Interviewer: “When it comes to human nature and human behavior, would you describe yourself as a pessimist?” “Pessimism has no function. It’s an indulgence of people who have little stamina to confront the challenges of modern life. And it’s a good way to rationalize their withdrawal from the great work of human beings, which is,…
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In thinking through how to make some changes in my business, I’ve been thinking about identity in general. One of the strongest drivers of our behavior is to comply with the person we believe ourselves to be. If you want to do something different, you have to adopt the identity of the kind of person…
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I went to participate in an event held at a bookstore in a big city. I saw on the store's calendar that a Very Famous Author (we'll call him Mr. X) had been there the day before.
“Wow,” I said to the staff. “'I'm intimidated to follow Mr. X. What was he like?”
The two exchanged a glance, and apparently decided I was trustworthy enough to not report them to their manger. “To be honest,” one of them said, “Mr. X was an asshole. He came in, didn't say hi to anyone, and threw his keys on the counter, demanding that someone valet his rental car.”
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