The Downside of More Rational

Eric Markowitz shared this Nassim Taleb quote in The Nightcrawler last weekend and it’s rattling around in my head:

You can reduce, simplify, and get everything fitting into your head all tidy-like.

All the numbers can add up. The i’s can be dotted and the t’s can look to be crossed.

Maybe it’s damn near perfect after a while.

And all it does is open you up to a bigger disaster.

There’s comfort in living with some mess.

I pretty much expect I am always in a bit of a mess. I don’t like to be surprised by it. The chaos is just there and that’s fine.

For example - I thought I had a whole week of posts scheduled out on Saturday this week.

I have a very rationally driven system for this. I write, schedule, and then do one last check down the list. All the days, all the publish times, and I do it because it works for me.

But when I looked at the calendar this week I realized I forgot Tuesday.

Which is rational but also - how’d I miss it? Why’d the blind spot show up at the end? I was supposed to shut the browser down and mow the lawn.

I don’t know how, I just know it happened.

The numbers didn’t add up after I was positive they did.

Which is part of why you check your work.

So, no Tuesday. No big deal. I opened my inbox and saw The Nightcrawler.

And right there at the top, this quote, and - immediate fireworks in my brain.

Let a little mess be the source of your next inspiration.

Thanks Eric.