Worldly Wisdom: Update on my Journey

It has been a while since my last article. I suspect it was the right decision to stop publishing with a certain frequency. After doing so, I wrote the piece I’m the proudest of. I have no idea where those ideas came from, but their emergence confirmed my beliefs. The next intellectual breakthrough will come from deep essays.

Ever since reading Poor Charlie’s Almanack, I’ve been obsessed with acquiring and digesting big ideas. I also feel distinctively rushed for having conversations with the great people that have lived. Never have I felt the impulse with such strength before. It is astonishing what the right book can do for you.

This year, I’ve read numerous authors, many of whom have delighted me. Without extending myself, I thought it would be a good time to share how things are going on the worldly wisdom line. I set the objective of studying certain people’s work in January, and I’m somewhat pleased with my performance. The journey will be long, but this is how it’s going thus far.

Darwin: The Origin of Species

As soon as I started this in February, I saw its immense value. The similarities between biological ecosystems and capitalism are striking. How organic beings and nature behave provides unusual lenses for analysis; unique perspectives. It struck me how these tools helped me make sense of the world. I wouldn’t be surprised if questions that arise in my field are answered by recalling nature’s acting.

The second thing The Origin of Species did for me was hitting me in the face with evidence. Darwin’s contrarianism and truthfulness brought the largest intellectual payoff in naturalism’s history. His capacity to investigate while completely in the dark is admirable. Useful knowledge can be found in remote, unconnected, places.

Adam Smith: The Wealth of Nations - Theory of Moral Sentiments

The body of knowledge this man constructed is shocking. It was peculiar to observe Smith’s deep roots in moral philosophy before putting together his inquiry. There exists a link between this and his ideas that mankind, by and large, has lost. What’s fascinating about this work is the number of previously nonexistent verticals he expanded on. It appears to me as climbing invisible mountains.

After reading this, I couldn’t come up with a plausible explanation as to how could any person feel comfortable taking steps beyond his realm. Most of Adam Smith’s ideas are too sound and very well delineated. In fact, I believe there have been some that were missed, though this is something I’ll investigate in the future.

Sigmund Freud: The Interpretation of Dreams

I read Freud’s work in April. The more time passes, the more certain I am about my hypothesis. Freud may have been a victim of the man-with-a-hammer tendency. He seems to have been a very awaken man, with bright intuitions and remarkable insights. However, at least in the field of dreams, Freud might have pushed it too far. Desirous of proving his theory right, he twisted dreams in abnormal manners. This sparked in me a very promising thought, in which I’ll dive in my next essay.

Notwithstanding my observation, Freud had some very profound insights. I shall return to his work in the future, probably by investigating his work on psychoanalysis.

Carl Jung: Man and His Symbols

In what relates to dreams, Jung may have gotten right what Freud got wrong. I found in Jung a much more honest and deeper thinker. I must nonetheless observe that I remain skeptic about many of the second-order ideas pursued. It’s normal for this to be the case, for exploring the human psyche and built-in wisdom is not a straightforward process.

Carl Jung inspired numerous intuitions I’d like to investigate. Some of these may form part of my next essay.

Isaac Newton: The Principia, Mathematical Principles of Natural Philosophy

What a mind. This is the book I’m currently studying, and I don’t expect to finish it any time soon; hopefully 1-2 months. The Principia contains Newton’s framework for physics. I bought a version that includes a guide to reading it, which is what I’m going through. Incidentally, it’s half of the book.

 I’ve barely read 15% and had some interesting realizations:

• Newton soon realized that some physics’ problem exceeded Man’s wit.

• Isaac was highly influenced by his studies in Alchemy and Theology. I believe the common view is that he wasted his time on these. I think these people are wrong. It appears as if Newton’s conception of physics is fundamentally tied to these two fields.

• I’m starting to understand what Newton referred to by standing upon the shoulders of giants.

• I now understand Munger’s model of inversion a bit better.

Final Remarks

This journey has turned out to be fascinating. Ideas all across the board clashing into composing a sound body of knowledge is instructive to observe. I feel the need to remain constantly on guard, for, many of these eminent people have for sure had some false ideas. Identifying them without being affected by their aura is something I’m still working on. I suspect this bare element will be key to reach a state of clear thinking.

How these systems directly relate to investing remains an obscure question. However, I believe to have gotten a bit closer to answering this question on my write-up about Natural Selection, Economics, and Investing. Even if I cannot properly articulate what I’m seeing, I’d bet that these texts have invariably affected my thinking process and massively boosted my analytical capacity.

With all its fun and a very simple habit, I’m not sure to have felt this intellectually exhausted before. Maybe it is unrelated, but this is also something I will try to explore in my next essay. Reading these guys is showing up every day accepting one is a complete fool. Further, it requires ongoing hope.

Lastly, I was recently invited to The Investing for Beginners Podcast, where Dave and myself spoke about these ideas and some of investing. Maybe you’ll find it interesting: Link to the podcast