Behavior on Kind of Idea

Experience Is Not the Same as Competence

Tue, 04 Jun 2013 00:00:00 +0000

The original post was written by Shane Parrish. You can read it on Farnam Street.

In the text below, you’ll learn what deliberate practice means and why it matters. The original text was written by Shane Parrish and is available on Farnam Street. Note: I took the liberty of adding a few notes throughout the text to put it in the context of Brazilian reality. Here is the text.

You have probably been doing the same job for quite some time. If you’re like most people, your performance has plateaued. Simply put, you’ve stopped getting better at what you do.

How to Make Decisions — Model: Language

Sun, 31 Mar 2013 00:00:00 +0000

Continuing the series on how to make decisions, I’m going to focus on the “Models” item in the mind map, beginning with Language as the topic.

In this text, “models” means references, principles, perspectives, and more detailed explanations drawn from science (the exact, biomedical, or human sciences) or philosophy that can help with the discussion I’m proposing: how to make decisions more effectively and flexibly.

IT Professionals Are Not Superheroes

Wed, 06 Feb 2013 00:00:00 +0000

Before reading the text below, I want to remind you that every profession mentioned is worthy and important. I’m not saying that IT (Information Technology) is superior or inferior to other fields; I only want to show that it is different.

Jobs in computing, or information technology, are very new compared with medicine and engineering. Because of that, and because the field is complex, it’s still not universally clear what people who work in IT do or how to interact with an IT team in a way that solves your problem without getting in the way of theirs.

How to Make Decisions (Part 2)

Tue, 15 Jan 2013 00:00:00 +0000

I began the first post by discussing the most important part: actions and reflection. In this second part, I’ll say more about the item knowledge. The diagram showing the decision-making process appears below:

If I could sum up this post in one sentence, I’d say: we need to fight to dissolve the source of most problems: ignorance.

We make and repeat mistakes, often without even knowing whether we’re making them. There’s no magic pill or easy way to solve this. We need to learn; we need the patience to dig and discover the origin, nature, and reasons behind things. We need to understand our world and its characteristics:

How to Make Decisions

Mon, 31 Dec 2012 00:00:00 +0000

Hi! In this post I’m going to talk about a topic I’m very curious about and have been working to improve on over the years, through both reading and personal experience: how to make decisions.

For teaching purposes, I suggest simplifying decision-making into three points:

Actions + Reflection: This is the main point in my view. It means pragmatic learning—improving through the successes and mistakes of everyday life.
Knowledge: When making decisions, it’s necessary to understand the context we’re in, ourselves, and the nature of things in depth. We should also seek inspiration from people who question the status quo and think outside the box.
Models: The Golden Circle, the 80/20 rule, and network science are resources that can help someone who has practical experience (item 1) and keeps up to date (item 2).

Before discussing problem-solving itself, I want to call attention to two essential points:

Good or bad? The customer decides!

Wed, 09 Jun 2010 00:00:00 +0000

The following happened when I tried to buy three large bottles of mineral water:

I visited the first store but couldn’t complete the purchase, because deliveries were only made from 8 a.m. to noon and from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m. In other words, I would have to miss work to receive the bottles, or wait until the weekend (another four days without water).

Because the first seller’s schedule didn’t work for me, I went looking for another seller.

Do-It-Yourself Manifesto! (Translation)

Sat, 05 Sep 2009 00:00:00 +0000

This manifesto was created by Ulla-Maaria Mutanen, a Ph.D. student at the University of Helsinki in Finland. She thought about why we love making things. I really liked this manifesto because it has everything to do with the idea of learning by doing. Through experimentation, we can have fun while we learn. You can find the original text here. Here is the manifesto:

People feel satisfied when they have been able to create things, because they can see themselves in the objects they make. This isn’t possible with purchased products.
The things people make have magical powers. They have hidden meanings that other people cannot see.
People make things they usually want to keep and update. Crafting is not against consumption. It is against throwing things away.
People seek recognition for the things they make, especially from their friends and family. This takes the form of a gift economy.
People who believe they are making really cool things seek greater exposure for their products. This creates opportunities for publication through alternative channels.
Work inspires work. Seeing what other people have made generates new ideas and projects.
Essential to making are tools that are accessible, portable, and easy to learn.
Materials become important. Knowing what they are made of and where to get them becomes essential.
Recipes become important. The ability to create and distribute interesting recipes becomes valuable.
Learning techniques brings people together. It creates communities of practitioners, online and offline.
People who enjoy making things look for opportunities to discover interesting things and meet their makers. This creates markets.
At its heart, making things is a form of fun.

