This book is an old classic by Darell Huff. He went out of his way in the 1950s to explain how cognitive biases and statistical manipulation are used in research, media, and business opportunities.
Every founder and investor should read this book, mostly because it brings to life some of the most basic forms of statistical and emotional manipulation one might try to present to you during a pitch.
As investors and founders, we get paid to have an opinion about the future and to be right ahead of others. As you build your self-fulfilling prophecy, make sure that you are aware of others trying to manipulate information to convince you of their agenda.
My favorite excerpt:
Possibly more important to keep in mind is that the distortion of statistical data and its manipulation to an end are not always the work of professional statisticians. What comes full of virtue from the statistician's desk may find itself twisted, exaggerated, oversimplified, and distorted through selection by salesman, public relations experts, journalists, or advertising copywriters.
But whoever the guilty party may be in any instance, it is hard to grant him the status of blundering innocent. False charts in magazines and newspapers frequently sensationalize by exaggeration, rarely minimize anything.
I have made 30+ trades in the past 18 months using over US$100K in margin. Interesting to see that margin soared this year. It can be quite useful.
In startup land, we build multi-billion-dollar empires in less than a decade. In startup land, self-reliance is paramount.
For the past 2-days, I have been reading excerpts of Shunryu Suzuki's book, Zen Mind, Beginner's Mind. It's helping to bring peace and calmness to my heart.
