The Morgan Housel Podcast

Expiring vs. Permanent Skills

Nov 17, 2023

The discussion highlights the divide between expiring and permanent skills. Expiring skills may grab attention, but permanent skills like kindness and empathy are essential for lasting success. Historical insights connect human behavior with modern challenges in wealth and anxiety. Additionally, the complexities of luck and risk in success are explored, emphasizing the need for adaptability. The episode punctuates the value of evolving skills over time while recognizing the importance of clear communication and relationship-building in both personal and professional spheres.

15:14

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Quick takeaways

Permanent skills compound over time, providing a deep well of relevant examples to study.

Adapting to changing views and embracing new strategies is crucial for long-term success.

Deep dives

The Timeless Wisdom of History

Throughout history, people's responses to events and their attitudes towards money, greed, and fear have remained remarkably consistent. Examples from the past, such as the anxieties of making and keeping money, disillusionment with wealth, and the importance of building financial stability, still resonate today. Whether it's an author's observations from 130 years ago or an account of a loan shark from 2000 years ago, the human experience remains consistent across time.

The Importance of Permanent Skills and Not Being a Jerk

01:20

Valuable Skills for Personal and Professional Success

02:28

Intro

7min

The Transformative Power of Kindness and Empathy

2min

Navigating Changing Views and Relationships

3min

Navigating Luck, Risk, and Industry Challenges

3min

Expiring skills tend to get more attention. They’re more likely to be the cool new thing, and a key driver of an industry’s short-term performance. They’re what employers value and employees flaunt.

Permanent skills are different. They’ve been around a long time, which makes them look stale and basic. They can be hard to define and quantify, which gives the impression of fortune-cookie wisdom vs. a hard skill.

But permanent skills compound over time, which gives them quiet importance. When several previous generations have worked on a skill that’s directly relevant to you, you have a deep well of relevant examples to study. And when you can spend a lifetime perfecting one skill whose importance never wanes, the payoffs can be ridiculous. Anything that compounds over decades usually is.

This episode discusses a few permanent skills that apply to many fields.