Let's Honor Galileo!

Sun, 30 Aug 2009 00:00:00 +0000

I’m going to talk a little about what may have been the greatest paradigm shift we’ve ever experienced. If it wasn’t the greatest, it was certainly very significant: truth came to be defined through experimentation, which could actually prove or disprove hypotheses. I’ll talk a little about Plato, Aristotle, and finally Galileo. Don’t worry, this isn’t a pointless debate; these are vital arguments for making fairer decisions today. Let’s begin with Plato.

Do We Lose Customers for Stupid Reasons?

Fri, 29 May 2009 00:00:00 +0000

I recently read an interview in Istoé magazine with Jan Garavaglia, a 53-year-old American doctor who has just published the book How Not to Die! The book grew out of her 20 years working as a medical examiner. She found that people often die for foolish reasons, including:

by: www.flickr.com/photos/kamshots/

Accidents caused by talking on a cell phone while driving.
High blood pressure, which is easily treatable, provided we get checkups to detect it.
Rugs in elderly people’s homes, where a slip can be fatal, among other things you can read about in the article.

Now let’s return to the topic of this post: just as with fatal accidents, do we lose customers for reasons that could easily be avoided?

Sometimes Schools Get It Terribly Wrong!

Fri, 29 May 2009 00:00:00 +0000

At times, schools insist on promoting viewpoints that, in my opinion, can be harmful to students’ development—viewpoints that conflict with the goal of educating people who can contribute to society. Below, I’ll describe an incident involving a mistaken point of view, which I’ll discuss throughout this post.

by http://www.flickr.com/photos/52636849@N00/

The incident took place at a high school. I’ve seen the same scene in both public and private schools: one day, a teacher had to be absent, so another teacher had to take responsibility for teaching two classes at the same time.

Would You Reconsider a Decision?

Sun, 16 Mar 2008 00:00:00 +0000

The blog’s original purpose is, of course, to talk a little about technology and innovation, especially things we can find on the web. But whenever something unusual happens to me, I like to write about it and share it with you.

This happened when I went to buy a takeaway lunch. Where I live, there are at least four nearby restaurants or steakhouses that sell boxed lunches. But one of them is unbeatable: a rotisserie chicken shop. It is a simpler place, but its food is the best in terms of quality.

Enough Complaining!

Fri, 25 Jan 2008 00:00:00 +0000

I just read this post by Walmar about people who tie their satisfaction to achieving goals. Walmar says that this is pushing things too far and causes many problems, because if the goals are not met, it negatively affects the motivation of people whose mood is tied to them. It got me thinking about another behavior: imagining that things elsewhere are better and then complaining about what is close at hand.

Has Anyone Ever Had Bad Service at a Restaurant?

Tue, 31 Jul 2007 00:00:00 +0000

This is the third episode in the “It’s a trap!” series, and I ask readers’ permission to occasionally stray from the web to tell you about everyday situations.

I often go to a restaurant here in Mossoró that, considering the value for money, is very affordable given the flavor and variety of food available at its all-you-can-eat buffet, which is not charged by weight. The price is fixed at R$6.00. Another highlight is the juice; I have tried cajá and grape. They are definitely not watered-down drinks, but very well-made juices. And there is dessert, which I have not tried because I am not much of a sweets person, though I might make an exception one day.

Problems at the Internet Café

Tue, 31 Jul 2007 00:00:00 +0000

In this second episode of the “It’s a trap!” series, I’ll tell you about something that happened at an internet café.

I needed to scan a deposit slip, and as soon as I finished lunch I was already thinking through my options. Where would I find a shop open during lunchtime? I wondered. I eventually found one a few meters from where I had eaten. Great, I thought—I had solved my problem.