Incerto by Nassim Nicholas Taleb
Incerto is a five-volume (Fooled by Randomness, The Black Swan, The Bed of Procrustes, Antifragile, and Skin in the Game) essay on uncertainty. It is about how to live in a world we don’t understand.
The central message is that while there is high uncertainty in the world, what to do about it is always certain. Uncertainty makes decisions straightforward.
These are my reading notes.
I. Fooled by Randomness
It’s more random than we think.
1. Solon’s Warning: The Uncertain Future is Yet to Come
Chance favors the prepared. Hard work, showing up on time, etc are necessary but may be insufficient as they do not cause success.
By…
How to make smarter financial decisions early in life
Towards the end of high school I had developed a curiosity for the business of money making using money, formally known as investing. The book Rich Dad Poor Dad by Robert Kiyosaki had motivated me to start putting my money to good use. I thought “how hard can it be, right?”
So, full of confidence, I decided to buy a Nike stock for €50, not realising that I had to pay €25 of transaction fees. …
Alex Vikner
On the polymath’s journey.
