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The Long Game 141

"it’s clear that over-optimization comes with its share of issues, which are often not discussed and shared by the proponents of these lifestyle interventions "

Risk and Regret

"Regrets are a dangerous liability because their final costs are often hidden for years or decades. And decisions that are easiest in the short run are often the most costly in the long run."

"We spend so much time trying to quantify risk when the answer is just figuring out what you will or won’t regret."

"The purpose of life is to experience things for which you will later experience nostalgia."

My Most Valuable Season

"The fact is, while winning feels good in the moment, it typically breeds complacency, overconfidence, and stagnancy. On the flip side, while no one likes to lose, it is the essential ingredient to resiliency, humility, and adaptability."

"Losing also does another thing. It creates opportunities for young people to turn to mentors like Buddy for guidance. To learn from people who have been through tough times before. To see how these mentors lift a team or organization up when they are down. To observe how they turn a negative into a positive. To see them transform a losing season into one of the most valuable seasons of their lives."

"Team members in the groups that only connected electronically put their personal gains ahead of the group’s needs."

"It turns out that the average clerks’ performance rose substantially when they worked at the same time as the star clerk and fell materially when their shift was filled with below average clerks."

"The one crucial factor that stands out for the consistency and power of its ties to physical health, mental health, and longevity wasn’t career achievement, exercise, or a healthy diet. No, the one thing that continuously demonstrates its broad and enduring importance: good relationships."

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