I’ve heard the claim that, a few years out of college, most of what you’ve learned will be useless. It’s repeated so often it’s taken as fact. Obviously the claim about the value of education varies on what you study. I doubt an engineer or statistician could claim academic knowledge has no impact on their […]
What if You Never Graduate?
I like doing thought experiments because they can reveal a lot about why we do the things we do. Today, I’d like to propose a simple thought experiment for all the students reading here: What if you never graduated from university? Not that you would drop out, but simply that you could never complete your […]
The Goal of Learning Everything
Recently, I wrote about my goal of learning everything. This is more than a tad ambitious, and probably impossible. Even learning a small fraction of everything can have huge benefits that ripple outwards towards every other area of life. Unfortunately, most people fall into a group I’ll call “functional” learners, and severely cut off their […]
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.