> "You don't need to be smarter than others to outperform them if you can out-position them. Anyone looks like a genius when they're in a good position, and even the smartest person looks like an idiot when they're in a bad one. [\.\.\.] The company with cash on the balance sheet has nothing but good options to choose from. When bad times come, and they always do, their options go from good to great." > *— Shane Parrish, Clear Thinking* Good decisions come from good positions. We often obsess over making _the right choice_. Instead, we can work on _improving the position_ from which we make our decisions over time. This in turns increases the quality of our options. It's hard to make bad decisions when all you have are good options. On the other hand, if you've been sentenced to death and your choice is between the rope and the chair, being the smartest person in the universe will do little for you. What good is being smart when all your options suck?