Things I learned from Nassim Nicholas Taleb

Author of the Black Swan.

• We think we're smarter than we are
• We think things are more organized than they are
• Luck plays a role in everything, and might be more of a factor in business success than any other variable
• The most significant socio-economic events of the last century were totally unanticipated
• It can be easier to predict the future than explain the past
• Beware of anyone calling themselves an expert - in some disciplines, expertise is not attainable
• Somehow, it has become allowable for executives to personalize gains and syndicate lossess
• Hang on for the ride: we've got some doozies coming our way in the next while, and we don't (can't) know what they are