Mark Twain is known for saying:

“History doesn't repeat itself, but it does rhyme.”

I was chatting with a friend about this quote, and he added something that stuck with me:

“The reason history rhymes is because human nature doesn’t change. People don’t change, but circumstances do.”

That’s why knowing history is important, he said.

I’m no history buff, but I do enjoy reading historical accounts of major business events and the journeys of people who achieved outsize success. I consistently read the latter and randomly read the former. This year, I want to be more intentional about identifying important events in business and monetary policy history and reading long-form content to better understand them and decisions related to them. Hopefully this will help me see patterns in human behavior that will help me understand and navigate similar future events.

I was chatting with a friend about this quote, and he added something that stuck with me: “The reason history rhymes is because human nature doesn’t change. People don’t change, but circumstances do.”

That’s why knowing history is important, he said.

I’m no history buff, but I do enjoy reading historical accounts of major business events and the journeys of people who achieved outsize success. I consistently read the latter and randomly read the former. This year, I want to be more intentional about identifying important events in business and monetary policy history and reading long-form content to better understand them and decisions related to them. Hopefully this will help me see patterns in human behavior that will help me understand and navigate similar future events.