read a written memo 4. Make a decision and if needed disagree and commit ## Eisenhower Matrix | | Urgent | Not Urgent | | ----------------- | ----------- | ---------- | | **Important** | Do it today | Schedule | | **Not Important** | Delegate | Eliminate | ## Peter Thiel Secret What important truth do very few people agree with you on? | | Definite | Indefinite | | --------------- | -------------------------------------------- | -------------------------------------- | | **Optimistic** | ***build the exciting future you envision*** | exciting future, but no specific plans | | **Pessimistic** | prepare for a bleak future | bleak future, but nothing can be done | ## [Meaning Matrix](https://open.substack.com/pub/benbyfax/p/aliveness) | | Alone | Together | | ------------- | ----- | ---------- | | **Consuming** | Bad | Fun | | **Creating** | Good | Meaningful | ## Adages | Name | Description | | ------------------ | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | | Occam’s Razor | The simplest explanation is usually correct. | | Hanlon’s Razor | Never attribute to malice what can be explained by incompetence. | | Chesterton’s Fence | Don’t remove a rule/system until you understand why it was put there. | | Hofstadter’s Law | It always takes longer than you expect, even when you take into account Hofstadter’s Law. | | Paradox of Choice | The more options we have the less happy we are with our decision | | Paradox of Unamity | The more people agree, the less likely they are thinking for themselves. | | Cunningham's Law | The best way to get the right answer on the internet is not to ask a question; it's to post the wrong answer | | Context Principle | Never ask for the meaning of a word in isolation, but only in the context of a proposition. | | Goodhart's Law | When a measure becomes a target, it ceases to be a good measure | | Streisand effect | The attempt to censor information only increases it's visibility | | Pareto Principle | 80% of the outcomes come from 20% of the causes | | Law of holes | If you find yourself in a hole, stop digging | | Brandolini's law | The amount of energy needed to refute bullshit is an order of magnitude bigger than that needed to produce it. | | Murphy's Law | Anything that can go wrong, will go wrong | ![[mental models.png|300]] ![[survivor bias.jpg|300]] ![[bell curve.jpg|300]] [Actual DK](https://danluu.com/dunning-kruger/)