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 ## 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 customer 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. Disagree and commit when needed ## Eisenhower Matrix | | Urgent | Not Urgent | | ----------------- | ----------- | ---------- | | **Important** | Do it today | Schedule | | **Not Important** | Delegate | Eliminate | ## Peter Thiel 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 | ## Musashi's Five Rings - *Earth*: Ground yourself in reality. - *Water*: Be determined, flexible and calm. - *Fire*: Direct anger at your weakness, not yourself or the world. - *Wind*: Be a humble student. - *Void*: Things don't get easier. ## Scout [[mindset]] | Thought Experiments | | | ------------------------ | ------------------------------------------------------------ | | Double Standard | Are you judging something by different standards? | | Outsider | How would you decide if it was someone else's situation? | | Conformity | If others had a different opinion, would it affect yours? | | Selective Skeptic | How skeptical would you be if the conclusion was different? | | Status Quo Bias | Would you choose this situation if it wasn't the status quo? | | Intellectual Turing Test | Could you convince the other side that you share their view? | | Coping Mechanisms | | | ----------------- | ------------------------------------ | | Excuse | "it wasn't my fault because" | | Denial | "This is fine" | | Fatalism | "Can't do anything about it" | | Sour grapes | "Didn't want that anyway" | | Sweet lemon | "The problem is actually a blessing" | | Soldier Mindset Traps | | | ----------------------------- | --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | | Irrational rationality | Misconception that just enough irrationality will help achieve goals without impairing judgement too much | | Straw man | mistake good arguments for bad arguments we're familiar with | | Chasing the "retreating" army | Ignoring warning signs and not questioning convenient beliefs | | Echo chamber | Only listen to unreasonable people from the other side | ## General Patterns | 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 to post the wrong answer | | Context Principle | Ask for the meaning of a word 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 can increase its 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/)