Think like a Physicist
I try to be hyper-rational.
If the reasoning fits, and you’re not violating the laws of physics, that’s the thing you should try to do.
These things just don’t seem that crazy to me.80
Start somewhere. Then be prepared to question your assumptions, fix what you did wrong, and adapt to reality.81
I am obsessed with truth. Obsessed.82 If you’re going to come up with a good solution, the truth is really, really important.83
This obsession with truth is why I studied physics, because physics attempts to understand the truth of the universe. Physics is about finding the provable truths of the universe, and finding truths that have predictive power.84
Physics is law. Everything else is a recommendation. I’ve met many people who can break the laws of man, but I have never met anyone who could break the laws of physics.
For me, physics was a natural thing to study. It was intrinsically interesting to understand the nature of the universe. I also studied computer science and information theory to understand logic. (Information theory studies the transmission, processing, extraction, and use of information.) There’s an argument that information theory is actually operating at a more fundamental level than physics.85
Truth matters to me a lot. Pathologically, it matters to me.86
No matter how smart you are, you will make some number of mistakes. Everyone makes mistakes. It’s just a question of how many and how often.87
In business and personal life, wishful thinking causes a lot of mistakes. You have to ask whether something is true or not. If something ever feels too easy or doesn’t quite make sense…it is probably wishful thinking.88
Wishful thinking is a natural human tendency. It’s a challenge to tell the difference between believing in a new idea and persevering or pursuing an unrealistic dream. You need to be rigorous in your self-analysis. Focus on something you’re confident will have high value to someone else. Be rigorous in making that assessment too.89
The real test of any startup is how well it responds to adversity and adapts. When most things start out they don’t make much sense, but as long as you adapt quickly you can make the company work.
Being tenacious and super focused on the truth is extremely important. Look for feedback from all sources.90
If you have beliefs that are incompatible with a rocket getting to orbit, the rocket will not get to orbit. Physics is a harsh judge.91
Do you have the right fundamental axioms, or truths? Are they relevant? Are you making the right conclusions based on those truths? That’s the essence of critical thinking, and yet it is amazing how often people fail to do that. Wishful thinking is innate in the human brain. You want things to be the way you wish them to be, so you tend to filter out information you shouldn’t.92
That’s why I always assume we’re losing, even when it looks like we might win.93