I’ve said a lot of things on this blog over the nearly ten years since I started it. During that time, I’ve written thousands of articles. Most of them directly or indirectly express my beliefs about the world. I’ve talked about psychology, learning, philosophy and which techniques I think work and which don’t. Unfortunately, a […]
How Much Stress Do You Need for Success?
A lot of anxiety in life is both unwanted and involuntary. Often when I have an early morning flight, I can’t sleep deeply. The worry about sleeping through my alarm clock has me waking up involuntarily, every hour or so. Even when I should have enough sleep to feel rested, I wake up groggy. I […]
Don’t Be Afraid to Go at Your Own Pace
It’s okay to learn slowly. That might sound funny from a guy who is known (perhaps even notorious) for trying to learn things faster, but it’s true. My motivation for doing the MIT Challenge was (a) to see if I could do it and (b) if I could, hopefully help other people imagine self-education goals […]
Building, Searching and the Algorithm for Finding the Best Spouse
Let me tell you about my favorite mathematical proof. It’s for a puzzle called the marriage problem (alternatively called the secretary problem or the sultan’s dowry). It’s my favorite for belonging to a rare category of “mathematical proofs which also have to do with sex.” The problem is very simple: Suppose you are looking 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.