On Financial Simplification, Rogue Economics, and Networking

Books that changed my life

Hello all!

Here is your weekly dose of books that changed my life! Remember, you can access my notes from the books at the "My personal notes from the book" link.

1. Personal finance
The Behavior Gap: Simple Ways to Stop Doing Dumb Things with Money

Summary
This book uses simple, "back of the napkin" illustrations to highlight fundamental rules of not only investing, but also of life. The advice is outstanding and is presented in such a way that gets you thinking–which is the first step to making real change and progress in your life. This is an easy and fun read that also packs a punch. 

• Illustrations:

  

  

• Principle: We need to spend less time watching and worrying about our money-less time giving in to our anxiety, our need to control things. If we can do that, we'll soon realize that it's not important to know what happened on Wall Street this week. What matters is what we did or didn't do in order to move closer to our goals.

• Insight: When we live in the future, we're lost in fantasy or fear. When we live in the past, we're lost in regret or nostalgia.

Author: Carl Richards
Themes: Personal finance, Investing, Wealth creation, Human psychology
My personal notes from the book
 

2. Behavioral economics
Freakonomics: A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side of Everything

Summary
A book like Freakonomics is so much fun to read because it forces you to think about about things in new ways. Your long held beliefs will be challenged. Freakonomics cuts away the political fat the often muddies societal issues. For example, to improve learning outcomes for elementary students, it is not always a school funding issue. In one study, glasses were provided to students to help correct their poor vision. The result? Learning outcomes improved. Levitt and Dubner offer a fresh way of looking at problems, and more importantly, implementing solutions. 

• Principle: Incentives are the cornerstone of modern life. And understanding them–or fretting them out–is the key to solving just about any riddle, from violent crime to sports cheating to online dating. 

• Insight: Correlation vs causation [Two examples of correlation]: (1) A czar learned that the most disease-ridden province in his empire was also the province with the most doctors. His solution: he promptly ordered all the doctors shot dead. (2) Denver and DC have the same population, DC has 3x the number of police officers and 8x the number of murders. Unless you have more info, its hard to say what's causing the murders. Someone who didn't know better might contemplate these figures and conclude that it is all those extra police who are causing the extra murders.

• Quote: The plural of anecdote is not data.

Author: Steven Levitt and Stephen Dubner
Themes: Behavioral economics, Personal development, Business, Society
My personal notes from the book
 

3. Networking
Never Eat Alone: And Other Secrets to Success, One Relationship at a Time

Summary
This was a surpriser for me. In fact, it was on the second reading that its lessons really popped out. Books on networking and relationship building usually espouse the same concepts. In Never Eat Alone, you'll get a fresh perspective with many unique insights. There are tons of gems for everyday life, for growing a business, and for advancing your career. 

• Principle: Happiness is about the community we build around ourselves. 

• Insight: When it comes to making an impression, differentiation is the name of the game. Confound expectation. Shake it up. There's one guaranteed way to stand out in the professional world: Be yourself. Vulnerability is one of the most underappreciated assets in business today.

• Quote: No one becomes an astronaut by accident. -Keith Ferrazzi

• Formula for following up after a meeting

  • Always express your gratitude

  • Include item of interest from meeting or conversation

  • Reaffirm whatever community both made

  • Be brief

  • Timeliness is key

Author: Keith Ferrazzi
Themes: Networking, Business, Career advancement, Human psychology, Personal growth
My personal notes from the book

Thanks for reading! 

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Best,
Adam

P.S. Do you have a favorite book that changed your life? Please share it with me by replying to this email.

Previous 3-Book Thursdays
1/12/2023
1/5/2023
12/29/2022
12/22/2022
12/15/2022

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