What’s the opposite of Fragile?
Robust?
Strong?
Well, that’s like saying the opposite of NEGATIVE is NEUTRAL. Actually, the opposite of NEGATIVE is POSITIVE.
Similarly, the opposite of fragile is not robust – it is Antifragile.
Nassim Taleb (@nntaleb), first wrote about Antifragility in his book Antifragility – Things that gain from disorder. Taleb has written 2 other books – Black Swan and Fooled by Randomness.
So,what exactly is Antifragile?
Fragile things break when they meet resistance or disorder.
In similar conditions, antifragile becomes better, more robust and emerges stronger.
In the words of Taleb himself,
Some things benefit from shocks; they thrive and grow when exposed to volatility, randomness, disorder, and stressors and love adventure, risk, and uncertainty. Yet, in spite of the ubiquity of the phenomenon, there is no word for the exact opposite of fragile. Let us call it antifragile.
Antifragility is beyond resilience or robustness. The resilient resists shocks and stays the same; the antifragile gets better.
More…
Antifragility makes us understand fragility better. Just as we cannot improve health without reducing disease, or increase wealth without first decreasing losses, antifragility and fragility are degrees on a spectrum.
To read more, first go this Wikipedia page on Antifragile.
It if captures your attention enough, then get to the real thing, the book itself.
The wind extinguishes the candle and energizes fire.
Antifragile is a wonderful trait to have. Question for you.
Are you fragile (candle) or antifragile (fire)?
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Stock markets touch an all time high
It is the news everywhere. The more relevant question to ask is whether the investor’s portfolio also seeing an all time high?
Yours?
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You will get what you seek
This is true for the markets, at least. When you chase higher returns only, enough salespeople will reach out to you to sell higher returns via fancy, exotic products. Your greed is their bait.
When you chase certainty, enough insurance people will get to you to sell their products. Your fear is their bait.
Both fear and greed are the milling stones that once you enter can crush you.
Now, if you focus on goals, you can then find an fee based investment adviser to help you do that too.
The choice is yours.
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Keep your MBA aside
Two blogs I highly recommend for learning the real thing about business and success are –
The Story of Telling by Bernadette Jiwa – You read the latest piece and you will know why it should be on your reading list.
Seth Godin’s Blog – I have been reading for almost a decade now.
Both are short blogs and can have a high impact in the way you think about various things. So, beware!