This is reposted from Tyler’s Marginal Revolution blog:
I expect Tyler Cowen to jump in here and point out that this applies to food, too: you should try something new frequently, rather than sticking to old favourites.
Here is the modeler, a few remarks:
1. If you are in a good restaurant, try something that doesn’t sound appealing. If it seems bad to most customers, it is on the menu for some other good reason, such as how it tastes.
2. The best argument against trying new things is wanting to keep the pleasures of anticipation.
3. Beware those who try many new things, it is often their sneaky form of conservatism. In many fields of interest, trying new things is the only sustainable routine.
4. The person who tries new things only “every now and then” is often, in real terms, the greater innovator. Such occasional quests for novelties have greater potential to be true earthquakes.
5. People have only so much toleration for novelty in them; no one embraces novelty consistently and in all fields of life. Spend your tolerance for novelty wisely.
6. To prevent “trying new things” from becoming stale in its own terms, I have two tips. First, spend time with children. Second, try “not trying anything new for a while,” that is if you can.
7. Many people try new things for pre-emptive reasons; “I’d better try it before it tries me.”
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