BC FIRSTPRINCIPLES
Saved by @cur10uslearner

First principles thinking is a powerful framework for deconstructing complex problems and driving non-linear outcomes.

Here's a breakdown of what it is and how it works:

 Aristotle defined a first principle as "the first basis from which a thing is known."

A first principle is a basic, foundational assumption—one that cannot be deduced or broken down any further.

First principles are foundational truths.
"First principles thinking”—or "reasoning from first principles”—is a problem-solving and innovation framework that requires you to break down a complex problem into its most foundational elements.

The aim: to ground yourself in the foundational truths and build up from there.
When we encounter challenging problems, our tendency is to rely on base level assumptions we have been told are true—or we believe to be true.

It's quick and easy to do.

But it also leads to unimaginative, linear solutions that closely resemble what has been done before.
This is called "reasoning by analogy”—it leads to solutions that are much like something else.

To be sure, it can be very useful when speed is the priority.

But it falls short when dealing with complex problems requiring creative, imaginative solutions.
Imagine the solution to a problem as a house.

The foundation is the assumptions upon which the solution rests.

If it's shoddy, it'll collapse. If it's sturdy, it'll thrive.

First principles form a sturdy foundation for the house—and allow you to build more creatively on top!
To bring this to life, let's look at a classic example of first principles thinking in action:

@elonmusk & @SpaceX

The problem? Sending a rocket to Mars to begin the process of making humans an interplanetary species.

Love him or hate him, that does sound pretty complex...
Musk quickly discovered the cost of buying a rocket was astronomical (pun intended)—$65 million or so.

It was not only financially untenable, it was also grounded in assumptions of how rockets have always been built and what they should cost.

So he turned to first principles.
He asked a few foundational questions:

What's a rocket made of?

Aerospace-grade aluminum alloys, titanium, copper, and carbon fiber.

What's the value of those materials on the open market?

Just ~2% of the typical rocket price!

So he decided SpaceX would build its own rocket.
Rather than accepting the established "truths" about the cost of a rocket, Musk grounded his problem solving in first principles.

Today, @SpaceX rockets are doing extraordinary things at a fraction of the historical cost—the dreams of a Mars voyage appear alive and well.
How can you leverage first principles thinking to create better outcomes?

First, determine if it's necessary for your given problem, or if reasoning by analogy is a better fit.

As a rule of thumb:
• For speed/efficiency—analogy
• For creativity/innovation—first principles
Assuming first principles thinking is the appropriate path, start by asking questions to drill down into the core of the problem.

@ShaneAParrish calls this "Socratic Questioning”—think of it as resurfacing the insatiably curious child in you.

Here are a few to get you started:
What is the problem I am trying to solve?

We often waste time and energy trying to solve the "wrong" problem. Identify the "right" problem.

What do I know to be true about this problem?

Write down everything you know about the problem (and its previously attempted solutions).
Why do I believe these "truths" to be true? How do I know they are true?

Identify the source of your beliefs. Be ruthless in evaluating their integrity.

How can I support these beliefs? Is there real evidence to support them?

Seek out hard evidence that proves their truth.
Are my emotions clouding my judgment?

When emotions drive our thoughts and decisions, we rarely see good outcomes.

What alternative beliefs might exist?

Understanding alternative viewpoints is a superpower.

What are the consequences of being wrong?

Always know the stakes!
First principles thinking starts with questioning your beliefs.

Asking these questions will help you drill down to the foundational truths of a problem and ultimately build up to a more imaginative solution.
The world is filled with unimaginative, copycat solutions.

These predictably lead to linear outcomes.

Leveraging first principles thinking is intense and time consuming—but it is also a pathway to devising creative solutions that drive non-linear, asymmetric outcomes.
That was a breakdown on first principles thinking. I hope you found it useful.

Follow me @SahilBloom for more threads on business, finance, growth, and decision-making.

