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3 Thoughts
I.
One of the best ways to guarantee a mediocre life is to avoid everything that makes you uncomfortable.
II.
Sleep hits harder when you’re exhausted. Food tastes better when you’ve gone hungry. Water tastes sweeter when you’ve been grinding. Music hits deeper when you’ve been in silence.
Deprivation sharpens pleasure. Don’t run from suffering. That’s what gives life its color.
III.
Be relentlessly useful (online and offline), and good things will happen.
2 Quotes
I.
Author Sahil Bloom on early career advice:
“Choosing to work/live in a place with high talent density early in your career is the most important decision you can make. It changes your opportunity set and rewires your brain. The compounding effect of a few years in that environment can change the trajectory of your life.”
II.
Investor Jeremy Giffon on a sign you’ve found your calling:
“The more you understand who you are, the less you’ll envy those who you aren’t. If you don’t know whether you want to be a quarterback, a chef, or an artist, you’ll be envious of all of them. A great sign that you’ve found your calling is when you stop envying others.”
1 Game-Changing Idea: Solomon’s Paradox
A young scholar once traveled across the desert to seek the counsel of an old sage known for his unmatched wisdom.
When he arrived, he found the sage sitting outside a small hut, repairing a torn sandal.
“Master,” the scholar said, bowing deeply, “I have come to ask your guidance. I’ve been offered a position at court, but it means leaving my family behind. I do not know what to do.”
The sage smiled. “Ah,” he said, “a question of duty and desire. Tell me, what advice would you give to a friend who asked you the same thing?”
The scholar frowned. “That is easy. I would tell him to serve the court for a few years. He could send for his family later, once he has proven himself.”
The sage nodded. “Good advice. And why do you not follow it?”
The scholar hesitated. “Because it feels different when it is my own life. What if I am wrong? What if they forget me?”
The sage placed the sandal aside and looked out toward the horizon. “When we look at another’s path,” he said softly, “we see the road. When we look at our own, we see only the dust around our feet.”
The scholar said nothing. The wind shifted, carrying the smell of the desert across the plain.
“Wisdom,” the sage continued, “is not the lack of emotion. It is the ability to step outside it. You already know what is right… you simply cannot see it from where you stand.”
The scholar lowered his gaze. “Then how can I see it clearly?”
The sage smiled again. “By standing where your friend would stand. Step outside yourself. Look at your life as if it belonged to another. The heart clouds the eyes, but distance clears them.”
The young man bowed once more. When he turned to leave, he felt lighter, as though a veil had been lifted.
Years later, he would think often of that day, and of how easy it is to offer wisdom and how difficult it is to live by it.
The sage’s words remained with him like a lantern in the fog:
“Step outside yourself, and you will see what you already know.”
This is called Solomon’s Paradox: the tendency for people to be more rational and wise when giving advice for someone else’s problem than when dealing with their own personal issues.
This occurs because our own problems trigger stronger emotional responses, which can cloud judgment, while a detached, rational perspective is easier to adopt when advising others.
The next time you’re faced with a difficult decision, try this: imagine a close friend describing your exact situation. What would you tell them to do?
That small shift in perspective is often all it takes to uncover the answer that’s been hiding in plain sight.
Until next week,
Jay “Solomon” Yang
Ps. Had a blast on Jim O’Shaughnessy’s podcast. We talked about high agency and taking permissionless action.
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