The Bed of Procrustes
by Nassim Nicholas Taleb
Taleb's aphorisms: on fragility, modernity, success, love, the academy and the 'ludic fallacy'. Some are brilliant, some are insults, and the ratio depends on your tolerance for the author. Short enough to finish in an hour and argue about for a year.
Read it if…
you like Taleb and want him concentrated.
See the book →
Skip it if…
you find him insufferable; this will confirm it.
Try instead: Building a Non-Anxious Life →
Three things you will actually use
- Modernity cuts people to fit the bed.
- What is fragile should break early.
- You are rich if money you refuse tastes better than money you accept.
Do this first
Read it with a pencil and mark the ten you cannot refute.
Our verdict
Taleb, concentrated.
See the book →
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