Easier Said Than Done

In my view, it's standard procedure to begin with what we believe to be true.

In geometry, an axiom is a self-evident truth, a starting point requiring no proof.

For example, a straight line is the shortest distance between two points is an axiom that's both undeniable and uncontestable from a practical standpoint.

It's also standard procedure to overlook the axioms that govern our daily choices.

Such as the deeply held beliefs that mostly guide our actions, or perhaps, our inactions too.

Sometimes, these are considered "subjective axioms" or internal truths we operate by, usually without consciously realizing it.

A good portion of them stem from experience, cultural narratives, or from the voices of those we admire.

Here's a principle which I've observed time and again:

Making money is easier said than done for many people. This is because there's a huge difference between what you truly know and what you think you know.
The latter, realm of perceived knowledge, is where most of the confusion lies. Because it creates a disconnect between theory and practical application.
Real-world scenarios rarely conform perfectly to idealized models, which makes it challenging to bridge the gap between abstract understanding and tangible, profitable results.

Now, think of it for a minute.

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You can read every book on stock market trading, understand the jargon and also memorize complex strategies.

But the moment you face a volatile market, the cold sweat of a losing trade, or the paralysis of indecision, that intellectual knowledge crumbles away, as if it was just a sand castle washed away by the ocean waves.

For the most part, I think the "axioms" of the textbook don't quite apply when human emotion and unpredictable variables enter the equation.

A Peculiar Knowing

In some ways, it also resonates with my own journey of knowing with regards to the cosmos.

I've spent many hours consuming documentaries, devouring books on astrophysics, and listening to subjective experts explain the mysteries of space.

I know about star formations, constellations, black holes, nebulae, the lifecycle of stars, peculiar intricacies of galactic clusters, etc.

Despite this knowing however, my practical experience is largely limited to frequently gazing at the night sky with the naked eye, perhaps picking out a familiar constellation or anything that seemed out of the ordinary, like a particularly bright Venus.

The difference between intellectually grasping the immense scale of the Andromeda galaxy and actually being able to navigate its stars with a telescope, remains immensely significant.

And my "knowledge" on this domain is largely observational and theoretical, far from experiential in the deepest sense.

Now, this isn't to say knowledge is worthless, far from it.

For the most part, it's an essential first step on making the leap from academic understanding to effective execution.

Never Played Instrument

What needs to be understood is that the market, or any real-world endeavor, provides brutal and unforgiving feedback.

Partly because our emotions (fear, greed, hope, etc) color our decisions in ways textbooks never prepare us for.

Good for us that our assumptions, no matter how well-reasoned, are quickly tested against objective reality when we apply them.

And without a willingness to confront that feedback, learn from mistakes, and adjust with humility and persistence, that initial theoretical knowledge remains inert much like an instrument never played.

To me, it seems very simple that transforming what you think you know into what you actually know only happens through experience, failure, and adaptation.

But then, how is it that doing can precede knowing, as when you learn to ride a bicycle by falling repeatedly without having anyone to teach you?

Knowing gives breadth, doing brings depth.
Theories are useful as a means to an end, practical knowledge isn't an end itself, since there are no permanent solutions in dynamic systems.

Going back and forth between knowing and doing is a continuous, iterative process, much like breathing and living.

I don't think the gap between us ever filled but hopefully, with each going, higher highs are reached and higher lows are maintained during the long-term period.

Better to build your own, hard-won axioms of action forged through real-world application than simply accept borrowed truths, which nowadays seem more like untested hypotheses or echo chamber consensus.


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