Razors, wise principles and tests

I have decided to compile a collection of so-called "Razors", wise principles and tests. A "razor" is a rule of thumb that simplifies decision making. I have also decided to release my collection in English because of two reasons: 

1) I have a big network of people who may appreciate the wisdom.

2) Many of the names of the razors (not invented by me) are in English, and many of the illustrations are in English. 

Some of them are probably widely known, but I have also added a couple from my own internal list.

I have tried to use as little text as possible and make the article as illustrative as possible. 

I will add more to the list as I remember about them or when I learn something new.

Have fun reading.

The Feynman Razor

Understanding something is different from knowing something in the respect, that understanding goes deeper. If you know something you can recite it, but understanding requires something more. Consider using the Learning Pyramid (see further down) for a way to do this efficient. 

Some people may mask the information by adding complexity and using jargon in order to compensate for their lack of actual understanding. If you can't explain it to a 5-year-old, you don't really understand it.

Hence, simplify a concept as much as possible, deep jargon at a minimum and don't add additional (accidental) complexity. If you can convey the information in its simplified form you understand.

Occam's Razor

The simplest explanation is probably the best one. Avoid adding additional complexity.

The Pareto Principle

Also known as the 80/20 rule. Put your energy into the 20% which yields the 80% of the results. Prioritise your tasks and activities accordingly. This principle also works well in combination with Parkinson's Law (coming up next).

Parkinsons Law

Work tends to expand to fill the period of time allocated for its completion. Hence, if you give yourself a week to complete a task which you are able to do in 3 hours, then - somehow - the task will "grow" and you are likely to be spending the whole week allocated. Be realistic and put yourself under a mild pressure and put in the greatest effort and focus from the onset of the task rather than postponing it until near the deadline.

The Dunning-Kruger Effect

Incompetent people tend to overestimate their own ability. Be aware of your own limitations and solicit the help from others. Be aware that there is an additional force in operation: The more you increase your competence, the more likely you are to discover errors, which have always rested in the hidden. This sometimes feels like 2 step forward and 1 step backward.

Confirmation Bias

People have a tendency to favour information that confirms their existing belief. Be more active in pursuing alternative viewpoints (you may need to work with your openness, but it is with minds as with parachutes: They work better when they are open) and challenge your own assumptions.

Cognitive Dissonance

This is closely affiliated with the above mentioned Confirmation Bias: Cognitive dissonance is an inner conflict that occurs when your beliefs don't match your actions or reality. It's an uncomfortable state of mind when someone has contradictory values, attitudes, or perspectives about the same thing. Most people will react with anger and will be very defensive when their viewpoints are challenged. Hence, be vary of your own cognitive dissonance. It is an indication that you need to work on your openness, ie. your ability to balance with multiple "truths". 

The Halo Effect

If you favour a specific person because of our impression of him/her and think he is competent in a particular area, you are likely to also think that he/she may be competent in a different area. Avoid snappy judgements and consider each individual according to the premises of each individual task.

The Sunk Cost Fallacy

Throwing good money after bad?  People often chose to continue investing in something because they have already invested their time, money or effort. Even when it no longer makes sense. Rather, base your decisions on future prospects rather than on past actions.

The Law of Diminishing Returns

When you reach a certain point in your effort, any additional input or effort tends to yield progressively smaller results.

Prioritise making the right thing over making things right

Getting a lot of details right don't help you if you are not working on the right thing, and you may waste a lot of time. Prioritise effectiveness over efficiency. Later, you can work on the details.

If you are in doubt, you are not in doubt

If you are in doubt whether you have done something right, you better err on the side of caution and redo the action. Especially when packing your parachute.

Make it right from the start

It is likely to save you time in the end, if you take the time to make it right from the start. The exception is mock-ups / prototypes

Make haste slowly

Aim to apply a somewhat quick pace, but not anymore than you keep the errors at bay

The Learning Pyramid

Even when faced with a steep learning curve and an overwhelming amount of information, you will find that making yourself the teacher will improve your own learning. Simply because it will force you to learn about the subject much deeper in order to explain it to others.throwing good money after bad

The Luck Razor

When choosing between two paths, choose the path that has a larger "luck surface" area.

Much of what we call "luck" is actually the macro result of a large number of micro actions / repetitions. Your daily habits put you in a position where "luck" is more likely to strike.

