Noam Chomsky on seeking what is significant

vutran | March 28, 2021, 8:33 a.m.

"You can't expect somebody to become a biologist by giving them access to the Harvard University biology library and saying, "Just look through it." That will give them nothing. The internet is the same, except magnified enormously.

...

The person who wins the Nobel Prize in biology is not the person who read the most journal articles and took the most notes on them. It's the person who knew what to look for.

Cultivating that capacity to seek what's significant, always willing to question whether you're on the right track, that's what education is going to be about, whether it's using computers and internet, or pencil and paper and books”

— Noam Chomsky

Adam Grant on how to elicit feedback:

vutran | March 28, 2021, 8:31 a.m.

"When people hesitate to give honest feedback on an idea, draft, or performance, I ask for a 0-10 score.

No one ever says 10. Then I ask how I can get closer to a 10.

It motivates them to start coaching me – and motivates me to be coachable. I want to learn how to close the gap."

— Adam Grant

James Clear on minutiae vs polish

vutran | March 28, 2021, 8:30 a.m.

“People who excel tend to obsess over the details.

People who struggle also tend to obsess over the details.

The difference is what details they focus on. Minutiae vs polish.

Most things don’t matter—but when it does, you want to get the details right.”

— James Clear

Dale Carnegie on happiness

vutran | March 27, 2021, 12:07 p.m.

“Remember, happiness doesn't depend upon who you are or what you have; it depends solely on what you think.”

— Dale Carnegie

John Muir on the power of imagination

vutran | March 27, 2021, 12:06 p.m.

“The power of imagination makes us infinite.”

— John Muir

Steve Jobs on being willing to fail

vutran | March 22, 2021, 7:25 p.m.

“Most people never pick up the phone. Most people never call and ask. And that's what separates sometimes the people who do things from those who just dream about them. You gotta act. You gotta be willing to fail. You gotta be willing to crash and burn. With people on the phone or starting a company, if you're afraid you'll fail, you won't get very far."

— Steve Jobs

Chief of stuff on commenting vs making

vutran | March 22, 2021, 7:23 p.m.

"The biggest change in my professional maturity came when I became Actually Responsible for things. ... I gained a lot of appreciation for people who make things, and lost a lot of tolerance for people who only pontificate. I found myself especially frustrated with my past self, whose default was to complain and/or comment, then wonder why things didn’t magically get better."

— Commenting Vs. Making, https://chiefofstuff.substack.com/p/commenting-vs-making