What Electrons Know About Success That Most People Don't

Dear Magicians,

Electrons are a dime a dozen. Seen one, seen them all. But here’s the thing about electrons. They never share the same quantum state. Never. And neither should you. It’s called the ‘Pauli Exclusion Principle, named after famed physicist, and cantankerous curmudgeon, Wolfgang Pauli.

Your life trajectory? It's like those restless particles - destined to avoid coliding with it’s predecessors and find its own distinct path. Consider Steven Bartlett, Elon Musk and Sara Blakely. All wildly successful entrepreneurs. Radically different routes. Bartlett made his way from nothing to running dozens of companies, staring on Dragon’s Den and hosting some of the most watched conversations in human history. Musk parlayed PayPal profits into rockets and electric cars. Blakely? She spotted a gap in clothing and built Spanx from scratch. Same summit, different paths.

Science tells the same story. Jennifer Doudna revolutionized gene editing by studying bacterial immune systems. Frances Arnold crafted new proteins through directed evolution. Both earned Nobel Prizes. Both blazed unique trails.

Physics meets philosophy here. Just as electrons naturally find their specific energy levels, you'll discover your niche. But here's the key: stop copying. Start creating. Your quantum state - that singular blend of experiences, insights, and abilities - can't be replicated. Won't be replicated.

Life isn't linear. Getting fired from Stanford seemed catastrophic to me at first. Plot twist: it wasn't. That apparent failure launched a journey to Caltech, then UC San Diego. Family. Purpose. A better fit.

Think of life as an endless series of experiments. Each failure? Data. Each setback? Feedback. When my son's science fair project "failed," he discovered something more valuable than success - he found resilience.

The quantum universe whispers a truth: uniqueness isn't just inevitable. It's essential. Your path won't look like anyone else's. Shouldn't look like anyone else's.

Embrace it.

This is quantum mechanics meets personal development. No two electrons occupy the same state. No two journeys mirror each other perfectly.

Perfect.

Stop trying to squeeze into someone else's orbital. Find yours. Own it. The universe works this way. Why fight it?

Success isn't about replication. It's about resonance. Finding your frequency. Your energy level. Your unique state of being.

The path is yours alone. Make it count. Just as no two electrons can occupy the same quantum state, no two people can occupy the same state. This reflects your uniqueness, which makes you special. Lean into your successes rather than trying to compensate for failures. Live your own life,

Live your own life; all the other lives are taken.

Until next time, have a M.A.G.I.C. Week and Happy New Year!

Brian

Appearance

One year ago, my talk at RI was posted, and I still can't believe I had the honor of presenting in the same place as Michael Faraday, my hero, presented two hundred years ago. His Christmas lectures became famous and were seen by thousands.

I can't claim to have the same influence on Science as he has, but the short video they made has been seen over 7M times.

Genius

People always ask me what are my favorite things of 2024

Here you go...

Image

The Crab Nebula is the remnant of the of a star 6-10x the size of the Sun and is the result of a supernova seen in 1054 AD.

I made a video about it here.

📸 Mike Adler

Conversation

Dr. Brian Keating interviewed Yann LeCun, a leading AI researcher at Meta, in this episode of "Into the Impossible." They discuss the limitations of current AI models, the potential of new architectures like Jepa, and the importance of building AI systems that are safe and beneficial for humanity. LeCun shares his insights on the future of AI, including its potential to transform education and healthcare, and addresses concerns about AI doomsday scenarios.

Click here to watch!

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Marcus Chown will be on The INTO THE IMPOSSIBLE Podcast soon. A former radio astronomer at Caltech who studied under Richard Feynman, he’s now an award-winning science writer whose latest book “A Crack in Everything” reveals how black holes transformed from a ridiculed theory to revolutionizing our understanding of the universe. His unique storytelling ability and clear explanations have earned him comparisons to Isaac Asimov, making him one of today’s most engaging science communicators. What would you like to ask this masterful explorer of cosmic mysteries?