Recommended books by Notable & Quotable

The Road Less Traveled, by Scott Peck. This is a timeless classic on getting out of your comfort zone and seeking the truth. "Mental health is an ongoing process of dedication to reality at all costs."  Words to live by...

The Art of Thinking Clearly, by Rolf Dobelli.  One key to success?  Avoid muddled thinking and cognitive errors.  Here are 99 bite-size examples from survivorship bias to "Why you shouldn't read the news."

How Do You Know?, by Christopher Mayer.  Once you've completed The Art of Thinking Clearly, take this subject to the next level.  Learn to appreciate the limits of knowledge... and the value of humility.

The Bed of Procrustes, by Nassim Taleb.  A collection of aphorisms full of wit and wisdom by my favorite living philosopher.

A Short History of Man: Progress and Decline, by Hans-Hermann Hoppe.  Do you know how vital the domestication of the wolf - now man's best friend - 16,000 years ago was to establishing the family and private property?  Hoppe examines the major trends of the past 50,000 years of human history: the nuclear family, man using his ingenuity to vastly expand the pool of resources and escape the Malthusian trap, and the growth of the state.

How Capitalism Saved America, by Tom DiLorenzo.  Everything you learned about American history growing up is wrong.  DiLorenzo corrects countless myths by viewing the past through the lens of an Austrian economist.

The Real Lincoln, by Tom DiLorenzo.  Was Lincoln the "Great Emancipator" or "Great Centralizer?"  Until 1861, there were two competing visions for the United States: Jeffersonian (decentralized) and Hamiltonian (centralized).  Lincoln made sure the latter prevailed... at gunpoint.

The Myth of the Robber Barons, by Burton Folsom, Jr.

100 Baggers, by Christopher Mayer.  If you want to get the basics on investing with just one book, this is my choice.  The chapter on competitive moats alone is worth the price.

Nassim Taleb on Platonicity

Medieval man was a cog in a wheel he did not understand; modern man is a cog in a complicated system he thinks he understands.

~ Nassim Taleb, The Bed of Procrustes, p. 57

Nassim Taleb on science and business

In science, you need to understand the world; in business, you need others to misunderstand it.

~ Nassim Taleb, The Bed of Procrustes

Nassim Taleb on profit, loss and opportunity

The characteristic feature of the loser is to bemoan, in general terms, mankind's flaws, biases, contradictions, and irrationality - without exploiting them for fun and profit. 

~ Nassim Taleb, The Bed of Procrustes, p. 12

Nassim Taleb on friendship

Friendship that ends was never one; there was at least one sucker in it.

~ Nassim Taleb, The Bed of Procrustes, p. 15

Nassim Taleb on wisdom and frivolity

Wisdom in the young is as unattractive as frivolity in the elderly.

~ Nassim Taleb, The Bed of Procrustes, p. 16

Nassim Taleb on the value of newspapers

To be completely cured of newspapers, spend a year reading the previous week's newspapers.

~ Nassim Taleb, The Bed of Procrustes, p. 21

Nassim Taleb on being "wealthy"

"Wealthy" is meaningless and has no robust absolute measure; use instead the subtractive measure "unwealth," that is, the difference, at any point in time, between what you have and what you would like to have.

~ Nassim Taleb, The Bed of Procrustes, p. 23

Nassim Taleb on dreams

Decline starts with the replacement of dreams with memories and ends with the replacement of memories with other memories.

~ Nassim Taleb, The Bed of Procrustes, p. 24

Nassim Taleb on true wealth

You are rich if and only if money you refuse tastes better than money you accept.

~ Nassim Taleb, The Bed of Procrustes, p. 27

Nassim Taleb on role models

People focus on role models; it is more effective to find antimodels - people you don't want to resemble when you grow up.

~ Nassim Taleb, The Bed of Procrustes, p. 28

Nassim Taleb on advice givers

It seems that it is the most unsuccessful people who give the most advice, particularly for writing and financial matters.

~ Nassim Taleb, The Bed of Procrustes, p. 33

Nassim Taleb on rumors

Rumors are only valuable when they are denied.

~ Nassim Taleb, The Bed of Procrustes, p. 33

Nassim Taleb on writing

Writing is the art of repeating oneself without anyone noticing.

~ Nassim Taleb, The Bed of Procrustes, p. 43

Nassim Taleb on bureaucrats

Just like poets and artists, bureaucrats are born, not made; it takes normal humans extraordinary effort to keep attention on such boring tasks.

~ Nassim Taleb, The Bed of Procrustes, p. 47

Nassim Taleb on history

Many are so unoriginal they study history to find mistakes to repeat.

Nassim Taleb, The Bed of Procrustes, p. 53

Nassim Taleb on the media and knowledge

Most info-Web-media-newspaper types have a hard time swallowing the idea that knowledge is reached (mostly) by removing junk from people's heads.

Nassim Taleb, The Bed of Procrustes, p. 58

Nassim Taleb on hypocrisy

Finer men tolerate others' small inconsistencies thought not the large ones; the weak tolerate others' large inconsistencies though not the small ones.

Nassim Taleb, The Bed of Procrustes, p. 58

Nassim Taleb on wit

Wit seduces by signaling intelligence without nerdiness.

Nassim Taleb, The Bed of Procrustes, p. 60

Nassim Taleb on nationalism

We find it to be in extremely bad taste for individuals to boast of their accomplishments; but when countries do so we call it "national pride."

Nassim Taleb, The Bed of Procrustes, p. 64