Generosity

Some people due to their good-naturedness can completely transform a person’s life.

For Enrico Fermi, it was Adolfo Amidei. Amidei was the colleague of Fermi’s father at the railways. He followed science and mathematics, and Fermi came to know about it. The boy - merely thirteen years old - introduced himself by asking a question about projective geometry. Subsequently, Amidei was deeply impressed and decided to guide Fermi's education. He supplied the boy with books - which progressively got advanced over the years. The boy returned the books ceremoniously, digesting all the information.

Amidei also guided Fermi to his college-level education, by selecting the school he should go too. While browsing the entrance exam requirements, Amidei declared that Fermi knew everything already, and he was going to achieve the first position. It was even more dramatic than that.

The entrance exam for Scuola Normale Superiore(at Pisa) had a section on essays. Enrico Fermi’s theme was “Characteristics of Sound” - something that a high school student should know about. Fermi started with a simple introduction and moved to full-blown differential equation of a vibrating rod. Additionally, he solved it using Fourier analysis, finding the eigenvalues and eigenfrequencies. The examiner was so shocked while looking at the essay that he personally decided to meet the student. Fermi was told that he will become a great scientist. Further, the examiner mentioned that his entrance to the school was guaranteed - it was nearly impossible that other students even came close to him. The examiner was right on both accounts - Enrico Fermi went on to do great things.

In a way, Amidei’s generosity to a schoolboy changed the world.

P.S: This post was inspired by Emelio Segre’s biography. Amidei also finds mention in a memoir written by Fermi’s wife, Laura.

Review: Leadership and Self-Deception

Leadership and Self-Deception is a book from Arbinger Institute. As the name suggests, it is targeted towards self-improvement. A personal review follows of the absolutely brilliant book.

Some books are so good that you just thank your fate(free will?) that they came your way.

I knew there was a problem. I commute to office on my bicycle. Bangalore traffic is hellish, and I freely used abuses(or showed finger) while dodging innumerable cars. Again at office, I felt my work was not meeting the mark at all. I wrote poor code and failed deadlines. Back at my apartment, I couldn't focus at all on my private studies(physics, literature, and the piano). At the gym, I continuously cursed the irresponsible people in my head. All these things made my life miserable and I blamed the entire world for my condition. I felt so stressed that it felt like my head will burst with anger and frustration.

Then, I came across this book from Arbinger Institute. The premise was simple - we self-deceive ourselves by viewing other people as objects. We see only ourselves as important. We inflate our own virtues and put the entire blame on other people. Rather than working towards improving the situation, we resort to blame game and showing everyone their own place. The condition has been termed as being "in-the-box".

The book clearly shows how we enter the box. It goes on to explain why we continue to live in the box, make life miserable for us and others. It explains why our colleagues, friends and family members seem so irritating to deal with. The negative effects are all together familiar - our relations along with our productivity goes down.

Finally, the book specifies a way to get out of the box. The way out is simple - instead of focusing on ourselves, we focus on others and treat them as people. Further, it is also explains how to stay out of the box. 

This book is highly recommended for everyone. Simply written and concise in its explanations. It will help you being a better manager, partner, husband, friend - you name it. If you feel that this book really helped you, pass it to your close ones.

Next book to read - The Anatomy of Peace.