The Art of the Good Life – Rolf Dobelli
Date read: 9/5/21. Recommendation: 8/10.
The book provides a toolkit with 52 guidelines for operating in a challenging modern world that we can struggle to understand intuitively. It’s a summary of lessons from modern psychology (Kahneman), Stoic philosophy, and value investing (Warren Buffett and Charlie Munger). If you enjoy those sources, you will enjoy this book. If you’re unfamiliar with those sources, Dobelli presents an approachable introduction that encourages further exploration. It’s a great overview of the powerful mental models and frameworks that some of the best minds use to navigate (and simplify) life.
Check out my notes below or Amazon for details and reviews.
My Notes:
Self-correction:
Education system oriented around factual knowledge and certifications, rather than the ability to reflect and self-correct. Degrees are nearing the point where they have less and less correlation to workplace success.
The wise man makes small adjustments: “What do you think: was it the set-up—the perfect genes, an ideal upbringing, a first-class education—that made this person so wise? Or was it acts of correction, of constant work on their own issues and shortcomings, a gradual elimination of these inadequacies from their lives?” RD
Flexibility is a trap:
Flexibility makes you unhappy, tired, and distracts you from your goals. There are two main traps: 1) Constantly having to make new decisions situation by situation saps willpower and leads to decision fatigue. 2) By being consistent on certain topics, signal where you stand and there’s no room for negotiation. Warren Buffett refuses on principle to negotiate. You get to make one offer.
Act while it’s uncomfortable:
“If you won’t attack a problem while it’s solvable and wait until it’s unfixable, you can argue that you’re so damn foolish that you deserve the problem.” Charlie Munger
Authenticity within reason:
“People are respected because they deliver on their promises, not because they let us eavesdrop on their inner monologs.” RD
“Restrict authenticity to keeping your promises and acting according to your principles. The rest is nobody else’s business.” RD
Prioritization + Focus:
Before ever responding to a request, wait five seconds. “If you say ‘No’ ninety percent of the time, you’re not missing much in the world.” Charlie Munger
Focusing illusion: “Nothing in life is as important as you think it is while you are thinking about it” Daniel Kahneman. The more narrowly we focus on a specific aspect of our lives, the greater its apparent influence. Step back, create some distance, and compare only once you pull yourself from the trenches.
Circle of competence: “Know your circle of competence, and stick within it. The size of that circle is not very important, knowing its boundaries, however, is vital.” Warren Buffett
Professional backgammon player makes a few deliberate mistakes to see how well his opponent will exploit them. If the other guy plays well, stop playing so you don’t throw away money. Knowing when you’re outside of your circle of competence and when not to bet is a critical life skill.
“A single outstanding skill trumps a thousand mediocre ones. Every hour invested in your circle of competence is worth a thousand spent elsewhere.” RD
Volunteer’s folly: “Many people fall for the volunteer’s folly—they believe there’s a point to voluntary work. In reality, it’s a waste. Your time is more meaningfully invested in your circle of competence, because it’s there that you’ll generate the most value per day.” RD
Purpose:
“One of the symptoms of approaching nervous breakdown is the belief that one’s work is terribly important.” Bertrand Russell
When you’re starting your career, focus on stacking skills first, purpose second.
Prevention:
“Wisdom is a practical ability. It’s a measure of the skill with which we navigate life. Once you’ve come to realize that virtually all difficulties are easier to avoid than to solve, the following definition will be self-evident: ‘Wisdom is prevention.’” RD
Consider your health, career, finances, relationships: “A clever person solves a problem. A wise person avoids it.” Einstein
Prevention of mistakes and massive do-overs requires the ability to anticipate second and third-order consequences. Project multiple steps down the line.
Do the work:
“You can know the name of a bird in all the languages of the world, but when you’re finished, you’ll know absolutely nothing whatever about the bird…So let’s look at the bird and see what it’s doing—that’s what counts. I learned very early the difference between knowing the name of something and knowing something.” Richard Feynman