Sharing what I have learned from what I have read: A blog by Joe Abittan
I find personality trait tests misleading. I know they are used by companies in hiring decisions and I know that Big 5 Personality Traits have been shown to predict political party support, but I still feel that they are misapplied and misunderstood. Specifically, I think that the way we interpret them fails to take context … Continue reading A Leadership Personality
Autonomy, free will, and self-control combine to create a useful myth. The myth is that we control our own destinies, that we are autonomous actors with rights, freedoms, and the opportunity to improve our lives through our own effort. The reality is that the world is incredibly complex, that we don't get to chose our … Continue reading A Useful Myth
I generally think we are overconfident in our opinions. We should all be more skeptical that we are right, that we have made the best possible decisions, and that we truly understand how the world operates. Our worldviews can only be informed by our experiences and by the information we take in about events, phenomena, … Continue reading Missing Feedback
"In many domains people are tempted to think, after the fact, that an outcome was entirely predictable, and that the success of a musician, an actor, an author, or a politician was inevitable in light of his or her skills and characteristics. Beware of that temptation. Small interventions and even coincidences, at a key stage, … Continue reading Predictable Outcomes
I am guilty of not spending enough time planning what to do when things don't work out the way I want. I have written in the past about the importance of planning for failure and adversity, but like many others, I find it hard to do and hard to get myself to sit down and … Continue reading Imagining Success Versus Anticipating Failure
I am someone who believes that we can all learn from the lessons of others. I believe that we can read books, listen to podcasts, watch documentaries, and receive guidance from good managers and mentors that will help us learn, grow, and become better versions of ourselves. I read Good to Great and Built to … Continue reading Luck & Success
There are some factors within individual control that influence success. Hard work is clearly important, good decision-making is important, and an ability to cooperate and work well with others is also important for success. But none of these factors on their own are sufficient for success, at least many prominent thinkers and researchers seem to … Continue reading Luck & Stories of Success
"There is unevenness, you know, when some objects rise conspicuous above others," Seneca wrote in Letters From a Stoic. I'm pretty fascinated with a concept that is known as Tall Poppy Syndrome and is often strongly expressed in Australia and New Zealand (so I understand - I haven't been there myself to experience the … Continue reading Tall Poppy Syndrome
"For our powers can never inspire in us implicit faith in ourselves except when many difficulties have confronted us on this side and on that, and have occasionally even come to close quarters with us," writes Seneca in Letters from a Stoic. In the quote above, Seneca writes that we can never develop a … Continue reading The Value of Difficulties
Recently, Tyler Cowen released a podcast interview he did with Annie Duke, someone I remember from the days when my brother watched tournaments for the World Series of Poker. A line from the interview really stood out to me and is something I think about in my life all the time, but haven't stated as eloquently … Continue reading Focus on Process