Quit
by Annie Duke · first published 2022
63% recommend38% neutral
Why HN recommends it
Explores when to quit and how to avoid the sunk cost fallacy, using decision-making ideas like setting kill criteria and expected value. Its approach is considered insightful and effective at making the lesson stick.
Summarised by Claude from recommending comments
Business leaders, with millions of dollars down the drain, struggle to abandon a new app or product that just isn’t working. Governments, caught in a hopeless conflict, believe that the next tactic will finally be the one that wins the war. And in our own lives, we persist in relationships or careers that no longer serve us. Why? According to Annie Duke, in the face of tough decisions, we’re terrible quitters. And that is significantly holding us back. In Quit, Duke teaches you how to get good at quitting. Drawing on stories from elite athletes like Mount Everest climbers, founders of leadi
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A really good book on this topic I recently read: Quit, by Annie Duke. The book boils down to "Calculate EV of your decision, try not to fall prey to sunk cost fallacy". But it makes the lesson really sink in which is nice. My favorite bit was her sharing…
on “The Art of Knowing When to Quit” ↗There is a new episode of the POD Freakconomics named “Is it bad to be a one hit wonder” and it touches this topic. It’s a really good episode. A book that also touches the same topic is Quit by Annie Duke. One takeaway from the book is our bias against quitting. We should probably quit more often. So basically, if you are thinking about quitting, then you should already have quit, since…
on “The Art of Knowing When to Quit” ↗The specific milestones here are certainly up for debate, but the general approach to thinking this way is a good one in my opinion. I read Quit: The Power of Knowing When to Walk Away by Annie Duke last year and found it quite illuminating, both in introducing this concept of having “kill criteria” like this to help clarify why we are doing…
on “When am I "allowed" to quit and not be labeled a quitter?” ↗While not directly about playing poker, these books are poker-based life lessons written by a top poker player. "Thinking in Bets" and "Quit" by Annie Duke https://www.annieduke.com/books/ I do own "How to Decided" but haven't read it yet. I will say that "Bets" and "Quit" are both easy reads and are high on value and low on noise. That…
on “An introduction to the theory and practice of poker (2020)” ↗…bits from both of the Michael Easter books: "The Comfort Crisis" and "Scarcity Brain." https://eastermichael.com/ Along the same lines, the two Annie Duke books that I read, "Thinking in Bets" and "Quit", were both entertaining and insightful. https://www.annieduke.com/ And tho' I thought it could have half the pages, I found inspriation from Rick Rubin's "The Creative Act". https://www.theguardian.com/books/2023/jan/10/the-creative-a...…
on “Ask HN: What book(s) changed your routine(s) in 2023?” ↗Michael Easter "The Comfort Crisis" Michael Easter "Scarcity Brain" Annie Duke "Thinking In Bets" Annie Duke "Quit" All were readable and yet informative and intriguing. Rick Ruben's "The Creative Act" was also good, tho I felt it should have been more heavily edited (read: it was too long). That flaw makes me hesitant…
on “Ask HN: Best books you read in 2023” ↗In terms of quitting and/or level of confidence in decision making, I'd recommend Annie Duke's "Thinking in Bets" and "Quit". Coincidentally (?), Duke's "Quit" discusses the importance of having a "board of directors"…
on “Sam Altman's Blog on Productivity” ↗> when should the persistent quit? There is a book that addresses this question: Quit by Annie Duke
on “The Right Kind of Stubborn” ↗On this subject, I recently read Quit: The Power of Knowing When to Walk Away by Annie Duke, which explores research on our decision making biases around quitting, and goes over interesting case studies of people who did and did not quit…
on “The Risks of Staying Put” ↗Currently reading: Quit: The Power of Knowing When to Walk Away by Annie Duke. Before that: - Marry Him: The Case for Settling for Mr. Good Enough by Lori Gottlieb - On Settling by Robert E. Goodin - What do you say after…
on “Ask HN: What books are you reading?” ↗As Annie Duke said in her book Quit, "quitting on time usually feels like quitting too early." Grammarly was a great in the 2010s, but now it's too easily replaced. It reminds me of winzip.
on “Grammarly Is Offering 'Expert' AI Reviews from Top Authors – Dead or Alive” ↗Latest book by Annie Duke - Quit: The Power of Knowing When to Walk Away https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/60097435-quit
on “Thinking in Bets – Book Summary” ↗…in Nir Eyal's "Indistractable". It's discussed in one of the Micheal Easter books. Was it "Scarcity Brain" or "The Comfort Crisis", I forget. It's also discussed as a tool in one of Annie Duke's book. "Quit", I think but made it wasn't that one. In any case, identity can give you "purpose". For example, "I identify as someone who walks after dinner phone-less, instead of doom scrolling on the sofa with…
on “A 'Dopamine Fast' Will Not Save You from Addiction” ↗…few with whom I shared early, who all reluctantly came round to support me." Kahneman's friend Annie Duke, a decision theorist and former professional poker player, published a book in 2022 titled "Quit: The Power of Knowing When to Walk Away." In it, she wrote, "Quitting on time will usually feel like quitting too early." She is frustrated by his decision. "There's a big difference between it feeling…
on “Daniel Kahneman opted for assisted suicide in Switzerland” ↗