Thinkism

Friends,

Thinking — is overrated.

No amount of thinking will end the pandemic. No amount of thinking will lead to immortality.

All of these things (and perhaps everything important) need practical experiment. Also known as the scientific method.

The RECOVERY trial is investigating treatments for covid-19. No matter how clever the scientists, they couldn’t think their way to a treatment. They have to experiment.

Kevin Kelly thinks this is why Silicon Valley has been so productive. People don’t think — they just do (with little consequence).

Previously, business failure might have earned you a stint in debtors’ prison or at the very least — a load of embarrassment. Now it’s… celebrated?

I spoke to Stephen Bourke recently. He co-founded Echo. It’s like Deliveroo for your medication.

When he concocted it, all of his friends and mentors told him that it was a bad idea. Variations of “you’re solving a non-problem” and “it’s been done before”.

He nodded politely, thanked them for their advice and did it anyway.

Echo was acquired by McKesson (the group who own Lloyds Pharmacy) in 2019.

Here’s him telling the story—

Thinkism is the belief that you can ‘think’ yourself to a solution. Rarely true (I think?).

All the best,

Musty