Excerpts from Atul Gawande -- "A Townie Speaks"
core American idea: Anything is possible in people’s lives. No one should be counted out.
But I think what I really liked was just the idea of being someone important. And you know where that gets you: nowhere.
But over time I learned that there are two very different satisfactions that you can have in your life.
A) One is the satisfaction of becoming skilled at something. It almost doesn’t matter what the terrain is.
Developing a skill is painful, though. It is difficult. And that’s part of the satisfaction. You will only find meaning in what you struggle with.
B) It comes from human connection. It comes from making others happy, understanding them, loving them.
People have layers. You must take the time to find them.
Your strengths as human beings come from both the abilities and the relationships you invest in nurturing. The trick you have had to learn to get through college, that you will have to carry with you for life, is how to turn the distractions away, how to focus at least a little bit every day on stuff that will take awhile.
But somehow they never let themselves be completely defined by the institutions or the way they did things. They were insiders and yet poked at the customs, looking for better ways.
The Checklist Manifesto
well-designed check lists can improve outcomes
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