I’ll be doing a deep-dive in my newsletter. Join 62,000+ others and subscribe! https://t.co/qMB8i60ney
And be sure to check out my new podcast with @gregisenberg
—Where It Happens—for first principles conversations with amazing guests on the most interesting topics in business and tech. https://t.co/MPmloxBHZH
For more, I recommend the following sources:

https://t.co/1ciSQp1EtP

https://t.co/fDnEF70dbj

https://t.co/p9WOKqJZJf

More from Sahil Bloom

Sahil Bloom
Sahil Bloom
@SahilBloom
THREAD: The story of the week in finance is how a group of retail traders at @wallstreetbets, with assists from @ElonMusk and @Chamath, took down the establishment short sellers at GameStop.

A thread on the underlying mechanics of the $GME saga...


1/ First, for those unfamiliar with the business, GameStop is a videogame and merchandise retailer.

It has >5,000 stores, primarily in malls, across North America, Europe, and Australia.

The business has struggled to modernize, hurting its financial and stock performance.


2/ For a variety of business reasons, a bull (i.e. optimistic) case regarding its future performance has formed.

It really came to the forefront after RC Ventures, an entity managed by Chewy founder @ryancohen, disclosed a large position and assumed three board seats.


3/ @ryancohen summarized his case, stating:

"We are excited to bring our customer-obsessed mindset and technology experience to GameStop and its strategic assets...expanding the ways in which it delights customers and by becoming the ultimate destination for gamers."

4/ At the time of that statement on January 11, $GME stock was trading at about ~$20 per share.

Since then, the stock has surged to ~$200 per share and captured the public imagination.

But how did it happen?

There are two dynamics at play: a short squeeze and a gamma squeeze.
BUSINESS
Sahil Bloom
Sahil Bloom
@SahilBloom
The Eisenhower Decision Matrix is a powerful tool for prioritizing your time and unlocking growth in your career, startup, business, relationships, or life.

A thread on how it works and how it can change your life...


Dwight D. Eisenhower was an American military officer and politician.

He was a five-star general in the United States Army and the first Supreme Commander of NATO.

After his military career, he was elected as the 34th President of the United States, serving from 1953 to 1961.


In both his military and civilian careers, Eisenhower stood out for his prolific productivity.

His secret?

Eisenhower observed that people often confuse the urgent with the important. He did not.

"What is important is seldom urgent and what is urgent is seldom important."

The Eisenhower Decision Matrix is a visualization tool that forces you to differentiate between the urgent and the important.

It allows you to prioritize your time accordingly and unlock new productivity and growth.

Let's cover the basics of how it works...

First, we have to define "urgent" and "important."

An "urgent" task is one that requires immediate, focused attention.

An "important" task is one that promotes or furthers your long-term values, goals, or principles.

Remember: Tasks can be both urgent and important.
ALL , HISTORY
Advertisement
Sahil Bloom
Sahil Bloom
@SahilBloom
To outperform, you need serious problem-solving skills.

Fortunately, these skills can be learned.

THREAD: A simple, powerful mental model for thinking clearly and solving complex problems:

When solving problems, the human mind is wired to think in linear, logical, forward terms.

But as the problems get increasingly complex, this forward, logical process often fails.

Enter our simple, powerful mental model: inversion.

What is inversion?

Inversion is a mental model and thinking tool used by some of the world’s greatest thinkers and problem solvers.

Simply put, it says that when problems become challenging to solve forwards, they may be more readily solved backwards.

Inversion as a general thinking tool has been around for millennia.

Stoic philosophers had premeditatio malorum - “the pre-meditation of evils” - an exercise in which they would imagine the worst case scenario ahead of time.

It allowed them to make plans to avoid this outcome.


The formal mental model was popularized by German mathematician Carl Jacobi in the mid-1800s.

When faced with difficult problems (which happened frequently in his field of elliptic functions!), he had a strategy: “Man muss immer umkehren.”

Translation: “Invert, always invert.”
ALL
Sahil Bloom
Sahil Bloom
@SahilBloom
The Feynman Technique—how to learn anything:

The Feynman Technique is a foundational learning method that prioritizes simplicity and depth of understanding.

It was developed by Richard Feynman—an American theoretical physicist who won the Nobel Prize in 1965 for his groundbreaking work in quantum electrodynamics.


