Shortform Books

The Cause of Materialism, According to Eckhart Tolle

What is the main cause of materialism? Why are we so obsessed with owning the best material possessions our money can buy? What are the consequences of being so materially oriented? According to spiritual teacher Eckhart Tolle, materialism stems from the ego’s fear of being nothing. This fear drives the ego to seek superiority, and accumulating material possessions is one of the ways to attain it. This ego-driven obsession with materialism is what drives consumerism, which depletes resources and pollutes the planet. Here’s what causes materialism, according to Tolle.

What Are the Six Human Needs in Relation to Money?

What are the six human needs? How can you apply these needs to finances? According to Tony Robbins in Money: Master the Game, there are six human needs we’re trying to fulfill: security, variety, closeness, meaning, participation, and progress. Each of these needs is important to understand because money has a say in how we achieve these needs. Let’s explore how money affects these needs and compare them to Maslow’s hierarchy of needs.

What Is Electronic Trading? A Simple Guide

What is electronic trading? Is it easy to buy and sell stocks electronically? The answer is, if you know what you’re doing, it’s fairly simple. Electronic trading is the process of trading stocks using computer technology. It only takes three steps: gathering market data, making a smart trade decision, and executing an order. We’ll explain what electronic trading is and how it fits into the modern stock market that relies on technology.

Daniel Goleman’s 6 Leadership Styles, Explained

What are Daniel Goleman’s six leadership styles? How can you use these styles to instill harmony in your team? Daniel Goleman is an author, lecturer, and psychologist who focuses on behavioral science and the brain. In his co-authored book Primal Leadership, Goleman goes over the six leadership styles that can create group harmony. Here’s an overview of each one of the six leadership styles.

Elon Musk’s Favorite Books (From Twitter & Interviews)

What are Elon Musk’s favorite books? How have books helped him become the successful billionaire he is now? Whenever someone asks the CEO of Tesla and SpaceX how he learned to build rockets, Musk simply says, “I read books.” Elon Musk’s favorite books range from sci-fi and fantasy novels to deep-dives into artificial intelligence, so he has quite the library to refer back to when building rockets or designing sustainable cars. Keep reading for a list of Elon Musk’s favorite books, most of which he’s recommended on his Twitter account or in interviews.

The Conflict Trap: Why Some Countries Can’t Grow

What’s the conflict trap? What causes conflict in developing nations? In his book The Bottom Billion, economist Paul Collier explains that one big reason why many poor countries stay poor is because of conflict. This conflict is often fueled by low income, slow growth, and natural resource dependence. Continue reading to learn about the conflict trap, according to Collier.

Eckhart Tolle: How Emotions Form Our Identity

What exactly are emotions? How do emotions relate to thoughts? According to spiritual teacher Eckhart Tolle, emotions are our bodies’ responses to our thought elements (morals, values, and beliefs). He says that our emotions aren’t caused by situations, but by the thoughts, we have about the situation. Over time, he argues, recurring thoughts and emotions become part of our identity and become the lens through which we interpret the world. Here’s how Eckhart Tolle explains emotions and their role in identity formation.

Humans and Technology: It’s Not a Competition

Are humans and technology in competition with each other? Can computers do whatever humans can do? Will AI take over the world? According to Peter Thiel, the author of Zero to One, humans and technology don’t compete with each other—they complement each other. In the job market, computers don’t eliminate the need for human workers; they just empower human workers to be more productive. And, in the resource market, computers don’t compete with humans for resources, because computers are not consumers. Here’s why the concern of competition is irrelevant.

Active vs. Passive Investing: What’s the Difference?

What’s the difference between active and passive investing? Which one is smarter to practice? In his book Money: Master the Game, Tony Robbins says that passive investing is the smarter approach, as you’re less like to lose money than you would with active investing. However, he does say that you can use either strategy when dealing with your investments. Here’s Robbins’ explanation of active vs. passive investing.

What Are Dark Pools? Michael Lewis Explains

What are dark pools? How does Michael Lewis, author of Flash Boys, think dark pools are being used in the stock market? In Flash Boys, Lewis says that sending a stock order to a dark pool is a sneaky way for investors to profit off private orders. High-frequency (HF) traders have also found a way to use dark pools to their advantage. In this article, we’ll go into more detail on what dark pools are and why HF traders are so interested in them.