Look at your life right now. How much of your life is dreams you have taken for granted? Maybe it is owning that nice car. Or, perhaps, it is living with a partner you fell in love with. It could also be that university education. What about your job? Your kid? Your lovely home? Or,…
When you have been an entrepreneur long enough, you get used to doors being shut on your face to the extent that you don't waste time being emotional about the closed door, instead you move on to the next possible door.... Until one door opens or you decide to create your own door and open…
Arthur Ashe with the Wimbledon trophy after he beat the defending champion Jimmy Connors in four sets, 6-1, 6-1, 5-7, 6-4 6th July 1975. [Photo by Staff/Mirrorpix/Getty Images] There are a few classic stories that I share every 1-2 years as part of my attempts to internalise them. One of these is from tennis legend…
In a world where attention has become both currency and commodity, it is tempting to believe there is a direct correlation between influence and impact. The modern definition of an influencer is someone who can persuade people with their recommendations. An influencer is said to be someone with a large following and uses the influence…
A rat swallowed a diamond and the owner of the diamond contracted a man to kill the rat. When the rat hunter arrived to kill the rat there were more than a thousand rats bunched up and one sitting by itself away from the pack. He killed the one by itself and that was the…
There are really only two ways to approach this: “We do not cheat.” “We cheat when we can get away with it.” The attitude of, “our side does not cheat,” is the belief in the validity of the game itself. It is a statement of moral authority, a promise of consistency and courage. It respects…
Assiduity means constant or close attention to what one is doing. I chuckled when I heard it is one of Charlie Munger’s favorite words thanks to his literal sounding interpretation of its meaning: “Sit down on your ass until you do it.” Here is wishing all of us some assiduity today. Image by ludi
Nobody knows who invented the button five thousand years ago. At first, buttons were simply used to make clothes beautiful. It was not until the invention of the buttonhole three thousand years later that buttons became functional. It took us two thousand years to reimagine what the button could do. And in that moment fashion…
When we are innovating a product or iterating a service, we tend to add value by introducing features and benefits. But more is not always better. Sometimes improvements and progress are made by removing things that people would not miss. The ability to simplify means to eliminate the unnecessary so that the necessary may speak. What could you subtract or…
People are often unreasonable, irrational, and self-centered. Forgive them anyway. If you are kind, people may accuse you of selfish, ulterior motives. Be kind anyway. If you are successful, you will win some unfaithful friends and some genuine enemies. Succeed anyway. If you are honest and sincere people may deceive you. Be honest and sincere…
An old hermit was once invited to visit the court of the most powerful king of those times. “I envy such a saintly man, who is content with so little,” said the King. “I envy Your Majesty, who is content with even less that I,” responded the hermit. “How can you say such a thing,…
A simple way to increase problem-solving velocity: disregard the instinct to assign blame.
