[Book Review] What got you here wont get you there

 

• The higher you go in an organization, the more your suggestions become interpreted as orders.
• Getting praise can be dangerous because it becomes easy to delude yourself when all you hear are positive things.
• Delusional self-confidence causes you to resist change.
• You can't control the outcome, but why wouldn't you want to try to control what you can? Even if the cards are stacked against you in life your best bet is to try your hardest.
• Successful people believe they are in control. They don't see themselves as victims of the world.
• Lottery ticket players: serious lottery players think success is random. Successful people think success is within their control and thus don't play the lottery. Both mindsets are delusional in their own way, but the successful approach seems to work better overall.
• People will only do something and change when it is in their own best interest and aligns with our values.
• The four drivers of self-interest: money, power, status, popularity.
• Smart people know what to do. They need to know what to stop.
• Create a To-Stop list rather than a To-Do list.
• Not all behavior is good or bad. Some behaviors are simply neutral.
• The fallacy of adding too much value is that by adding value you kill the ownership of other peoples ideas. When you add to the idea it no longer feels like it is their idea.
• When getting feedback of any type, positive or negative, accept it from a neutral place and say, “Thank you.” If you don't reply with a judgmental comment, you can't get into an argument.
• The question to ask yourself when making a destructive or critical comment about someone is not, “Is it true?” But, “Is it worth it?”
• Don't tell people how smart you are. Nobody gives a damn.
• Withholding information is a problem for me when I don't communicate well. If you don't communicate what is going on it feels like you're keeping people in the dark. That annoys people.
• Create a list of people you should give recognition to and then review that list each week to see if you should send someone praise.
• Give away ALL the credit.
• Clinging to the past: “Many people enjoy living in the past, especially if going back there lets them blame someone else for anything that's gone wrong in their lives. That's when clinging to the past becomes an interpersonal problem… When we make excuses, we are blaming someone or something beyond our control as the reason for our failure. Anyone but ourselves.” When we talk about the past it is NOT about change. It is about understanding. And often about blaming others.
• Just say “Thank You” to more comments rather than making a bigger fuss about things. We often have issues with accepting compliments.
• Hearing people out does not make you dumber. So listen and say thank you.
• Gratitude is not a limited resource. Express your thanks more often.
• People who think they can do no wrong usually can't admit they are ever wrong. Which, paradoxically, makes you more wrong. Owning up to your mistakes is essential.
• Your personality is not fixed and improvement does not require you to become a radically different person. You don't have to change your whole life, just improve one tiny trait.
• Goal obsession is the blindness of goal pursuit at the expense of more important things.
• You should feel no shame if your pursuit of a difficult goal fails.
• Goal obsession is not a flaw, it is a creator of flaws.
• Princeton theology students research study and the story of the Good Samaritan. Goal obessions: we are so focus on shortsighted goals and the task in front of us that we miss the bigger point. Use this as a jumping off point for talking about goals in life. Is working really the point?
• Main lesson: you can do a lot worse than questioning your flaws. We often get so defensive about these things, but what do we really have to lose? Usually, very little.
• Forgiveness means letting go of the hope for a better past.
• The higher you go the more your problems are behavioral. Interpersonal behavior is the difference between being great and near great.
• Knowing the answer to, “How do you feel about me?” does not matter when it comes to getting better. What matters is, “How can I get better?”
• Apologize, apologize, apologize. Just step up and make the apologies you need to make.
• When you make an apology say, “I'm sorry. I'll try to do better.” And then shut up. Don't try to justify it.
• Frances Hesselbein, CEO of the Girl Scouts. Claimed to be greatest executive by Peter Drucker.
• When you listen to someone make them feel like they are the only person in the room. Devote your attention to them.
• We can't change for the long-run without following up. Follow up shows your colleagues that you care about getting better and that you're taking the process seriously.

