Betterment

The ostracod is extinct. Over millions of years, with good reasons at every step, it evolved to become the creature it was. And when we add up all of those little steps, we end up with a creature t…

Do you have a script? Most of us do. Here’s a new piece of software. Do you immediately read the manual front to back? Dive in and see how it works? Tense up in fear and distaste? She’s…

Why do bikes stay stable when you ride them (and fall down when you stop)? A tiny reason is the gyroscopic stability of the wheels, but the real reason is the forward momentum of the rider. And we …

Being a natural non-dualist, I have been pondering this question.  For instance, I know someone who almost always gives charismatic and “thunderous” answers to questions posed.  These are typically smart answers, whether or not you agree, but I suspect over time that talk style makes this person somewhat stupider and more dogmatic. I believe if […]

Alert readers of my last two posts have probably guessed what this one is about. The control/responsibility matrix (click to enlarge) People make choices about their preferences for control and for…

When things go wrong, is your instinct to hide in a corner and hope you won’t get noticed–or to lean into the situation and make it clear that this one is on you? “I’ve got …

When the physician and psychiatrist Leonard Schwartz surveyed his life at middle-age, he was not particularly happy with the state of himself as a physical specimen. Decades of smoking, overwork, and living a sedentary lifestyle had left him with high blood pressure, chronic back pain, and a generally subpar level of energy. Dr. Schwartz began […]

Does the concept of powerlessness reside more in a psychological sense as opposed to being grounded in reality? Scrum Inc.’s Robert Woods examines this question and ways to reflect on whether you have a learned sense of powerlessness and the impact it’s having on your work, organization, and life.

Would you rather write the script, read the script, watch the movie or write the review? When someone commutes by train, they’re giving up control over the journey. On one hand, that means th…

In settings where sorting is difficult, half a bushel of perfect apples is worth more than a full bushel with a rotten apple in it. One bad apple can spoil a whole bunch. We pay a significant premi…

Peter Thiel is the co-founder of PayPal and one of the most successful tech entrepreneurs. His bestselling book "Zero to One" and speeches he gave thorough the years gave us an insight into the principles he encourages us to respect. One of them is to avoid the competition and be skeptical

We’re all hardwired to value something we own twice what it’s worth. But ‘selling the position’ is an extraordinary way of combating it.

I used to be a regular journaler, but no longer am. I wasn’t getting much out of journaling, so I dropped it as a regular habit. While I don’t journal every day anymore, I haven’t completely given up on the practice. I still get an intermittent itch to crack open my journal and put pen […]

Feeling stuck? Pondering these topics can help you get out of a rut, says author Ralph Kilmann.

When we’re not certain of the right answer, the best approach is to have a portfolio, a range of bets that reward us with resilience and significant upside. An example can be something as sim…

Consider the windows on a car. First, they were manually clipped into place. And then they were hand-rolled into position. But that was too difficult. So the electric window was born. But holding y…

Decades ago, society was more bullish on the importance of exercise in weight management. Just go jogging a few times a week, the thinking went, and you’d shed the pounds — never mind that you ended your run by heading to the bagel shop for a big, well-earned, carb-tastic breakfast. In the last decade, much […]

Setting goals can transform your life. Goals can help you get in shape, improve your finances, learn a new language, or finally launch that business. But goal-setting can also leave you miserable. Burnout, stress and disillusionment are high on the list of potential side effects. The crucial difference between success and burnout often comes down […]

A flow state is priceless. It happens when we lose ourselves in the work, simply connecting with the task, without commentary or doubt. When we’re in flow, time slows down, satisfaction rises…

First, we have to see them. Some people, no matter how fast or slow their friends are walking, always walk a step behind. Or perhaps you need to live in the nicest house on the block, or drive the …

The phone is ringing. Your ice cream is melting. Next month’s rent is due. There’s a useful workshop coming up in a few months. Your hard drive will fail before the end of the year. Col…

Is there anything more thrilling than unwrapping a shiny guitar; flipping through the pages of a new journal; buying a piece of exercise equipment; signing up for a self-help program? You feel a tingle of excitement as you imagine yourself slaying songs; penning notes for your sure-to-be-bestselling novel; flexing your freshly-formed biceps in the mirror; […]

This is not the same as being creative. In fact, they’re very different skills and emotional mindsets. All humans are creative. Sometimes. Creativity is a special sort of internal conversatio…

What makes learning hard? How can we make it easier? Cognitive load theory explains how we learn and how to do it better.

Well, it’s a new year, and that means men all over the world are setting goals to improve themselves over the next twelve months. If you’re one of these men, here’s a useful mental model to keep in mind as you get cracking on your efforts: progress isn’t linear. Instead, progress usually looks more like […]