I thought about ideas today. I struggled with a problem and thought to myself: “this would be a lot easier if I wrote out a problem statement.” That’s where I learned.The artist’s struggle is the battle to take what’s abstract and give it a form. Often times the idea, the phrase, the hypothesis, or the white whale you intend to slay is a figment of your imagination — it’s not real to you until you make it real. Once a thing has a form, it’s much easier to work it into something beautiful.

Economists Writing Every Day wrote a post about Persistent Beliefs that caught my attention.Essentially, for beliefs to persist they must:Be transferred from generation to generation;Persist within the person as well as their culture group; and,Be productive.I’m reflecting now… I’ve done so many things in my life, good and bad. I’ve seen so many things. Heard so many things. Tasted so many things… believed so many things. I don’t know that I have many beliefs that truly persist for me. I am not influenced by the beliefs of my family. I realize that sounds harsh and, possibly sad. However, it’s not sad for me. I don’t have kids, and there’s no need for me to adopt or persist with a belief for the purposes of passing it on. I am not influenced by the beliefs of the religion I grew up with. I’ve seen there are many other gods, and many other ways to connect one’s self with something higher. I seem to be most influenced by things I read, or how I perceive the moment I’m in. Given new inputs, I make Bayesian updates to my worldview and move on. If I have any persistent belief… it is a belief in some type of universal human truth. That we all have a desire for someone to believe in us, and we all desire to matter to someone(s) or something(s). That truth persists through time and transcends culture.

I enjoy using AI tools like Claude and ChatGPT. Yes, it’s easy to ask for an answer — but those answers may be wrong. Instead, I use these tools to teach me new skills. For example, I asked ChatGPT to teach me the fundamentals of game theory via prompt — see my prompt below.PROMPT: Teach me game theory and assume I know nothing about it. I do best when I learn the simplest concepts first and then build upon that. Teach me one concept, test my understanding in a way that proves I know the concept and how to use it, and then proceed to the next higher level prompt. You are most helpful if you start simple, test and verify, and then proceed to the next concept. Keep going until I fail 3x in a row.ChatGPT’s Output:In game theory, a “game” is a situation where two or more players (which could be individuals, companies, or even countries) make decisions that affect each other. The key point is that the outcome for each player depends not only on their own decisions but also on the decisions made by others.Key Points:1. Players: The decision-makers in the game.2. Strategies: The possible decisions or actions a player can take.3. Payoffs: The outcomes or rewards that result from the combination of all players’ strategies.Example: Imagine two businesses, A and B, that are competing to sell a similar product. They each have to decide whether to set a high price or a low price. The profit each business makes (the payoff) depends on both their own pricing decision and the pricing decision of the other business.Scenario: Two friends, Alex and Taylor, are deciding whether to go to a movie or stay home. They both like watching movies together, but if one goes and the other stays home, neither of them enjoys it much. If both stay home, they get to hang out but don’t get to see the movie.Question: Who are the players in this game, and what are their possible strategies?ChatGPT prompts to provide an answer. If I’m correct, it will progress my knowledge. This is valuable because understanding game theory, for me, helps me better understand possible negotiations or account strategies. Alice Evans writes an informative piece on developing AI-complementary skills that you might find useful. Whether you like it or not, these tools are here. It’s best to learn how to work with these tools quickly. I find that my thinking becomes expanded and my outputs more valuable.

Daniel Winkler, Nils Wlömert, and Jura Liaukonyte researched and published a paper on cancel culture and how it impacts musical artists. It’s not what you think.The big ideas are:Social media outrage doesn’t materially change listening habits.If it bleeds it leads — bad news often increased short-term streams.Platform actions, not boycotts, drove the real decline in an artist’s popularity. What’s more: When Spotify pulled R.Kelly from playlists, his streams tanked. However, when Morgan Wallen faced backlash (in case you’re read up) there was hardly a dent. Why? And were listeners aware?Most listeners were not aware that Spotify silently curated their experience. The digital world that is likely your world is largely a curated one. Instead of the world being a stage, perhaps the world is a curated immersive modern art exposition. Algorithms feed you what they think you want, and they narrow your experience horizons with you noticing. If you want a better experience, seek different. Listen to music you don’t enjoy, read opinions that upset you, listen to podcasts you can’t stand — embrace the discomfort that is our world. You may encounter new ideas and processes that could benefit you! Skilled session musicians play and read many styles of music. They don’t get that way by only listening to one thing. They expose themselves to many different ways of playing and ideas. Live life like a skilled session musician — it’s more fun.

My past self reminded me of an important lesson. To be more confident in you and your art: create more decisions, learn, and do it again.More here.

From James Clear’s newsletter. I like the yes/no. “The strategy required to find a great opportunity (lots of saying yes and exploring widely) is different from the strategy required to make the most of a great opportunity (lots of saying no and remaining focused).”

Pop Philosophers often quote “what stands in the way becomes the way” from Marcus Aurelius’ Meditations. I think there’s a better idea from the Meditations. It’s three books later. “You have to assemble your life yourself – action by action. And be satisfied if each one achieves its goal, as far as it can. No one can keep that from happening. But there are obstacles… but if you accept the obstacle and work with what you’re given, an alternative will present itself – another piece of what you’re trying to assemble. Action by action.” — Marcus Aurelius , Meditations, Book 8, verse 32.Action by action, bit by bit, part by part, step by step. Embrace your constraints, eat the elephant bite by bite.

If it makes sense, I imagine more people should try to go several days without a car. I don’t have a car for the moment and I’m finding myself taking the bus everywhere — and I love it. I’m seeing all kinds of people, I’m seeing my world from different perspectives, and I’m amazed at the connectedness of my community. I realize that having a car is a privilege, and not everyone has access to reliable transportation. Perhaps another reason to experiment a few days without a car — to cultivate perspective for how people who can’t do life. I am forced to walk more places — and the returns from walking are good for me in the long run. I am forced to be mindful about where I go, if I need to go anywhere, and what it means to be able to go.

I listened to a writer talk about his productivity habits. He writes just enough and then stops before he finishes..And I tried that practice with this post you’re reading now. I find that I have more ideas when I come back to the work the next day. Perhaps that’s why so many artists have so much unfinished work.

Or…Don’t overdo a good thing.