Weekly Pulse by William Meller

The Weekly Pulse is my content curation and my highlights from readings, books, podcasts, insights, and everything I discovered during the week.

So, let’s go with some discoveries from the week!

#1 – Carol Dweck Revisits the Growth Mindset
#2 – The Physics of Productivity: Newton’s Laws of Getting Stuff Done
#3 – Nassim Taleb: What do I mean by Skin in the Game?
#4 – Incentives and the Two Types of Motivation
#5 – Your Job Doesn’t Have to Be Your Passion

Carol Dweck Revisits the Growth Mindset

Source: Edweek
Author: Carol Dweck

Summary: The growth mindset was intended to help close achievement gaps, not hide them. In many quarters, a growth mindset had become the right thing to have, the right way to think. But the path to a growth mindset is a journey, not a proclamation.

3 Highlights:

“… A growth mindset isn’t just about effort. Perhaps the most common misconception is simply equating the growth mindset with effort…”

“… The growth mindset was intended to help close achievement gaps, not hide them…”

“… Maybe we made the development of a growth mindset sound too easy. Maybe we talked too much about people having one mindset or the other, rather than portraying people as mixtures. We are on a growth-mindset journey, too…”

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The Physics of Productivity: Newton’s Laws of Getting Stuff Done

Source: James Clear Blog
Author: James Clear

Summary: In 1687, Sir Isaac Newton published a book, which described his three laws of motion. In the process, Newton laid the foundation for classical mechanics and redefined the way the world looked at physics and science. What most people don’t know, however, is that Newton’s three laws of motion can be used as an interesting analogy for increasing your productivity and improving your life.

3 Highlights:

“… Objects in motion tend to stay in motion. Find a way to get started in less than 2 minutes…”

“… It’s not just about working hard, it’s also about working on the right things. You have a limited amount of force and where you apply it matters…”

“… Your productivity is a balance of opposing forces. If you want to be more productive, you can either power through the barriers or remove the opposing forces…”

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Nassim Taleb: What do I mean by Skin in the Game?

Source: Medium
Author: Nassim Nicholas Taleb

Summary: Skin in the game –as a filter –is the central pillar for the organic functioning of systems, whether humans or natural. Unless consequential decisions are taken by people who pay for the consequences, the world would vulnerable to total systemic collapse.

3 Highlights:

“… Status came with increased exposure to risk: Alexander, Hannibal, Scipio, and Napoleon were not only first in battle, but derived their authority from a disproportionate exhibition of courage in previous campaigns…”

“… Systems don’t learn because people learn individually –that’s the myth of modernity…”

“… Talk is cheap and people who talk and don’t do are easily detectable by the public because they are too good at talking…”

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Incentives and the Two Types of Motivation

Source: FS
Author: Daniel Pink

Summary: Motivation is a tricky multifaceted thing. How do we motivate people to become the best they can be? How do we motivate ourselves? Sometimes when we are running towards a goal, we suddenly lose steam and peter out before we cross the finish line. Why do we lose our motivation part way to achieving our goal?

3 Highlights:

“… There are two types of motivation: intrinsic and extrinsic. Both are very different and lead to disparate outcomes…”

“… The best use of money as a motivator is to pay people enough to take the issue of money off the table…”

“… Rewards do not undermine people’s intrinsic motivation for dull tasks because there is little or no intrinsic motivation to be undermined…”

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Your Job Doesn’t Have to Be Your Passion

Source: Harvard Business Review
Author: Lauren C. Howe, Jon M. Jachimowicz, and Jochen I. Menges

Summary: Pursuing a passion outside of work can be less risky. And some research suggests transforming hobbies into work can actually undermine your enjoyment of these activities. Instead, look for a job that will give you the resources — time, money, and energy — to pursue your passion.

3 Highlights:

“… When it comes to energy, don’t think of your passion as something that provides fuel to energize you for work. Instead, look at your job as giving you the security and income to pursue your passion…“

“… If time is your scarcest resource, look for a job that offers schedule flexibility so that you can structure your work around your passions…”

“… If money is the issue, look for a job that allows you to pay for the life you want to lead…”

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Do you want to check previous Weekly Pulse posts? Check the last couple of weeks:

Weekly Pulse by William Meller | Special Edition, 20232023-12-29
Weekly Pulse by William Meller | Week 51, 20232023-12-22
Weekly Pulse by William Meller | Week 50, 20232023-12-15
Weekly Pulse by William Meller | Week 49, 20232023-12-08
Weekly Pulse by William Meller | Week 48, 20232023-12-01

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