Avoid the "One-Handed Economist"

Disclaimer: All opinions expressed in the blog are solely my own. The blog is not an official publication of any City of Melrose organization. 

Coaching resembles economics because it often rewards better "allocation of scarce resources."

The "one-handed economist" (or coach) is limited because there is no 'on the other hand'. 

The great coaches often seem comfortable holding two competing ideas simultaneously..."we have significant potential" and "production is not the same as potential."

That's a reason to gravitate toward people like Charlie Munger, Howard Marks, and Nassim Nicholas Taleb. None of them think in absolutes.

In coaching, the same principle applies.

• A player can be talented and undisciplined.
• A team can be successful and fragile.
• A loss can be disappointing and informative.
• A player can be terrific and have a slump.
• A coach can be experienced and wrong.

F. Scott Fitzgerald remarked:

"The test of a first-rate intelligence is the ability to hold two opposed ideas in mind at the same time and still retain the ability to function."

That's almost a definition of good judgment.

In fact, the ability to live comfortably in that tension may be one of the advantages of experience. Younger analysts often seek certainty. Older ones learn that certainty is usually a disguise worn by ignorance.

Or as a veteran coach might put it:

The best decisions are often made not by the coach who has all the answers, but by the coach who asks:

"What am I missing?" and "What would have to be true for the opposite view to be correct?" (Munger's principle of inversion)

That's the opposite of the one-handed economist. It's also the opposite of dogma. 

Strong programs continually reevaluate assets and limitations, looking to consolidate strengths and lessen weaknesses. That works for individuals, too.

Lagniappe. Life is about balance...work-life balance, benefit-risk balance, certainty-uncertainty balance. Courage balances recklessness and fear. Confidence balances arrogance and doubt. Know your ability yet stay humble and hungry. 

This player flew in from Alabama this weekend.

Something interesting happened.

Every time he made a bad swing...

he had something to say.

Every time he missed a ball...

he had an explanation.

Every time something went wrong...

he gave it attention.

But every time he… pic.twitter.com/C73Dhs3c8i

— Jermaine Curtis (@JermaineCurtis) May 31, 2026