The Era of Polymaths

A talk by Peter Kaufman on the Mulit-Disciplinary Approach to Thinking. Hosted by the Cal Poly Pomona Economics Club on March 29th, 2018. Mr. Kaufman does not normally allow his talks to be on the record, but is making a rare exception in this case. He believes the message within this talk – that it is possible to succeed in business, yet fail in life – is critical for anyone interested in living a full, meaningful life, with minimal regret in later years. He hopes that “going positive and going first”, “win/win”, and “going far by going together” are ideas that aspiring money managers will take to heart in their own lives. Link to Full Transcript: http://latticeworkinvesting.com/2018/04/06/peter-kaufman-on-the-multidisciplinary-approach-to-thinking/

One of the most interesting thoughts embedded in my head the other day is that "50 is the new 30."

There is furious debate on the theme with a lot many people who think the line a tub of crock. When thought of though from a dynamic systems perspective, this debate ought to be done and dusted with. 

As technology progresses with unprecedented velocity (as opposed to mindless speed), it is incumbent on humans to morph into polymaths. This is not just about survival, but about living well. We stand at the edge of a new Renaissance Era That is why I listened in with much fascination to this talk by Peter Kaufman, President of Gordian Group. 

For those who look at mental models and believe there is much value in multi-disciplinary thinking, this talk grabs you by the scruff of the neck from the word go.

"So why is it important to be a multidisciplinary thinker? The answer comes from the Austrian philosopher Ludwig Wittgenstein who said, ‘To understand is to know what to do.’ Could there be anything that sounds simpler than that? And yet it’s a genius line, to understand is to know what to do. How many mistakes do you make when you understand something? You don’t make any mistakes. Where do mistakes come from? They come from blind spots, a lack of understanding. Why do you need to be multidisciplinary in your thinking? Because as the Japanese proverb says, ‘The frog in the well knows nothing of the mighty ocean.’ You may know everything there is to know about your specialty, your silo, your “well”, but how are you going to make any good decisions in life…the complex systems of life, the dynamic system of life…if all you know is one well?"

The full transcript has been meticulously put in place by Richard Lewis of Latticework Investing.  I've gone over the ideas a few times now and am wrestling with all that is embedded in here. 

It's harder to be kinder than clever

Jeff Bezos is the kind of man whom I have watched from far with much fascination. What drives him? What is it about him being at the helm that catapulted Amazon into the kind of entity it is now?

An interesting pointer that came my way on how to look at everything he does and Amazon's longer term strategy came from my friend Haresh Chawla. He highlighted the significance of understanding the difference between velocity and speed. Like many people, you can move with great speed, but go around in circles. Few have the muscle in them to understand that only when  direction is embedded into speed, it morphs into velocity and you reach someplace of consequence.This subtlety formed the underpinnings of a hypothesis he framed on what sense to make of contemporary technology companies. 

Jeff Bezos, Haresh has always argued, is among those who gets the difference and it is embedded into everything that Amazon does. That is what Bezos a formidable thinker and makes Amazon an entity to watch out for.

When Haresh put it in as many words, I have since latched on to every byte of information that come in on Jeff Bezos, the man. What may he really be like? What keeps him awake? How does he think? What kind of mental models does he deploy? What philosophy does he subscribe to?

All thanks to a newsletter from James Clear, a transcript of a speech by him made at Princeton University in 2010 hit my inbox earlier today. 

Some parts of it had my attention. There is this episode where he talks of this time while attempting to show off his mathematical prowess to his grandmother. Instead of being impressed though, she bursts into tears. He is bewildered, until his grandfather's puts things into perspective: My grandfather looked at me, and after a bit of silence, he gently and calmly said, “Jeff, one day you’ll understand that it’s harder to be kind than clever.”

Every word of the talk is worth thinking over. This anecdote has stayed with me. What has stayed as well are the questions he leaves the audience with. I'd be curious to hear first hand from him how did he go about framing all of these in the first instance. Answers to questions like these insist on second-order thinking. It makes for a compelling read.

Tomorrow, in a very real sense, your life — the life you author from scratch on your own — begins.

How will you use your gifts? What choices will you make?

Will inertia be your guide, or will you follow your passions?

Will you follow dogma, or will you be original?

Will you choose a life of ease, or a life of service and adventure?

Will you wilt under criticism, or will you follow your convictions?

Will you bluff it out when you’re wrong, or will you apologize?

Will you guard your heart against rejection, or will you act when you fall in love?

Will you play it safe, or will you be a little bit swashbuckling?

When it’s tough, will you give up, or will you be relentless?

Will you be a cynic, or will you be a builder?

Will you be clever at the expense of others, or will you be kind?

I will hazard a prediction. When you are 80 years old, and in a quiet moment of reflection narrating for only yourself the most personal version of your life story, the telling that will be most compact and meaningful will be the series of choices you have made. In the end, we are our choices.