WILD PROBLEMS

We live in the quantified age, as time and again we've been made to behold the wonders of data-driven analysis and problem-solving. And why not? It's certainly much better than seat-of-your-pants decision-making.

Or is it? In his book Wild Problems: A Guide to the Decisions that Define Us, Russ Roberts is quick to point out that not all of life's quandaries can be solved by worshipping at the altar of data.

Roberts begins by distinguishing between "tame" problems and "wild" problems. The former are of the type that can be addressed given the right data and/or maybe a cost-benefit analysis. "For [tame problems] the relentless application of science, engineering, and rational thought leads to steady progress," he stresses, apropos of our quantified age.

In contrast, wild problems are different. Such problems are like

"…a fork in the road of life where knowing which path is the right one isn't obvious, where the pleasure and pain from choosing one path over another are ultimately hidden from us, where the path we choose defines who we are and who we might become. Wild problems are the big decisions all of us have to deal with as we go through life." (Emphasis added.)


Thus, questions like "Which is a better investment vehicle, cryptocurrency or mutual funds?" or "What's the most economical way to reduce drag and increase lift on this airfoil?" are tame problems. You can analyze them to death and come up with an unambiguous answer.

On the other hand questions like, "Should I change careers?" or "Should I get married?" are wild problems for which there can never be an unambiguously right or wrong answer.

The broader principle Roberts conveys in the book is that we apply rational tame problem approaches to wild problems at our own peril. While they can help, they can be a limiting if not incorrect tool precisely because they deal with the unquantifiable and possible even unknowable. However, since the core of most wild problems are matters that are deeply personal, Roberts suggests that the best guidepost in such instances is our personal flourishing.

How will this course of action add to meaning in my life?

Will this make me into a better person or professional?

All things being equal, which is more interesting?

Things like that.

On balance, there is an element of subjectivity to this framework, albeit one that works in favor of the person confronted with a wild problem. After all, If there is no right answer, then the best each person can do is to get to the best answer for themselves and their specific situation, based on whatever principles they hold most dear.

This book details the ways to deal with problems which are vague, diffuse, deep and don't fit into precise definitions. Problems which are so dependent on so many variables that it becomes difficult to tame them. Russ Roberts is a podcast legend, perhaps a bit of an underground legend, but a legend nonetheless. A lot of smart people listen to Russ and his erudite, incisive interviews with some of the most brilliant people in the world. Part of what sets Russ apart from other podcasts is, not only his brilliance and knowledge, but his infectious warmth and kindness as a host, his sobering, common sense analysis, and the his deep intellectual curiosity. Now, Russ brings all these wonderful qualities to a brilliant book bursting with advice, insight and his trademark warmth and erudition.

Russ Roberts is a podcast legend, perhaps a bit of an underground legend, but a legend nonetheless. A lot of smart people listen to Russ and his erudite, incisive interviews with some of the most brilliant people in the world. Part of what sets Russ apart from other podcasts is, not only his brilliance and knowledge, but his infectious warmth and kindness as a host, his sobering, common sense analysis, and the his deep intellectual curiosity. Now, Russ brings all these wonderful qualities to a brilliant book bursting with advice, insight and his trademark warmth and erudition. I enjoy Russ, always, and as I read the book I could hear the words being spoken in his voice and it was a comfort. Well worth a read.