Telling Quote by Nassim Nicholas Taleb
““Cherry-picking has optionality: the one telling the story (and publishing it) has the advantage of being able to show the confirmatory examples and completely ignore the rest—and the more volatility and dispersion, the rosier the best story will be (and the darker the worst story). Someone””
About This Quote
Source Book: Antifragile by Nassim Nicholas Taleb, 2012
Cherry‑picking lets storytellers highlight only favorable data, ignoring the rest, especially when data are volatile, making the narrative appear better than reality.
In simple terms: Selective data can distort the truth.
Key Takeaway
Beware of biased narratives.
Themes
bias
statistics
storytelling
risk
perception
Mood
skeptical
critical
cautious
Type
analytical
philosophical
When to use this quote
- financial analysis
- media reporting
- scientific research
- policy making
Key Concepts
confirmation bias
selection bias
data volatility
Questions to Reflect On
- How can you test the robustness of a story?
- What data are being omitted?
A Different Perspective
Such narratives can mislead decision‑makers if not critically examined.
