Weekend Edition

Note: I've started a new series of daily emails on selling ideas (and yourself). Selling is something we clever folk usually suck at. I certainly did. Good news: you can get better and it makes a huge difference. I did - and I'll share what I've learned over the coming weeks. You'll find links to the first two posts down below.

But first, please look at the picture, above, of the two teapots.

Q: Which teapot contains more tea when full?
A: If you're like me ... it's not the one you guessed.

I bet you and I have this in common: we're curious people.

And this: we love it when our intuition leads us down the garden path.

In this case, the smaller teapot holds more tea because its spout is way higher.

This example is from Alex Bellos's new book Think Twice, which I recommend if you enjoy being repeatedly outwitted in a pleasant way.

I'm about 10 puzzles in and I've realised there are a load of emotions involved in being tricked into thinking twice:

• cleverness ("what a stupid question ... it's obviously this!"), followed by,
• disbelief ("No way ..." ), followed by,
• stupidity ("Doh!"), followed by,
• curiosity, followed by,
• delight, and, sometimes, ...
• a certain sense of smugness.

If you like this kinda thing, you can find the Think Twice book on amazon.com and the guardian newspaper has a few more similar puzzles by the author.

A Look Back:

HyperEfficient - the talky version

How come I can listen to hour after hour of podcasts ... ... but my mind drifts away whenever I listen to an audiobook? Dunno. But, look, ... if you like learning from podcasts, and want to get a great overview of Mithu Storoni’s fantastic book, HyperEfficient, which I raved about a few

Clarke Ching - The Bottleneck Guyclarke ching

It’s the putting right that counts

The man in the photo is LV Martin. He, and his sons, used to run an electronics shop when I was growing up. Their motto was something like, “LV Martin and Sons. It’s the putting right that counts”. Because way back then - in the 7os and 80s -

Clarke Ching - The Bottleneck Guyclarke ching

Comity - - new word for me

I learnt a new word today: “comity”. I especially like the 7th definition, in the screenshot above: Comity: A state or atmosphere of harmony or mutual civility and respect. I feel silly because I should have know that word all my adult life. My CorkScrew Solutions book is largely about

Clarke Ching - The Bottleneck Guyclarke ching

Queues of Qs

I’ve been weirdly busy writing my new book. My head has been (and still is) chockablock full of words and ideas as I’m thinking through things. This has lead to a weird side-effect. I’m noticing weird patterns. Patterns. Weird ones. Take a look at this picture of

Clarke Ching - The Bottleneck Guyclarke ching

📚 Selling Ideas (and Yourself) Without Feeling Icky, Part 1

Over the coming weeks, I want to share what I’ve learned about selling ideas and selling services. * I learned most of these lessons the hard way (usually by messing up). * Since COVID hit and I started my own business, I’ve also paid good money to learn from pros. Some of

Clarke Ching - The Bottleneck Guyclarke ching

📖 Selling Ideas, Part 2 - Who cares?

Here’s something that took me years to learn: having a brilliant solution isn’t enough. Not even close. Let me tell you a story from my banking days in the 1990s... Picture this: A big bank buys a smaller bank. They’re planning to close branches in several towns. At the same

Clarke Ching - The Bottleneck Guyclarke ching

Hope life is treating you kindly!

Clarke