So yes, you could say that Richard Feynman was intelligent...

But there are a lot of intelligent people in the world.

Feynman's true genius was found in his ability to convey extremely complex ideas in simple, elegant, digestible ways.


He had observed that complexity and jargon are often used to mask a lack of deep understanding.

As a rule:

If someone uses a lot of acronyms, complexity, and jargon to explain something to you, they probably don’t understand it.

We've all encountered this type of "expert"...

The Feynman Technique is a learning framework that forces you to develop a deep, elegant understanding of a given topic.

It involves four key steps:
(1) Set the Stage
(2) ELI5 (Explain It To Me Like I'm 5)
(3) Assess & Study
(4) Organize, Convey & Review

Let's cover each step:
PRINCIPLES
Sahil Bloom
Sahil Bloom
@SahilBloom
“Razors” are rules of thumb that simplify decisions.

The most valuable razors I’ve discovered:

The Smart Friends Razor

If your smartest friends are all interested in something, it’s worth paying attention to.

If that something seems crazy, it's worth paying a lot of attention to.

The passions of the smartest people in your circles are a looking glass into the future.

The Rooms Razor

If you have a choice between entering two rooms, choose the room where you are more likely to be the dumbest one in the room.

Once you are in the room, talk less and listen more.

Bad for your ego, great for your growth.

The Man in the Arena Razor

It's easy to throw rocks the sidelines—it's hard to step into the arena.

It's lonely and vulnerable, but it's where growth happens.

When faced with two paths, choose the path that puts you in the arena—choose the path with real skin in the game.

The Feynman Razor

Complexity and jargon are often used to mask a lack of deep understanding.

If you can’t explain it to a 5-year-old, you don’t really understand it.

If someone uses a lot of complexity and jargon to explain something to you, they probably don’t understand it.
RAZORS

You May Also Like

Jaya_Upadhyaya
Jaya_Upadhyaya
@Jayalko1
WHO ARE VALAKHILYAS?

Valakhilyas are 60000 Rishis who are thumb-sized. They were born to Kratu and Kriya. Rig Veda says that they sprang from the hairs of Brahma.
They move in front of Surya dev’s chariot as Sun moves daily and
shine like brilliant lights due to severe tapasya.


Tamil literature says that the main task of Valakhilyas is to prevent human beings from being scorched. They absorb the excess heat from the sun by travelling in front of him. They, in turn, get energy from Skanda and Ma Durga. The food of Valakhilyas is only wind.
@SriRamya21


Once, Rishi Kashyap performed a yagna and invited all the Devas and Rishis to help him. Indra brought a whole mountain of trees for firewood. The Valakhilyas were hardly able to lift anything but leaves. Even when they were moving leaves, they fell into rain water puddles.


Indra made fun of them. So they cursed Indra saying that his slayer would be born as the son of Kashyapa. When Indra apologized, they modified the curse that the son shall be initially an enemy of Indra, but later will become his friend.


This son born later to Kashyapa was Garuda. He flew to Indraloka to get Amrita and defeated Indra.
Later, he restored amrit vessel to Indra and was honoured as the King of birds and as the mount of Sri Vishnu.
@JumbuTweeple @artist_rama
ALL
antifa.drone
antifa.drone
@antifa_drone
Fake chats claiming to be from the Irish African community are being disseminated by the far right in order to suggest that violence is imminent from #BLM supporters. This is straight out of the QAnon and Proud Boys playbook. Spread the word. Protest safely. #georgenkencho


There is co-ordination across the far right in Ireland now to stir both left and right in the hopes of creating a race war. Think critically! Fascists see the tragic killing of #georgenkencho, the grief of his community and pending investigation as a flashpoint for action.


Across Telegram, Twitter and Facebook disinformation is being peddled on the back of these tragic events. From false photographs to the tactics ofwhite supremacy, the far right is clumsily trying to drive hate against minority groups and figureheads.


