10 Things I’ve Learned
From my conversations with the sharpest people in the English-speaking world, here are 10 things I’ve learned:
1. They’re not afraid to say, “I don’t understand” and “I don’t know”.
2. They’re very well read *outside* of their discipline.
3. They’re curious.
4. They listen carefully and ask follow up questions.
5. They go by their first name. No “Doctor,” just their first name.
6. They call bullshit on bad ideas.
7. They are exceptionally good at entertaining and engaging hypotheticals.
8. They don’t take themselves too seriously.
9. They never jockey for position or status.
10. Once they understand what’s wrong with an idea, they drill down just a little more to make sure the idea cannot withstand their criticism.
And they are not morons as Feynman describes them.
“Never confuse education with intelligence, you can have a PhD and still be an idiot.”
― Richard P. Feynman
Here’s one from my late father- The number of true friends you gather in life and can count on you can count on one hand. Be one of those people for others