It's hard to get lucky watching TV at home—it's easy to get lucky when you're engaging and learning, physically or digitally.

Spend more time on things that increase your "luck surface" area.

In a way affiliated with Break the Condition (see further down).

The Arena Razor

Basically you are always standing at a crossroad in your life (you can always do something else). When faced with two paths, choose the path that puts you in the arena. Although it may be scary to be standing on the scene, it is where your development happens. Conversely, while it may feel safe to stand on the side of the road, you are not very likely to achieve your goal by throwing rocks from the sidelines. When you have entered the scene, don't take advice from people who are standing on the sidelines themselves.

The Optimist Razor

Prioritise spending more time with optimistic than with pessimistic people. The pessimist see the closed doors, but the optimist see the open doors. They may even be able to kick in any closed doors.

This razor is also related to The Victim and the Warrior (coming up next).

The Victim and the Warrior

Do you have a Victim or a Warrior mindset? Recognise both mindsets and chose to be the warrior.

The Victim:

• Takes away other peoples energy ("Energy Vampire")
• Sees the problems in the possibilities
• Is hiding when challenged - retreats in conflicts
• Takes the honour
• Is often a drama queen
• Has a tendency to blame others or to put blame on the conditions.
• Projects his/her own feelings onto others
• Talks, but don't act
• Gives up easily
• Body language is bend-over and sunk in
• Seeks influence, but avoids taking responsibility
• Infects other people with bad mood
• Uses reactive language such as "I have to", "I must", "I cannot")

The Warrior:

• Gives energy to others
• Sees the possibilities in the challenges
• Gives honour to others
• Is supportive of others
• Plays himself/herself as well as others optimally
• Acts!
• Takes responsibility
• Is appreciative of others and him/herself
• Body language: Chest ahead, head up
• Leads other people well, but can also be led
• Uses active and proactive language such as "I will", "I do", "I chose to"

Taleb's "Look the Part" Test

Nassim Nicholas Taleb famously proposed this rule of thumb in his best selling book, Skin in the Game.

He talks about choosing between two surgeons of equal qualification and experience. One looks highly-refined and one looks like a butcher. Quoting from the book: "Simply the one who doesn't look the part, conditional of having made a (sort of) successful career in his profession, had to have much to overcome in terms of perception."

Hence, if forced to choose between two options of seemingly equal merit, choose the one that doesn't look like the part.

The one who doesn't look the part has had to overcome much more to achieve its status than the one who fit in perfectly.

Taleb's minority rule

I have previously written a more comprehensive article about this on this website, called "Hvad laktosefri produkter har til fælles med frihedsbevægelsen" (only available in Danish).

According to Nassim Nicholas Taleb the principle is about how a small minority (say 3-4%) can affect a whole system. Take for instance lactose free products. A lactose intolerant person cannot consume products containing lactose, but a person who is not lactose intolerant can. Hence, under condition that it doesn't complicate the production much, it would be much simpler for the manufacturer to offer lactose free products only.

Another example is a person who only eats organic food. She may be the teenage daughter in family of 4. Rather than buying and preparing special vegetables for her, it would be much simpler for the whole familly, if they all ate organic. One day, this particular family is invited over to a neighbour for a BBQ. Because the first family is known for being a family who only eats organic, the host makes sure that all vegetables are organic.

Hence, consider the properties of your product carefully. You may be able to use this principle strategically.

The Rooms Razor

If you have a choice between entering two rooms, choose the room where you're more likely to be the dumbest person in the room. Once you're in the room, talk less and listen more. It may be bad for your ego, but great for your growth.

Socrates and The 3 sieves

The story about the 3 sieves is something we can apply to our lives. Before you tell a story or pass on a rumour, ask yourself whether it is true, kind and necessary. Often we pass on gossip we've heard to keep the conversation going or talk negatively about somebody we know.

The story goes like this:

"One day a man runs up to Socrates and said: "I have to tell you something about your friend who…""

"Hold up" Socrates interrupts him "About the story you're about to tell me, did you put it trough the three sieves?"

The man was not familiar with the three sieves, so Socrates continued: "The first is the sieve of Truth. Are you sure that what you are going to tell me is true?"

"To tell the truth", said the man, "no, I just overheard it".

"What about the sieve of Goodness. Will you tell me something good or positive about this man?"

The man shook his head.

