Frequently asked questions about thinking, epistemology, and cognitive tools. 1498 answers
What was true in one time period may not be true in another — always note the when.
For one week, keep a Temporal Audit Log. Every time you encounter a claim, recommendation, or piece of advice — in a book, article, conversation, or your own memory — write down three things: (1) the claim itself, (2) when it was established or when the source was produced, and (3) what has.
The most dangerous failure mode is not recognizing outdated information — it is treating all information as either timeless or expired, with no middle ground. Some people overcorrect by dismissing anything older than a year as irrelevant. Others never update at all and operate on knowledge from a.
What was true in one time period may not be true in another — always note the when.
Your emotional state when you perceive something becomes part of what you perceive.
Your emotional state when you perceive something becomes part of what you perceive.
Your emotional state when you perceive something becomes part of what you perceive.
Shared vocabulary does not guarantee shared meaning.
Shared vocabulary does not guarantee shared meaning.
Shared vocabulary does not guarantee shared meaning.
Shared vocabulary does not guarantee shared meaning.
Online messages strip context that face-to-face communication provides automatically.
Online messages strip context that face-to-face communication provides automatically.
Online messages strip context that face-to-face communication provides automatically.
Online messages strip context that face-to-face communication provides automatically.
Online messages strip context that face-to-face communication provides automatically.
Pick your last five messages sent via text, Slack, or email. For each one, write down: (1) what you intended the tone to be, (2) what contextual cues you relied on the recipient having, and (3) what the message would mean to a stranger reading it cold. Count how many of the five could be misread..
Assuming your reader shares your context by default. You'll know you're in this failure mode when someone responds to your message with unexpected hostility or confusion and your first thought is 'but it was obvious what I meant.' It was obvious to you. You had the context. They didn't.
Online messages strip context that face-to-face communication provides automatically.
The structures and incentives of an organization determine individual action more than personality does.
The structures and incentives of an organization determine individual action more than personality does.
The structures and incentives of an organization determine individual action more than personality does.
The structures and incentives of an organization determine individual action more than personality does.
Pick one behavior in your organization that frustrates you — missed deadlines, siloed communication, risk aversion, whatever recurs despite everyone agreeing it's a problem. Now answer: What does the system reward? What does it punish? What does it measure? Map the actual incentive structure, not.