[Book Review] The Practicing Mind

 

• The skill is practicing the goal, not having the goal.
• All of life is practice in one form or another.
• Good practice is not stressful, it is free flowing. (You get in flow.)
• Actively practicing something is very different from passively learning.
• Education: when school funding is determined by how many high test scores we put out, what students actually learn is merely a footnote.
• Japanese perfect plate story. “Why would I need someone to make sure I do my job correctly?”
• Your goals are like a rudder on a boat, they provide direction. (Goals as rudder versus a dock?)
• Judging your work is wasted energy that can't go into the work.
• If your mind races off, you're like a chariot without the reigns. Take the reigns and be in control of your mind.
• Your goals are a compass, not the buried treasure. The goal is not the destination or where you end up, but rather the compass that guides the journey.
• The greatest part of entrepreneurship is breaking down your limiting beliefs. It has nothing to do with money.
• Zen concept of Beginners Mind. It's harder to concentrate as you advance in skill level.
• A habit is the “natural way we do something.”
• There is no point of performance you can achieve where you will feel “done”.
• Make time to just sit. You need relaxing time.

[Book Review] Manual for living by Epictetus

 Manual for Living summary

This is my book summary of Manual for Living by Epictetus. My notes are informal and often contain quotes from the book as well as my own thoughts. This summary also includes key lessons and important passages from the book.

• Some things are in our power and some are not. Examples of things not in our power: reputation, power, and the things that are not our own acts.
• Remember, if you think the things that are in the power of others are in your own power, then you will be hindered, frustrated, and annoyed.
• If you desire to do great things, then remember that you must give things your full attention — not just a mild effort — and leave many other things alone for the time being.
• Before setting your sights on a goal make sure that said goal is within your power — that is, that it is something you actually have control over — and if it is not within your power, do not let it concern you.
• Do not be averted to the things not within your power — illness, death, disease, etc. — if you desire anything not within your power, the result will be unfortunate.
• “It is the act of an ill-instructed man to blame others for his own bad condition.” Your opinion of things is what makes them good or bad. You are responsible for your own opinions, thoughts, and feelings.
• Most challenges are an impediment to a particular thing, but not to your will or to you as a person. “Going lame is an impediment to your leg, but not to your will.”
• If you get the raw end of a business deal or if someone steals from you or if some small misfortune befalls you — don’t fret over it. Such is the price of living in tranquility and not allowing every small setback to ruin your life. It is much better to live this way than to try and squeeze every ounce out of each opportunity for you to get more or get what you are owed.
• If you seem to be a person of importance to some people, ignore them. Realize you know nothing. If you accept that you are a person of importance, it becomes harder to learn.
• Accept the things that come to you — wealth, power, food, relationships, etc. — with grace and dignity, but do not desire them before they get to you.
• When someone responds negatively to an event — like crying when their child goes off to college — offer them sympathy and support, but notice that this event does not effect others. The stranger on the corner does not weep. Thus, it is not the event that is negative, but the person’s opinion of it. Although you may offer outward sympathy and support, do not let such events effect you internally.
• I disagree with Epictetus’ point about “we are all actors and your job is to play the role you’ve been given.” I get that he is making an attempt at saying, “Don’t try to be someone you’re not,” but I think the language could have been better. His phrasing makes it sound like, “You have no control over your life. If you’re poor, you’re poor. Get over it, accept it, and be happy being poor.” In some ways, useful. In other ways, too much of a fixed mindset for my taste. I prefer a more empowering view of your life and the control you have over it.
• Each day, keep in mind that death can be close to you. You will not take your time for granted.
• “Which would you rather have? Money or a faithful and modest friend?”
• “Observe both the things that come first and the things that follow.” You can’t just look at someone competing on the Olympic stage and desire that. You must also look at the practice, the effort, the time, and the sacrifice that came before the result. If you consider all of what is required for a task and then still wish to do it … only then should you proceed because you will properly understand what is required.
• “If a man has reported to you that a certain person speaks ill of you do not make any defense to what has been told you, but reply, “The man did not know the rest of my faults for he would not have mentioned these only.”
• Do not complain of all the bad things that have happened to you. It is not of interest to others.
• If you are doing something that you believe is right do not worry about people who will criticize it wrongly.
• “You are neither possession nor speech.” If you have more money, then you’re just richer than someone not better than them. If you are more eloquent than someone, then you are just better spoken not a better person.

