Without the ability to direct our attention where we will, we become more receptive to those who would direct our attention where they will—to the omnipresent purveyors of marshmallows. To the extent that the power of concentration
“Binny Jordan searched frantically around her room, which had the attendant swirl of strewn-about junk you would expect to find in space occupied by a ten-year-old girl. Binny’s search was impeded by all the clothes on the floor and discarded cups snuck upstairs for beverages to be consumed outside the kitchen (in flagrant violation of Binny’s parents’ rules).”
― Echoes of the Past
― Echoes of the Past
“A gang of burglars acting in the country might be expected to vary the scene of their operations, and not to crack two cribs in the same district within a few days.”
― The Complete Sherlock Holmes ebook: All 56 Stories and 4 Novels
― The Complete Sherlock Holmes ebook: All 56 Stories and 4 Novels
“This is not antidemocratic. When the humanity of others who were previously invisible becomes apparent to us for the first time, I think it is because we have noticed something particular in them. By contrast, egalitarian empathy, projected from afar and without discrimination, is more principled than attentive. It is content to posit rather than to see the humanity of its beneficiaries. But the one who is on the receiving end of such empathy wants something more than to be recognized generically. He wants to be seen as an individual, and”
― The World Beyond Your Head: On Becoming an Individual in an Age of Distraction
― The World Beyond Your Head: On Becoming an Individual in an Age of Distraction
“Ben, those silver bullets that you and Mike are looking for are fine and good, but our Web server is five times slower. There is no silver bullet that’s going to fix that. No, we are going to have to use a lot of lead bullets.” Oh snap.”
― The Hard Thing About Hard Things: Building a Business When There Are No Easy Answers—Straight Talk on the Challenges of Entrepreneurship
― The Hard Thing About Hard Things: Building a Business When There Are No Easy Answers—Straight Talk on the Challenges of Entrepreneurship
“No, markets weren’t “efficient” at finding the truth; they were just very efficient at converging on a conclusion—often the wrong conclusion.”
― The Hard Thing About Hard Things: Building a Business When There Are No Easy Answers—Straight Talk on the Challenges of Entrepreneurship
― The Hard Thing About Hard Things: Building a Business When There Are No Easy Answers—Straight Talk on the Challenges of Entrepreneurship
Michael Natkin’s 2025 Year in Books
Take a look at Michael Natkin’s Year in Books, including some fun facts about their reading.
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