antifragile
Thrives under stress
Antifragile describes things that gain from disorder, stress, or volatility—the opposite of fragile, which breaks under pressure.
Where resilient things merely resist damage, antifragile things actually improve: Muscles are antifragile—they grow stronger from the stress of exercise.
The term was coined by Nassim Nicholas Taleb to name a property that had no word: systems that thrive on chaos rather than stability.
Prospering vigorously
- prosperingSucceeding financially or generally
- bloomingProducing flowers now
- growthIncrease in size
- vitalityCapacity for spirited existence
strengthened · tempered · hardened · enhanced · enriched · fortified · emboldened · invigorated
Needless duplication
- optionalityValue of having choices
- decentralizationDistributing power from center
- modularityDivisibility into independent units
- diversificationExpanding into varied areas
barbell · convexity · nonlinear · asymmetry · layering · slack · buffers · reserves
Pressure, mental or vocal
- volatilityRapid, unpredictable changeability
- disorderAbsence of organization
- chaosComplete disorder and confusion
- shockViolent sudden disturbance
stressor · challenge · adversity · pressure · uncertainty · randomness · variability · perturbation
Permanent DNA alteration
- selectionChosen item or items
- variationChange from a norm
- adaptationFitting to new conditions
- survivalRemaining alive against odds
fitness · iteration · experimentation · trial-and-error · tinkering · learning · feedback · calibration
flourishing
Prospering vigorously
- prosperingSucceeding financially or generally
- bloomingProducing flowers now
- growthIncrease in size
vitality · strengthened · tempered · hardened · enhanced · enriched · fortified · emboldened · invigorated · empowered
redundancy
Needless duplication
- optionalityValue of having choices
- decentralizationDistributing power from center
- modularityDivisibility into independent units
diversification · barbell · convexity · nonlinear · asymmetry · layering · slack · buffers · reserves · fail-safe
stress
Pressure, mental or vocal
- volatilityRapid, unpredictable changeability
- disorderAbsence of organization
- chaosComplete disorder and confusion
shock · stressor · challenge · adversity · pressure · uncertainty · randomness · variability · perturbation · disruption
mutation
Permanent DNA alteration
- selectionChosen item or items
- variationChange from a norm
- adaptationFitting to new conditions
survival · fitness · iteration · experimentation · trial-and-error · tinkering · learning · feedback · calibration · refinement
antifragilefragile
Easily broken or damaged
brittle · delicate · breakable · vulnerable · frail
antifragilefragile
Easily broken or damaged
risk-averse · rigidity · inflexible · static · fixed