Rob Henderson, a PhD candidate at Cambridge and US Air Force veteran, dives into the psychology behind social behavior and perception. He discusses the friendship paradox and its surprising effects on our social lives. Rob explores how social media fosters feelings of isolation, despite its illusion of connectivity, and the dynamics of male friendships. He dives into the challenges faced by foster youth and addresses modern dating ideologies, particularly around political beliefs. Additionally, he shares insights on resilience and the importance of documenting personal struggles.
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insights INSIGHT
Friendship Paradox
The friendship paradox explains why your friends, on average, have more friends than you.
This is due to the presence of super-connectors who skew the average, similar to the Pareto principle.
insights INSIGHT
Social Comparison Bias
People tend to underestimate their social lives due to the visibility of others' peak experiences online.
This "lesser-than-average effect" contrasts with the typical "better-than-average effect" in other areas.
insights INSIGHT
1% Rule of the Internet
The 1% rule suggests online, 1% create content, 9% comment, and 90% lurk.
Content creators often overemphasize negative comments, ignoring the silent majority.
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In this book, Daniel Kahneman takes readers on a tour of the mind, explaining how the two systems of thought shape our judgments and decisions. System 1 is fast, automatic, and emotional, while System 2 is slower, effortful, and logical. Kahneman discusses the impact of cognitive biases, the difficulties of predicting future happiness, and the effects of overconfidence on corporate strategies. He offers practical insights into how to guard against mental glitches and how to benefit from slow thinking in both personal and business life. The book also explores the distinction between the 'experiencing self' and the 'remembering self' and their roles in our perception of happiness.
The 48 laws of power
Robert Greene
In 'The 48 Laws of Power', Robert Greene and Joost Elffers synthesize three thousand years of the history of power into 48 laws. These laws are derived from the philosophies of Machiavelli, Sun Tzu, and Carl Von Clausewitz, as well as the lives of influential figures such as Henry Kissinger and P.T. Barnum. The book provides tactics, concepts, and lessons on how to achieve and maintain power, emphasizing prudence, confidence, and self-preservation. Each law is illustrated with historical examples and is designed to help readers understand and navigate the dynamics of power in various aspects of life, including work, social hierarchies, and politics.
The Two-Parent Privilege
Melissa Kearney
In this book, Melissa S. Kearney presents a provocative case for the economic benefits of marriage, highlighting how the decline of marriage has exacerbated economic and social inequalities in the US. Based on over a decade of economic research, Kearney argues that households with two married parents offer significant economic and non-economic benefits to both the parents and their children, particularly in terms of financial stability, educational outcomes, and social mobility. She emphasizes that the decline in marriage is more pronounced among lower socioeconomic groups, leading to a 'two-parent privilege' that advantages children from higher socioeconomic backgrounds. Kearney also discusses the underlying causes of the marriage decline, including changes in male wages and female labor market participation, and suggests policy implications to address these issues.
The sun also rises
Ernest Hemingway
Originally published in 1926, 'The Sun Also Rises' is Ernest Hemingway’s first novel and a classic example of his spare but powerful writing style. The novel follows a group of young American and British expatriates as they wander through Europe in the mid-1920s, capturing the moods, feelings, and attitudes of the cynical and disillusioned Lost Generation. The story centers around Jake Barnes, a World War I veteran and journalist, and Lady Brett Ashley, as they journey from the wild nightlife of 1920s Paris to the brutal bullfighting rings of Spain. The novel portrays an age of moral bankruptcy, spiritual dissolution, unrealized love, and vanishing illusions, reflecting the existential disillusionment characteristic of the Lost Generation[2][3][4].
Rob Henderson is a psychologist, US Air Force veteran, and author of Troubled: A Memoir of Foster Care, Family, and Social Class.
Humans are an odd species. We know truths on our own but choose to lie in groups. Our thinking gets hijacked by social norms, paths of least resistance, lies and half truths. It's a mess out there, but thankfully there's ideas we can discover to help us navigate.
Expect to learn what the friendship paradox is, how we can fix the mate deprivation problem, what green flags most women look for in men, the relationship between social media and hostility, why people reason more wisely about others’ problems rather than their own, what Rob's thoughts are on the most recent wave of the body positivity movement and much more…
Modern Wisdom 
