In many spheres of human endeavor, from science to business to education to economic policy, good decisions depend on good measurement.
Ben BernankeRead
I think one of the lessons of the Depression - and this is something that Franklin Roosevelt demonstrated - was that when orthodoxy fails, then you need to try new things. And he was very willing to try unorthodox approaches when the orthodox approach had shown that it was not adequate.
Interpretation
The quote emphasizes the importance of innovation and adaptability in times of crisis.
Ben Bernanke reflects on the lessons learned during the Great Depression, highlighting Franklin Roosevelt's willingness to abandon traditional methods and embrace innovative solutions when faced with failure. This adaptability is portrayed as essential for overcoming challenges, suggesting that rigid adherence to established practices can be detrimental in times of need.
In practice
In a business meeting discussing strategies for economic recovery.
In many spheres of human endeavor, from science to business to education to economic policy, good decisions depend on good measurement.
Education - lifelong education for everyone - from toddlers to workers well advanced in their careers - is indeed an excellent investment for individuals and society as a whole.
Nobody likes to fail but failure is an essential part of life and of learning. If your uniform isn't dirty, you haven't been in the game.
Life is amazingly unpredictable; any 22-year-old who thinks they know where they will be in 10 years, much less in 30, is simply lacking imagination.
The benefit of appointing a hawkish central banker is the increased inflation-fighting credibility that such an appointment brings.
Economics is a highly sophisticated field of thought that is superb at explaining to policymakers precisely why the choices they made in the past were wrong. About the future, not so much.
There is giant untapped potential in disagreement, especially if the disagreement is between two or more thoughtful people
If you would listen, sir, in the sense of being aware of your conflicts and contradictions without forcing them into any particular pattern of thought, perhaps they might altogether cease.
I forget who it was that recommended men for their soul's good to do each day two things they disliked: it was a wise man, and it is a precept that I have followed scrupulously; for every day I have got up and I have gone to bed.
Questions are never indiscreet, answers sometimes are.
It is the tragedy of the world that no one knows what he doesn't know - and the less a man knows, the more sure he is that he knows everything.
A man is not old as long as he is seeking something.
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