Working Notes: Current Working Notes These notes are the contents of a whiteboard in Tinderbox that I'm using to map out my (more . . .)

William James on Deciding: I'm not sure where the quote comes from, but here James is credited with my credo, "Not to decide is (more . . .)

No Model No Simulation: Meditation techniques have been developed in many cultures around the world, a kind of convergent cultural evolution. Most techniques focus (more . . .)

About this site

Essays

Current Working Notes

My personal website is at ODBlog . I write about decision theory at my site On Deciding . . . Better . This site is a hyperlinked set of essays using Tinderbox.

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All decisions are emotional. That's not a bad thing. However, there is a problem with one-dimensional decision making. We tend to lock in on one of our values and use that to guide us. When choosing what to do with your life do you consider career? Pay? Personal satisfaction?

In "Fire Your Boss", Pollan and Levine argue that employment choices should be made almost exclusively on factors outside the workplace- compensation, paid time off, opportunity to learn. Personal reward should be sought outside work.

From a WSJ review:

CareerJournal | Why Emotional Satisfaction Won't Come From Your Job: Certainly the authors' ideas will save you the crushing disappointment of investing your hopes and dreams in a workplace that isn't likely to reward them. They may also allow you to give yourself much more freely to your family and community. But Messrs. Pollan and Levine, while hitting on a clever and potentially winning strategy, tend to over-simplify the complexity of human motives and desires.

Are teachers and academics foolish to seek a life of service or discovery over economic benefit? Creating significant economic value by teaching or doing research is uncertain and indirect. Thus the rewards, on average are small. If the enjoyment is worth the salary differential, however, the choice is entirely rational. A nonmaterial value can be directly offset by a material one. Attachment to either is purely emotional.

Copyright 2003 by James J. Vornov