Inversion

Benefit: Avoid stupidity
Prerequisites:

Description

Thinking about how we can achieve our goal is forward thinking. Thinking about the ways we might fail to achieve our goal is backward thinking. Inversion is backward thinking.

By inverting our thoughts, we can identify and eliminate the behaviors that prevent us from achieving our goals.

Practice-1

  1. Define something you want.
  2. Define the opposite of what you want.
  3. Ask a question about the thing you don’t want.
  4. Answer the question by listing all possible actions that come to mind.
  5. Get help from friends or family if it’s something they can contribute to.

Example

  1. I want to have lots of time to work.
  2. I don’t have lots of time to work.
  3. How can I fail to find time to work?
    • If I hang out until late hours
    • If I keep my phone Wi-Fi on while working on something important
    • If I spend too much time with someone
    • If my computer gets stolen
    • If I say yes to all incoming requests

Example

  1. I want to start feeling better (non-depressed) again.
  2. I feel depressed.
  3. How can I continue feeling depressed?
    • If I watch porn all day
    • If I play games all day
    • If I scroll mindlessly
    • If I remain physically inactive and don’t work out
    • If I dwell on thoughts about my ex
    • If I avoid doing anything that gives me a sense of accomplishment (cleaning the house, reading a book, shopping, etc.)

Practice-2

Charlie Munger collects examples of foolish behavior and avoids them. In one video, he explains this concept between 01:29 - 04:02.

  1. Identify a folly (foolish) behavior. There are many examples in subreddits like r/iamatotalpieceofshit & r/Veryfuckingstupid/
  2. Write down ways you can make sure you can avoid that behavior.

Example

  1. Drunk college students steal a CAT and go for a joyride. https://www.reddit.com/r/iamatotalpieceofshit/comments/j50uee/drunk_college_students_steal_a_cat_and_go_for_a/
  2. Ways I can avoid such behavior:
    • Not drinking excessively
    • Not spending time with people who drink excessively
    • Respecting other people’s property
    • Thinking about the second-order effects of my actions

Practice-3

We are prone to thinking that life improves through addition. A new house will make life better. A new friend will add excitement. A new car will make me happier.

Instead of addition, try subtraction.

Remove a negative relationship from your life.

Cancel one subscription.

Drop a mindset that’s holding you back.

  1. What is something you want?
  2. Why do you want it?
  3. What can you subtract from your life to move closer to it?

Example

  1. I want $10,000/month in passive income.
  2. Because I want the freedom to do whatever I want.
  3. I can:
    • Stop my addiction to social media to free up more time
    • Say no to people I don’t want to hang out with
    • Stop watching porn

Extra