Luck defines life
Designers are often focused on a process to control a situation, or they try to cultivate a creative culture to help them solve a problem. Yet, any problem space is filled with unknowns, and luck plays a much larger role in the success or failure of an idea than anyone would like to admit.
The book Fooled by Randomness by Nassim Nicholas Taleb sheds light on the role that luck plays in our lives. It shows that, rather than trying to establish control over everything through science and process, embracing the nature of luck may well be the way to come to terms with the uncertainty of the world we live in today. I thought I’d share a couple of my favorite quotes from the book.
“Remember that nobody accepts randomness in their own success, only their failure.” - Nassim Nicholas Taleb
“What has gone wrong with the development of economics as a science? Answer: There was a bunch of intelligent people who felt compelled to use mathematics just to tell themselves that they were rigorous in their thinking, that theirs was a science. …Indeed the mathematics they dealt with did not work in the real world, possibly because we needed richer classes of processes— and they refused to accept the fact that no mathematics at all was probably better.”- Nassim Nicholas Taleb
The Farmer’s Luck (a Zen story)
A farmer’s horse runs away.
Neighbors say, “Such bad luck.”
He replies, “Maybe.”
The horse returns, bringing wild horses.
Neighbors say, “What good luck!”
He says, “Maybe.”
His son tries to tame a horse, breaks his leg.
“Such bad luck.”
“Maybe.”
Army comes to conscript young men—his son is spared.
“What good luck!”
“Maybe.”
A drawing from my sketchbook
I often make sketch studies of Dorothea Lange photographs. While I am drawing, I often wonder about the individual in the photograph and what role luck has played in their lives.
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