Declan Ganley’s Burkean group and the incel wing of National Party (Gearóid Murphy, Mick O’Keeffe & Co.) as well as all the usuals are concerted in their efforts to demonstrate their white supremacist cred. The quiet parts are today being said out loud.


The best thing you can do is challenge disinformation and report posts where engagement isn’t appropriate. Many of these are blatantly racist posts designed to drive recruitment to NP and other Nationalist groups. By all means protest but stay safe.
TRADING
Advertisement
Anu Satheesh \U0001f1ee\U0001f1f3
Anu Satheesh 🇮🇳...
@AnuSatheesh5
Agastya Muni & Kaveri River
#story
This is a story which describes how River Kaveri was brought on earth by Agastya muni. There was a king named Kavera lived in the Brahmagiri hills who prayed to Brahma for a child. He was blessed with a daughter whom he named Kaveri.


Agastya muni married her. A demon, named Shoorapadma, wanted to trouble people so he prevented rain from reaching South India. As a result famine occurred in South India.
Agastya Muni who came that way was very sad seeing this. He started to pray Mahadeva for a solution.


Shiva gave him small amount of Ganga water in his Kamandalu (small pot) and said wherever you spill this water the river will flow from there. Agastya Muni travelled lot of places to find a suitable place to pour water. Feeling tired he kept his Kamandalu and took rest.


At that time Ganesha took a form of crow and perched on the Kamadalu and made a hole that water began to flow as river Kaveri. This place is now called as Talakaveri (Karnataka), located in the Brahmagiri hill.


Tala Kaveri has temple for Agastheeswara, which denotes the story between Kaveri and Agasthya muni. Kaveri is a part of Ganga, thus, also called Dakshina Ganga.
🙏🕉🙏
ALL
Christina Warren
Christina Warren
@film_girl
A brief thread on Jovan Hutton Pulitzer, the crazy con man who is now claiming to have hacked into the Georgia voting machines in Fulton County. 90s kids and tech aficionados might remember Jovan as the inventor of the CueCat, the dumbest gadget of all time.

Also, for anyone who wants to claim that Jovan Hutton Pulitzer (not his given name, but one he changed legally after the CueCat debacle) invented QR Codes: he did not. Like that other right-wing crazy man who claimed to have invented email, Jovan didn’t invent QR Codes.

He did invent the CueCat, a product that somehow raised $185 million dollars for a tethered barcode scanner for magazines and newspapers, so you could get ads from your ads. As I said, the dumbest product of all time. Good backup barcode scanners after they were hacked, however

Oh, that’s another thing. When CueCat was a thing, its systems were hacked. I guess that’s what makes Jovan a security expert. His bankrupt company from 20 years ago was hacked and widely mocked. He’s a genius.

In recent years, Jovan pivoted to being a treasure hunter who was featured on and widely mocked on Curse of Oak Island, because the man is insane.
POLITICS
Anu Satheesh \U0001f1ee\U0001f1f3
Anu Satheesh 🇮🇳...
@AnuSatheesh5
Thirumalai Murugan Kovil
#Panpoli
#TamilNaduTemples 🚩

Thirumalai Murugan Temple is located in Tenkasi district of Tamil Nadu. Muruga is worshipped as Thirumalai kumarasamy. Temple is situated near Kerala border and known to be where Shri Murugan gave darshan to Rishi Agasthiar


Devi is worshipped in the temple as Thirumalai Kaali amman

Sthala Puranam says that, there was a priest named Poovanbhattar of Thirumalai Kaali amman. Murugar appeared in a dream of the bhattar and said to find a Vigraham, lying in particular place which is of Thirumalaikumaran


Bhattar conveyed the news to the Pandalam Raja and they went to find out the vigraham. Surprisingly ants showed the way to find the Vigraham. Thus Murugan vigraham was found and Prathista was done here. There is a lake with pure water on the top of the hill


which is said to be created by Agasthiyar. It is believed that kannaki of
Chilapathikaram visited here before going to Kerala. Sapthamathrukkal also worshipped Murugan here. Kanthashashti Thiruvizha is very famous here.

Om Muruga
Muruganukku Harohara
🙏🕉🙏
ALL