[Book Review] Autobiography of a restless mind

Learnings from the book Autobiography of a restless mind about Dee Hock, CEO and founder of VISA

1. Every mountain is two mountains: the one that urges us to climb and the one that punishes us when we do.
2. The ferocity with which a dog defends its bone tells us a great deal more about the nature of the dog than the quality of the bone.
3. Habits are never in a hurry.
4. Nature will never take direction from us no matter how much havoc we create in the attempt.
5. Despite the desperate effort of parents to teach their children good behavior, children continue to behave pretty much like their parents.
6. Politicians are addicted to mendacity, indecision, and inaction because they know that such things are rarely noticed, readily forgiven, and quickly forgotten, while a mistake is usually detected, seldom forgiven, and rarely forgotten.
7. People who set out to rule are never free. They are forever chained to the mob whether it be rebellious or subservient.
8. A fool is no less a fool when a wise man errs.
9. Tyranny shouts, “You must!” Leadership whispers, “Perhaps we should.”
10. The pleasures of youth are the pains of old age, just as the pleasures of old age are the pains of youth.
11. To speak is craft; to listen is art.
12. We judge others harshly by the standards we profess rather than those we practice. Yet we resent it bitterly when they return the favor.
13. Vice and virtue have one thing in common: the more people have of either, the less they think they have.
14. Without purpose will is blind. Without will purpose is impotent. Without ethical and moral content both are barren at best and dangerous at worst.
15. One should not read like a dog obeying its master, but like an eagle hunting its prey.
16. When we fully attend to the management of self, excellent management of all else is unavoidable.
17. Old people have so little left of life they should cease trying to make it bring what they desire and make the most of what it offers. Come to think of it, that’s not bad policy for young people as well.
18. Man is the only animal that will squander living to prolong existence. 
19. It is not more answers we need, but better questions. It is not more action we need, but deeper reflection. It is not more knowledge we need, but profounder wisdom. It is not more technology we need, but greater aspirations.
20. Those who despise people are the most desperate to be favorably recognized by them.
21. Ignorance is a great deal more eager to instruct wisdom than wisdom is to instruct ignorance.
22. The world of Homo sapiens is, indeed, a fantasyland, for we seek to control organizations, peoples, economies, and nature with minds that can’t control their own thoughts and emotions for thirty seconds. 
23. Love, share, accept, care; what else matters?

 

FIRE and Time Billionaries

Last week I came across a concept called time billionaire. In the context of FIRE, this has stuck in my mind. I have been a FIRE enthusiast over the last 5 years and this idea helped me put things into perspective. The goal of this article is to show you the tradeoff between time and money. 

The life expectancy of a normal healthy adult is around 80 years.

A billion seconds almost equals to 31 years. So on average every 20 year old has 2 billion seconds of time left. We work hard, spend our time to earn money, save our money to buy capital. The capital appreciates over time and gives us money. That is how we convert our time into money. 

Taking the returns of the US stock market over the last 100 years and assuming it doubles every 10 years, earning the capital early in life pays dividends in terms of that capital will give more money and time back to the owner to enjoy. 

Hence, 1 million USD earned at 30, will be 8 million by 60, if the owner doesn't need to depend on that capital for day to day expenses. As this post calls out, there are different brackets of numbers and where each individual lies in the bracket is a deeply personal question and the answer will vary based on lifestyle and choices. But the point is the faster you get there, the more you time you have from life. 

