After reading a couple of Taleb’s books in Uni I was completely entrapped by his thinking. I picked up The Bed of Procrustes and not only did it take me nearly a decade to read but it has represented one of the most frustrating experiences of my life (a mild exaggeration there). Taking the advice of the author I initially attempted to read four random aphorisms from this book daily, but this proved slow and tedious. Eventually, mercifully I read this like a regular book and finally got it done. I am not in a position in my life where I can add such an unnecessary habit, nor another deep contemplative practice, I also realised I don’t like leaving things incomplete – maybe that’s something I can get better at, but at least regarding books, a defined and controllable portion of my life, I like to finish them.
Anyway the content here was generally great, but like all aphorisms they don’t necessarily represent universal truths and a highly dependent on common sense, the specific domain in which they are applied and to be honest they ask to be broken to truly reveal their value. I enjoyed a lot of this book which generally encouraged the search for universal truth and critical thinking, however this collection of aphorisms I feel are reflective of Taleb’s own beliefs. His specific definition of value, his values more generally of course, and his way of thinking.
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