Catch-22s are problems which have circular or paradoxical solutions. Named after Joseph Heller’s famous book by the same name, about a soldier who can avoid dangerous combat if he is insane (but applying for the provision is proof of sanity). Many situations in life are close to Catch-22s, problems by which the method of solution […]
What Matters More: Your Network or Skills?
I love questions like this one because they’re the kind people get upset about for no reason. When you try to say that your network of professional friends is important to your career, you get tons of angry socially maladroit engineer-types ranting about it. Technical competence, and points on an IQ test are what matters […]
“It’s Who You Know”
I’ve often heard the titular expression in conversations about professional success. Uttered with a sneer, it seems to point at the unfairness of life and the hopelessness of the masses of people without good connections. It’s also an expression that is mostly true. Talent and effort matter, of course, but the gears of the machine […]
Two Types of Growth
Anything you try to improve will have a growth curve. Imagine you ran everyday and you tracked your speed to finish a 5-mile course. Smoothing out the noise, over enough time you’d probably get a graph like this: Here, improvement works on a logarithmic scale. As you get better, it gets harder and harder to […]
I'm a Wall Street Journal bestselling author, podcast host, computer programmer and an avid reader. Since 2006, I've published weekly essays on this website to help people like you learn and think better. My work has been featured in The New York Times, BBC, TEDx, Pocket, Business Insider and more. I don't promise I have all the answers, just a place to start.