This point can be really driven home by this following question : 
If you got a chance to exchange your position with Warren Buffet today, would you do it ? You would be both the richest person on earth and also be 90+ and wont have long enough to live from hereon. 

For folks, for whom the answer is No, you already have the most valuable resource on earth which is time. Use it wisely and you can generate both time and money. 

Types of FIRE - Financial Independence and Retire Early

 Types of FIRE

1. Lean FIRE - 1-1.25 million USD
• At 4% withdrawal rate, this leads to 40k to 50k annual income
• At 3% withdrawal rate, this leads to 30k to 37.5k annual income
• At 2% withdrawal rate, this leads to 20k to 25k annual income
2. India FIRE - 1.5 million - 10 crores INR
3. FIRE - 2.5-3 million USD
• At 4% withdrawal rate, this leads to 100k to 120k annual income
• At 3% withdrawal rate, this leads to 75k to 90k annual income
• At 2% withdrawal rate, this leads to 50k to 60k annual income
4. FAT FIRE - 4-5 million USD
• At 4% withdrawal rate, this leads to 160k to 200k annual income
• At 3% withdrawal rate, this leads to 120k to 150k annual income
• At 2% withdrawal rate, this leads to 80k to 100k annual income
5. Silicon Valley FIRE - 8-10 million USD
• 3 million+ is tied up in the primary home
• Rest is same as FAT FIRE

[Book Review] The First 90 Days

  

Organ Rejection Syndrome

New leaders do things to trigger the organization's immune system and find themselves under the attack as a foreign body. 

Managing Learning as an investment process

• An actionable insight is knowledge that enables you to make better decisions earlier and so helps you quickly reach the break-even point in personal value creation. 
• Effective Learning calls for figuring out what you need to learn so that you can focus your efforts. 

[Book Review] Range : Why generalists triumph in a specialized world

 Tiger vs Roger

1. Tiger has come to symbolize the idea that the quantity of deliberate practice determines success—and its corollary, that the practice must start as early as possible.
2. The push to focus early and narrowly extends well beyond sports. We are often taught that the more competitive and complicated the world gets, the more specialized we all must become (and the earlier we must start) to navigate it.
3. Roger Feder is the counter example of late bloomer, someone who dabbled on multiple sports and only ended up specializing in tennis late stage. 
4. I dove into work showing that highly credentialed experts can become so narrow-minded that they actually get worse with experience, even while becoming more confident—a dangerous combination. And I was stunned when cognitive psychologists I spoke with led me to an enormous and too often ignored body of work demonstrating that learning itself is best done slowly to accumulate lasting knowledge, even when that means performing poorly on tests of immediate progress. That is, the most effective learning looks inefficient; it looks like falling behind.

The cult of the headstart

1. Starts with the example of the Polgar sisters - the author of How to raise a genius
2. The powerful lesson is that anything in the world can be conquered in the same way. It relies on one very important, and very unspoken, assumption: that chess and golf are representative examples of all the activities that matter to you.
3. Whether or not experience inevitably led to expertise, they agreed, depended entirely on the domain in question. Narrow experience made for better chess and firefighters, but not for better predictors of financial or political trends, or of how employees or patients would perform. The domains Klein studied, in which instinctive pattern recognition worked powerfully, are what psychologist Robin Hogarth termed “kind” learning environments. Patterns repeat over and over, and feedback is extremely accurate and usually very rapid.
4. In wicked domains, the rules of the game are often unclear or incomplete, there may or may not be repetitive patterns and they may not be obvious, and feedback is often delayed, inaccurate, or both.
5. If Deep Blue’s victory over Kasparov signaled the transfer of chess power from humans to computers, the victory of centaurs over Hydra symbolized something more interesting still: humans empowered to do what they do best without the prerequisite of years of specialized pattern recognition.
6. But the centaur lesson remains: the more a task shifts to an open world of big-picture strategy, the more humans have to add.
7. “How Not to Teach People to Discover Rules”—that is, by providing rewards for repetitive short-term success with a narrow range of solutions.
8. There are domains beyond chess in which massive amounts of narrow practice make for grandmaster-like intuition. Like golfers, surgeons improve with repetition of the same procedure. Accountants and bridge and poker players develop accurate intuition through repetitive experience. Kahneman pointed to those domains’ “robust statistical regularities.” But when the rules are altered just slightly, it makes experts appear to have traded flexibility for narrow skill. In research in the game of bridge where the order of play was altered, experts had a more difficult time adapting to new rules than did non-experts. When experienced accountants were asked in a study to use a new tax law for deductions that replaced a previous one, they did worse than novices. Erik Dane, a Rice University professor who studies organizational behavior, calls this phenomenon “cognitive entrenchment.

