Essays

Knowledge is the cornerstone of civilization. It’s what allows us to solve the constant stream of problems we face as individuals and in society. However, not everyone can be an expert at everything. Especially, with increasing depth of knowledge, specialization requires more time than before. One human lifetime is not enough to acquire even a significant part of the knowledge society collectively built. Luckily, we don’t have to. Solving the world’s problems is a team effort after all. ...

While you can have virtually anything you want, you can’t have everything you want. Ray Dalio I’ve been thinking a lot about limitations lately. While we’re often pretty good at avoiding facing our limitations we can’t deny that they’re there. And then there are times where we can’t escape them. Suddenly whole countries are under lockdown and our ability to move freely is severely limited. People cannot escape this and they get frustrated or angry. ...

A soldier spends every minute from the moment he wakes up to when he goes to sleep with a single purpose: training for battle. A top-athlete is dedicating every second of the day towards maximizing her performance at her sport. How does a day dedicated to the highest performance in knowledge work look like? I asked myself that question over some time tried out different tools and tactics, and arrived at a field-tested routine. Let’s call it Beastmode. ...

You know those parts in movies where a blasting soundtrack comes on and the hero trains and progresses in about two minutes from zero to superstar? I’m thinking the Rocky Balboa training sequences (or any other boxing movie for that matter) or the limitless Eddie Morra sequence where he finishes his book, learns piano, some languages, and a bunch of other stuff in synch to a Black Keys banger. Real-life doesn’t work like that of course. It’s often hard to get motivated long enough and push oneself hard enough to make big progress on skills. In turn, it’s easy to drop the ball when results don’t come quickly. It’s easy to go watch some Netflix instead. ...

I stepped out of the train and could already smell the sea. There was a small building with a ticket office and behind it, a rock wall specked with vegetation. It took a moment for me to orient myself. I spotted a sign that said Montereggione and went where it was pointing. A couple of minutes later I walked the main street of the small fisher village down to the seashore. The village was beautifully nestled between hills right at the shore of the Mediterranean sea. I could already smell fried fish from the open restaurant doors and saw people eating outside at the tables. I realized then how hungry I was and decided to put my backpack down and seat myself at the next free table. I ordered myself a plate of fish and vegetables. I was in no hurry. ...