I can't deny the fact that Nassim Taleb's Fooled By Randomness has had a profound affect on much of my thinking since I read the book almost a year ago, so I'm really looking forward to his next book. The idea that we create narratives and explanations for events that happen simply by chance is in itself a really important idea that has implications across almost every field of study. And in some fields, randomness is no mere epiphenomenon, but the core to understanding it. Pharmaceuticals, venture capital, the movie business and many others are characterized by wide swings that eat alive anyone who claims to have figured it out.
If you've read Fooled By Randomness, or are simply interested in the subject, I'd highly recommend reading the blog of a kindred mind, Arthur De Vany. De Vany is an economist by training who is not only an expert on the movie business, but also health and physical fitness. What's great, is that to him, economics, Hollywood, and personal fitness are all tied together, again by randomness, so his interests aren't as disparate as they may seem. Recognizing that our world is unpredictable -- or at least the world of our cavemen ancestors was -- the optimal path is to bring as much variety as possible into one's exercise and dietary habits.
So, mix up your exercises. Don't go to the gym on the same days of the week. Don't repeat the same reps over and over. Do make quick sharp moves. Do 30-yard sprints. Try to balance on narrow beams just for the experience of feeling a momentary state of unbalance. In the kitchen, skip meals more often. Go to bed hungry. Go a day hungry. Eat plenty of vegetables and meats but not the same ones everyday at the same meal. Get a range of colors in your diet.
And let me just say, on a personal note, that having taken this approach, it already feels great. Energy levels up, weight down, etc.
But there's something more profound at work than just an effective fitness regime.
Consider a game of Rock Paper Scissors. If you ask anyone who knows anything about the game, they'll tell you that the only real strategy at all is to make your throws randomized. As long as you don't fall into any pattern whatsoever -- something very hard for anyone to do -- you'll be impossible to beat over many hands. You probably won't win either, but Rock Paper Scissors isn't a winnable game. The randomization technique is so effective though, that you could use it against God himself, and provided he didn't cheat by reading your mind or forcing you to throw a rock while he throws paper, you'd be able to go toe to toe. So perhaps going through life is akin to such a game. The key is to keep the throws random, and try as hard as possible not to get into too much of a groove or a pattern. As life throws random events at you, you have to throw them back.
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