What Are The Key Lessons In Obliquity: Why Our Goals Are Best Achieved Indirectly?

2025-12-12 03:32:56 119

4 Answers

Finn
Finn
2025-12-13 07:44:08
After my startup flamed out from hyperfocusing on KPIs, 'Obliquity' was a gut punch. Kay shows how targets distort outcomes—like hospitals prioritizing wait-time metrics over actual care. I now approach goals like seasoning soup: you can’t just dump salt in; you stir, taste, adjust. My new side project? No rigid milestones, just curiosity-driven tinkering. Already feels healthier.
Lila
Lila
2025-12-16 12:53:39
Kay’s 'Obliquity' is basically the anti-self-help book. No 'five steps to success' here—just a witty demolition of linear thinking. My favorite takeaway? Corporations obsessed with quarterly targets often bleed long-term value, while companies like Apple (who famously prioritized design over market research) stumble into greatness. It’s counterintuitive but true: the best way to climb a mountain isn’t always staring at the peak. I applied this to my D&D campaigns too; the most epic moments arose from players going off-script, not my meticulously planned lore dumps. Life’s too messy for straight lines.
Derek
Derek
2025-12-17 03:41:30
Reading 'Obliquity' felt like uncovering a hidden truth about how the world really works. John Kay argues that the most meaningful goals—happiness, profit, even artistic brilliance—are rarely achieved through direct pursuit. Instead, they emerge sideways, through adaptation and serendipity. Like when I tried to force myself into a creative hobby by rigidly scheduling 'art time,' only to burn out. It wasn’t until I let myself doodle aimlessly during meetings that I rediscovered the joy of drawing.

Kay uses examples like the Wright brothers, who succeeded not by obsessing over flight itself but by tinkering with balance and control. That resonates with my gaming habits too—I’ve won more matches in 'League of Legends' by focusing on map awareness than by fixating on kills. The book’s lesson? Loosen your grip. Sometimes the path twists, and that’s where the magic happens.
Quinn
Quinn
2025-12-18 11:50:36
As a parent, 'Obliquity' hit differently. Kay’s idea that happiness can’t be chased head-on reminded me of how I used to micromanage my kid’s 'enrichment' with flashcards and structured playdates. Surprise: they thrived way more when I just left Legos lying around and let them daydream. The book’s business cases—like how IKEA’s flat-pack innovation came from solving shipping costs, not aiming for 'disruption'—parallel parenting. You can’t script growth; you create conditions and let it unfold. Now I see oblique approaches everywhere, from gardening (plants grow toward light, not because you yell 'Taller!') to my failed New Year’s resolutions. Forcing rarely works; fostering does.
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