Indefinite attitudes to the future explain whats most dysfunctional in our world today. Process trumps substance: when people lack concrete plans to carry out, they use formal rules to assemble a portfolio of various options. This describes Americans today. In middle school, were encouraged to start hoarding extracurricular activities. In high school, ambitious students compete even harder to appear omnicompetent. By the time a student gets to college, hes spent a decade curating a bewilderingly diverse rsum to prepare for a completely unknowable future. Come what may, hes readyfor nothing in particular. Peter Thiel, Zero to One: Notes on Startups, or How to Build the Future

Zero to One by Peter Thiel