Antifragile by Nassim Taleb

To be antifragile is not to eliminate fragility altogether. It is to reduce fragile elements and increase our robustness. Our modern life tries to remove randomness and even out our experiences. The lack of stressors or small random jolts is making us more fragile and sensitive to extreme events.

Our obsession with singularity, the feel of stability, and the predictable nature of the world is pushing us to be blind and unprepared for events that take us by surprise. To be robust is to have a lot of options and reduce domain dependency. Optionality keeps you alive, while one-domain dependency crushes you completely if things go wrong.

As our modern life is stripped of any stressors, we are hardly living up to our potential. To perform the best, you must have strong competitors. If you have the lazy ones, you are more likely to end up as one. Similarly, if you want to do something, you should do it on a busy day. You are more likely to finish it up as you are in the movement.

Speaking of the movement, as you move in life, you have to expose yourself to reality as much as you can. Real feedback is much more useful than the info you read. You have to take risks and also play it safe where you should. Being antifragile is being bold, learning in real time, and not killing yourself in the process. The Barbell Strategy.

And the good news is that there are some professions that are more antifragile than others. Artisans, writers, entrepreneurs, filmmakers, and carpenters are antifragile because they learn through live feedback and have skin in the game. If your goal is to survive longer, choose a profession that is not fragile.

Antifragile is an eye-opening read. It makes you think hard. It is not a comfortable read, as it keeps on questioning your beliefs and what you know as true. Though it offends, there is truth to the words. And Nassim Taleb doesn’t hesitate to speak his heart out. He is such a great thinker. I love his books. This in particular, I love it more. I highly recommend it.