Same as Ever# summary

John D. Rockefeller was one of the richest men who ever lived, but you have access to something he couldn’t afford – penicillin. It wasn’t available in his time, so whatever your station in life, you have one up on him.

That’s probably not going to make you pump your fist. After all, most people have access to penicillin now. And that’s exactly the point. Humans are often only happy when they can say, “I’m better off than that person.” People don’t want to be rich, they want to be richer than those around them.

Eliud Kipchoge looked anything but elated for someone who’d just won gold at the 2021 Tokyo Olympics. According to the excited silver and bronze medallists who waited with him before the medal ceremony, Kipchoge stared at the wall the whole time.

He’d just won gold and made his country exceedingly proud, but he didn’t bother to pick up his phone and read messages of congratulations, or see what was happening online. Strange behavior for this era, but not wholly unexpected when it comes to exceptional people.

President Obama had an important decision to make before deploying the Navy SEAL team tasked with killing Osama bin Laden. There was no way of knowing for sure if bin Laden was in the compound that was the military’s target. So, the President had to make a decision based on a 60-to-80 percent probability that he had the right intel. Luckily for Obama, his instincts were correct.

Attacking a military target involves higher stakes than deciding what car to buy, who to marry, or where you send your kids to school. But these examples all involve making a choice. It’s hard to predict what returns an investment will yield, or what the economy will look like next year, yet humans always want certainty. We feel anxious when faced with the unknown, and often seek out experts to replace anxiety with surety. However, the best way to progress is to make the soundest possible decision with the resources you have.

Warren Buffett isn’t famous for his jokes, but he once made a wise quip. He said that it’s impossible to make a baby in one month by getting nine women pregnant. This is important to remember, as you consolidate your success.

The initial excitement that follows a successful venture often tempts people into growing too fast, at a rate they can’t handle. This is true for young businesses, as they try to expand their influence and take advantage of every opportunity that comes their way. But before long, they’re stretched to breaking point. When this happens, the quality of products and services dips, leading to dissatisfied customers who then look to other companies to meet their needs.

Prominent cancer researcher Robert Weinberg once made an illuminating remark on the state of cancer treatment. He said it was easy to stop people dying from cancer if they avoided cancer in the first place. But going around persuading people to give up habits that cause cancer isn’t an intellectually stimulating challenge.

Weinberg isn’t alone. Humans derive a weird satisfaction from solving complex problems. But is it worth all the anxiety? Aren’t you better served on the less complicated path of simplicity? Think about the number of times you’ve tied yourself up in knots just so you could say, “I overcame that!”