Four Books That Shaped My Worldview

Four books that shaped my worldview.

Robert Wright's Nonzero
We can play zero-sum games in which every win comes from someone else's loss or play variable-sum games where the sum of what we win varies. Our modern world is variable sum and we can all lose, win or lose big, most win and some lose, some win and most lose, etc. In my old age I think one of the most defining things about a group or individual is whether they believe the world is zero-sum or variable-sum.


W. Edwards Deming's New Economics
Packed with insights but for me the biggest take away is that you can either focus on measuring how people are doing within the current system (from factory floor to classroom) or focus on measuring how well the system is doing at helping people to realize their potential. Deming's advocacy for getting rid of grades and instead nurturing intrinsic motivation feels more and not less important to me as I get older.


William Deci's Why We Do What We Do
Deci offers three models for parents, managers, teachers or political leaders: control, abandon, or autonomy supportive.
Control defines process and outcomes for your child, student, employee, or citizen.
Abandonment leaves them free but unsupported.
Autonomy supportive supports them to the point of autonomy, teaching, coaching and sharing what you know to get them to the point of pursuing whatever goals they have.


Csikszentmihalyi's Flow
Csikszentmihalyi's exploration of how we get lost in work, play or conversations - become absorbed in doing - left him convinced that a big key to happiness and productivity is attaining flow. I also loved his Evolving Self and at lunch one day asked him if it is fair to characterize Flow as about how to create engagement and Evolving Self about how to create meaning. He paused for a couple of minutes and then nodded. "Yes." Long pause. "Yes. That's a really good way to put it."


All of these are of a piece, it seems. Ultimately exploring the question of how we create the systems that let us realize our potential.