Musings
A weekly collection of interesting
Here are some things I’ve been musing about this week:
Do you think you’re self-aware? Are you introspective? No matter your answer, you probably aren’t and you’re probably doing it wrong. This article from Harvard Business Review discusses what self-awareness actually is (in a leadership context) and how to actually cultivate it.
https://hbr.org/2018/01/what-self-awareness-really-is-and-how-to-cultivate-it
Nat Eliason has posted another excellent article on the process of self-development. This one — a bit of a long read, but worth it — is about progressing through levels of thinking, as part and parcel of developing as more mature, more complete, more independent people.
https://www.nateliason.com/level-3-thinking/
Performance in any skill over time is characterized by peaks and troughs; days when we’re in flow and do excellent work almost effortlessly, and days when even a little bit of crappy work seems back-breakingly hard. Venkatesh Rao has an excellent article about the nature of peaks and troughs, and dealing with them mindfully.
http://www.tempobook.com/2011/08/17/daemons-and-the-mindful-learning-curve/
I’m a sucker for interesting, yet completely useless facts; like the fact that China’s new radio telescope is so large it can hold two bowls of rice for every person on the planet. So of course I enjoyed the Atlantic’s list of interesting (yet mostly useless) things they learned in 2017. Read and savor the interesting uselessness.
What I’m reading:
Fiction:
“Saga” series of graphic novels by Brian Vaughan and Fiona Staples
This is one of those series that convince people who are sure that they don’t like graphic novels to change their minds and start consuming them voraciously. They are definitely adult content, with their share of sex scenes and some gruesome violence, and while that might turn off some readers, those that forge on are rewarded by a deep, complex story and some amazing artwork. At the lowest level, Saga is about two soldiers on opposites sides of a very, very long interstellar war, who fall in love and have a child together. Naturally, complications ensue — bounty hunters come after them, a member of the Royal House of the Robot Empire gets involved — and that’s just the first volume. In short, don’t judge this series on the basis of other graphic novels you’ve experienced; these are a class of their own.
Non-fiction:
The Talent Code by Daniel Coyle
I’d heard a number of good things about this book from a number of people, but when I got my hands on this book and read it, I finished it feeling vaguely disappointed. Coyle seems to re-hash things said better, more clearly, more passionately, more practically, by other authors, without adding anything of substance. Anders Ericsson wrote better about deliberate practice. Cal Newport wrote better about focus. Scott Kaufman wrote better about creativity. If you don’t want to spend time and effort reading five other books, this book might be useful crib notes, but if you’re really interested in the subject, there are better books to spend your time reading.
Thanks for reading! If you have any book recommendations (or any other comments) I’d love to hear them.
If you’d like my weekly musings in your inbox, you can sign up here.
