Decent but scattershot

There are a lot of decent points but the guy seems to have no editor. He is still talking about what he's going to talk about in the book almost halfway through the book. I thought for a second I bought an ad for the book by accident instead of the actual book.

4 people found this helpful

An interesting rant

While presenting some ideas convincingly, this essay sounds like a long rant or stream-of-consciousness writing that, infuriatingly, lacks rigour in both its central claims, as well as around the edges. If, according to the author, the only thing we can learn from, say, professors, is how to be one - does it not also follow that we've only learned how to write like the author? Broad claims are easy targets; I've only picked one at random.

12 people found this helpful

Tragically Flawed

As an unqualified fan of NNT's work (especially Black Swan and Antifragile), this topic is absolute dynamite for me. And it should be for folks at every level. NNT of course with his intellect, his well-read past and penchant for provocative and thought provoking ideas is pretty much the ideal person to have written this book. I have waited a long time to write this review, as I expected this to be better than Antifragile (which remains pretty much one of my favorite books, a blockbuster in idea and presentation). Skin in the Game then, should have been his Magnum Opus. And it’s a disaster. The book starts off well - the first quarter in its intro and concept is succinct (with his natural sharpness and very informative anecdotes of his very well read past). Then his penchant for digression and rants takes over and digresses into unrelated contexts about religious and ethno-centric basis for this topic which is uncontrolled, verbose and totally not on point. It kills the book, and it kills what is a fantastic topic, that would have been a book for the generations. Instead it’s just another average book. As the remaining three quarters of the book is frustrating. Instead of bringing in a small minded dullard like Thomas Piketty as a counterpoint, why did he not stick with great economic thinkers who could have easily supported his idea (like von Mises or Hazlitt)? Worse of all, he does a great dis-service by only a minor reference to heuristics, and the work of Gigerenzer which could have been a fantastic dovetail into this topic. It is tragic that an idea as important, as interesting and thought provking as this - has been done such a dis-service. There are several isolated passages in this book, when he stops being digressive – and his natural talent shines through very quickly and you see glimpses of what was possible. The final passages on ergodicity have relevance, and would have been a fitting end. But by this time the book is frustrating mish-mash of annoying filler which is sometimes insulting to the reader. The book gets 2-stars for the topic alone, you should be familiar this idea. It is that thought provoking. And zero stars for the book itself. What a waste.

2 people found this helpful

important book

lessons for life, dense, worth every word, not what you want to hear yet what you should hear

1 person found this helpful

A great independent thinker!

Nassim's books are always a breath of fresh perspective! Well written, interesting, always a tad controversial and adversarial!

1 person found this helpful

Bloated

I guess you have to make a book but the length was padded with a lot of insults to his peers.

2 people found this helpful

So. Much. Ego

I can't believe how self involved this author is. some good concepts and ideas, but honestly I have no trust in him as an individual for anything he says to be valid or true. Spends most of the book going off on vendettas against intellectuals and entire fields of study. Curiosity of how ridiculous this book could get it the sole reason I finished it.

Only take advice from people with skin in the game

Nassim Taleb is the creator of the black swan theory, which was a very influential way of thinking about trading and investing - markets are no efficient, and they don't price in black swans - events that are unforeseen. This book was enjoyable, it felt like it was directed at politicians, journalists, clout chasing economists & academics who criticize without having any financial stake on the outcome of their pontification or criticism. Do not take advice from people who have no skin in the game. Having skin in the game is the real test of getting to know someone's motivations. This book was filled with historical examples of skin in the game, but it was also filled with a palpable vitriol and disdain for those without skin in the game. Taleb is very opinionated and sometimes it can come across as rude, so I can imagine a lot of people without skin in the game getting turned off by this book. I preferred Black Swan, but I'm glad I went through this one. Some takeaways that will stick with me for a long time: Minority Rule / Intolerant Minority ... sometimes the small minority will dictate the way things are as long as they are not infringing on the majority. The example of kosher / halal eaters make sense. Not all followers of kosher / halal diets can eat all food, but nearly everyone can eat kosher / halal food. The minority can get their way, for a long time, even if their way doesn't make any sense, as long as it does not inconvenience the majority. Once the majority have enough skin in the game to form an opinion, then look out, no more peanuts on flights! This book pre-dated cancel culture, but it describes the thought process of the cancel culture that emerged online from the intolerant minority of social justice keyboard warriors. Canceling fringe influencers is ok, as long as they don't cancel someone that the majority cares about - that's why they can cancel Alex Jones but they can't cancel Joe Rogan. Worth a read if you are interested in investing, politics or journalism

Eye opening

If you are looking for something outside the usual way of thinking the Incerto serie is for you. Help you focus on what you don't know rather than what you know or what some "experts" are saying. It highlights some human biases.

Ambivalent

I first listened to the Black Swan by this author, and then this book. It's difficult to parse out exactly how I feel. There are a lot of good nuggets of wisdom here, although most of them were conclusions I had already drawn myself through experience in the world. If you are very naive, these may be enlightening ideas, otherwise you've probably already realized them yourself through experience. However, at the end of the day, I'm not sure if I agree with the overall outlook of the author. He seems to be trying to justify a life where one takes absolutely no risks. His rambles on trying to justify why adhering to ancient superstitions makes sense. This seems to be an attempt to make a rational case for adhering to strange religious codes, which may have made sense at different points in time but do not in this day and age. He claims that if you can avoid exposing yourself to risk, then basically any silly thing you do to avoid risk is justified (and by silly, I mean things like avoiding living on the 13th floor of a building). While this may allow one to "survive" longer, I can't help but wonder - what's the value of living longer if your quality of life is degraded because you refuse to do anything interesting or exciting? So, if you're on a quest to live to 100 years but never do anything worth talking about in your life, then follow the advice laid out in this book. If, however, you are more interested in adventure and risk, well, I'm not sure if there's much value to be derived from this author.