"Now, what about the last sieve. Is it necessary to tell me what you're so excited about?"

When the man bowed his head in shame, Socrates smiled and said "Well, if the story you're about to tell me is neither true, good or necessary, just forget it and don't bother me with it."

The Uphill Decision Razor

When faced with two options, there are two paths:

1. Easy now—hard later.
2. Hard now—easy later.

Choose the one that's more difficult in the short-term (2).

Break the Condition

You may know the feeling when your own energy of the collective energy in a group of people suddenly feels low. It is likely to continue to be low or even to get worse, unless you break the condition and do something different. It can something small like to make everyone to get up and stand, rather than continuing sitting at the table. It often raise the energy dramatically. It can also be something larger in order to disrupt your current way of thinking.

Listen Mode

If you encounter someone with opinions or perspectives very different from your own, listen twice as much as you speak.

Our natural tendency when we hear a view we disagree with is to respond and refute it (see Cognitive Dissonance further above). Instead, always default to Listen Mode. You'll learn way more that way.

The Lion Razor

Sprint, then rest (if you have the choice).

Habits are hard to break, and many are faced with long periods of steady work - a remnant from the Industrial Age.

Parkinson's Law states that work expands to fill the time available for its completion. When you establish fixed hours to do your work, you find unproductive ways to fill it—you work longer, but get less done.

If your goal is to do inspired, creative work, you have to work like a lion: Sprint when inspired. Rest. Repeat. Consider using the Pomodoro technique.

The Young & Old Test

Make decisions that your 80-year old self and 10-year-old self would be proud of.

Your 80-year-old self cares about the long-term compounding of the decisions of today.

Your 10-year-old self reminds you to stay foolish and have some fun along the way.

When you make decisions with both of them in mind, you have a recipe for a productive, joy-filled life.

The Duck Test

"If it looks like a duck, swims like a duck, and quacks like a duck, it's probably a duck."

Such goes a popular saying by Walter Reuther. You can determine a lot about a person by observing their habitual actions and characteristics. But be wary of Black Swan events. 

Hanlon's Razor

Never attribute to malice that which can be adequately explained by stupidity.

In assessing someone's actions, we shouldn't assume negative intent if there's a viable alternative explanation—different beliefs, lack of intelligence, incompetence, or ignorance.

Applies very much to areas like politics and relationships.

Hitchens' Razor & Newton's Flaming Laser Sword

Anything asserted without evidence can be dismissed without evidence.

If something cannot be settled by reasonable experiment or observation, it's not worth debating.

These will save you from wasting a lot of time on pointless arguments (especially on social media).

The Opinion Razor

"I never allow myself to have an opinion on anything that I don't know the other side's argument better than they do." (Charlie Munger)

Remember: Opinions are earnt—not owed.

If you can't state the opposition's argument clearly, you haven't earned an opinion.

The Writing Knife Block

If you're struggling to understand something, try writing it out.

When you write, you expose the gaps that exist in your logic and thinking. Study to fill the gaps.

Writing is the ultimate tool to sharpen thinking—use it as a "knife block" for life.

Tell the Teddy Bear

When I was active as a Programmer, I - as well as my colleagues - often encountered problems in the code, that we struggled to solve. Eventually you may give up and call over a colleague in order to solicit his/her help. But very often, during the process of explaining your code to the colleague, you would find the problem yourself. 

Hence, why not tell your problem to a Teddy Bear?

The Braggers Razor

Truly successful people rarely feel the need to brag about their success.

If someone regularly brags about their income, wealth, or success, it's fair to assume the reality is likely a small fraction of what they claim.

If they consistently name drop important people with no relevant context, it's fair to assume that fraction is even smaller than you originally thought.

The Stress-reward Test

Too many people take on stress that has no upside.

If something is going to be stressful, consider whether the reward is sufficiently outsized to justify the stress.

If it isn't, don't take it on.

The Circle of Control

Contained in your Circle of Control are the things you can do something about - often without major dependencies. 

Contained in your Circle of Concern are the things that you worry about, but where you cannot do anything directly.

Know where your problem resides and apply the corresponding action. You may however consider using a third circle, which can be found between the 2 already mentioned: The Circle of Influence, where you may be able to change things indirectly.

"God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, The courage to change the things I can, And the wisdom to know the difference." Reinhold Niebuhr.

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