How the wicked world was made 

1. The Flynn effect—the increase in correct IQ test answers with each new generation in the twentieth century—has now been documented in more than thirty countries. The gains are startling: three points every ten years. To put that in perspective, if an adult who scored average today were compared to adults a century ago, she would be in the 98th percentile.
2. Flynn was bemused to find that the correlation between the test of broad conceptual thinking and GPA was about zero. In Flynn’s words, “the traits that earn good grades at [the university] do not include critical ability of any broad significance.

When less of the same is more

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What does culture look like in your team

 I have worked at several companies and every company has their culture deck. I found some of the key ones that have influenced and shaped me that are core to the culture of all the teams that I have led

1. Growth mindset over a fixed mindset
2. Act like an owner rather than a renter
3. Customer focus/obsession
4. High agency/high equity
5. Data driven decision making 
6. Transparency and openness
7. Collaborative mindset
8. Zero tolerance for jerks or culture killers

Questions to ask before taking up a new job

Nearly all interviewers expect you to ask questions at the end of the interview. 

While most of the advice is genuine, but they dont uncover as much information as you would need. Also some of them are cliche and the team is often prepped with the standard answers, having already rehearsed it with several candidates. 

Here are a few questions that could uncover a lot of more signal. Also the surprise element to this questions will help get the most signal for you as an interviewee

1. What could go wrong if I join the team in the first 90 days ?

In any role there will be a rampup time, this question ensures commitment to the rampup and guarantees the runway. Having said that, any org or team may have skeletons buried and burning fires. This question and the discussion henceforth will help build commitment to a leadership transition and support through that journey. It can also help you understand the resources(existing TLs, peer managers, XFN counterparts) you can leverage to rampup.

2. What does failure look like after 1 year ? 

These two questions are good because they distill the top 2-3 priorities of this role that are needed for success. It also helps extract and gives the opportunity to align on the right expectations. 

3. What is the hardest feedback you have given to a manager ? 

Everyone has strengths and weaknesses. This will give you a sense of style of how the manager helps people grow and develop on their weakness. Also there can be several followups like what makes the feedback hard. It could reveal not only about the manager's work style but also challenges in their terrain that another able manager is having a hard time resolving. It might expose structural flaws of the terrain that you are not likely to get otherwise. 

4. What was the hardest feedback you have received as a manager ? 

5. What is the relative weight of how people conduct their work and the output they generate ?

This might give you signals of how much psychological safety there is in the team and what kind of culture the manager promotes. 

6. How do you resolve conflicting priorities between projects across two different teams ? 

This will give you a sense about how neat the boundaries are, how the goals are structured, how principled/adhoc resolution approaches are, how people/project/collaboration tradeoffs are made in an org. As a manager, this is something you will have to deal with all the time. 

7. What will you do if your team suddenly starts missing the goals ? How would you debug it ?

This will tell you what phase of growth this manager is in as described here. Good managers also regress in these growth stages when they face pressure from the top. 

References

1. 40 interview questions to ask and how to go deeper than what's culture like ?
2. How to respond to the interview questions "what do you have for me" ?