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3 Thoughts
I.
Sometimes just staying in the game is winning.
II.
The ceiling of your potential is determined by the size of uncertainty you’re willing to tolerate.
III.
The limits of your language are the limits of your world.
<> To define is to limit.
2 Quotes
I.
Heard this line the other day and it hit hard:
“We only dream to the size of our exposures. Because what we’re exposed to is the only things we think are reachable.”
II.
Dr. Watson: “What do you imagine that means?”
Sherlock Holmes: “I have no data yet. It is a capital mistake to theorize before one has data. Insensibly one begins to twist facts to suit theories, instead of theories to suit facts.”
—from A Scandal in Bohemia
1 Game-Changing Idea: Tian Ji’s Horses
Two thousand years ago in the Kingdom of Qi, there lived a man named Tian Ji. He was a respected statesman, but what he loved most was racing horses.
The King of Qi shared this passion. When he heard that Tian Ji had acquired a new stable, he issued a challenge: three days of races, with gold at stake.
It was not a fair fight. The King’s horses were known throughout the land as the finest. Everyone expected Tian Ji to lose. Still, no one refused the King.
The rules were clear: Each man would divide his horses into three classes: fast, medium, and slow. Each day there would be three races, one for each class. Whoever won two days out of three would take the prize.
On the first day, Tian Ji raced straight up. His best against the King’s best. His second-best against the King’s second-best. His slowest against the King’s slowest.
He lost all three.
The King celebrated. Tian Ji returned home in despair.
That night, an old friend came to visit him. Sun Bin, a military strategist known for his brilliance, listened to Tian Ji’s troubles. Then he smiled.
“You cannot beat him at his own game,” Sun Bin said. “But you can still win.”
The next morning, Tian Ji walked onto the racetrack with a new plan.
In the first race, he sent out his slowest horse against the King’s fastest. He lost easily. The King laughed, thinking Tian Ji a fool.
But in the second race, Tian Ji brought out his finest horse against the King’s second-best. He won.
In the third race, his second-best outran the King’s weakest. He won again.
The crowd erupted. The match was tied.
On the third day, Tian Ji followed the same plan. He lost the first race, then won the next two. Against all expectations, Tian Ji had beaten the King and carried home the gold.
What looked like weakness was strategy. Tian Ji did not need stronger horses. He needed a smarter way to use the ones he had.
Until next week,
Jay “Avoid What Is Strong, Strike What Is Weak” Yang
Ps. Enjoyed jamming with Scott Clary on taking "the permissionless approach".
This was one of my favorite conversations yet.
Take a listen below :)
Kind words for ‘You Can Just Do Things’
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