2min snip

#695: Shane Parrish on Wisdom from Warren Buffett, Rules for Better Thinking, How to Reduce Blind Spots, The Dangers of Mental Models, and More

The Tim Ferriss Show

notes

NOTE

The Great Mental Models, Decision Making, and Scrutinizing Problem Statements

After realizing he wasn't having fun, the speaker created a series of books called the great mental models to explore applying big ideas from university to different contexts. They also developed a course called decision by design, which focused on practical tools for decision making. However, COVID-19 forced them to shift from in-person events to an online format. They now emphasize separating problem definition from problem solution and encourage scrutinizing the problem statement before jumping into solutions.

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Shane Parrish (@ShaneAParrish) is the entrepreneur and wisdom seeker behind Farnam Street and the host of The Knowledge Project podcast, where he focuses on mastering the best of what other people have already figured out. Shane's popular online course, Decision by Design, has helped thousands of executives, leaders, and managers around the world learn the repeatable behaviors that improve results. His work has been featured in nearly every major publication, including The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, and Forbes.

Shane is the author of Clear Thinking: Turning Ordinary Moments into Extraordinary Results.

Please enjoy!

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[05:43] The Stopwatch Gang influences a D student.

[10:54] How a low-grade troublemaker gets vetted for an intelligence job.

[17:23] The impact of frequent relocation on a child.

[21:33] The benefits of a challenging education (once the tears dry up).

[31:09] From 68131-1440.blogger dot com to Farnam Street.

[36:10] An early exploration of cognitive biases.

[39:39] "Ordinary moments determine your position, and your position determines your options."

[45:55] Incisive, deliberate decision-makers.

[47:44] Defining mental models.

[50:47] The declaration of platform independence.

[52:50] A Farnam Street business breakdown.

[56:05] Scrutinizing the problem statement.