The Reputational Cue Ball - Farnam Street  ## Metadata - Author: **Farnam Street** - Full Title: The Reputational Cue Ball - Category: #articles - URL: https://fs.blog/the-reputational-cue-ball/ ## Highlights - Amateurs celebrate the flashy, difficult shot without noticing (or caring) they’ve left the cue ball trapped – making the next shot impossible. The professional, on the other hand, might pass on an impressive shot entirely if it creates poor positioning, preferring the modest play that sets up a sequence of future successes. This dynamic perfectly captures the “reputational cue ball concept.” ([View Highlight](https://read.readwise.io/read/01jnz0p4mhce5wtfqbr2df3arz)) - What follows is a fascinating compounding effect that transforms the game. Watch a top player during a successful run—each carefully positioned shot creates progressively better angles, until clearing the table becomes almost inevitable. Your reputation builds momentum in exactly the same way. ([View Highlight](https://read.readwise.io/read/01jnz0rdrb57whktmwcjkfh810)) - The [mathematics of trust works multiplicatively](https://fs.blog/multiplicative-systems/), not additively—a single zero in the equation nullifies everything else. ([View Highlight](https://read.readwise.io/read/01jnz0wffbpf09xm36phcms3jn)) - Here’s where the metaphor reveals a profound insight: operating with integrity isn’t just morally right—it’s strategically brilliant. At dinner, Charlie Munger once told me, “You can make a lot more money with good ethics, but it takes a while to play out.” ([View Highlight](https://read.readwise.io/read/01jnz130gr3z642mgt20ask454)) - Your reputation isn’t something you possess—it’s a position you occupy on the table of life. That position determines whether you can run the table of opportunities or find yourself perpetually attempting desperate shots from impossible angles. The reputational cue ball concept reveals the ultimate truth: integrity isn’t just right—it’s the strategic advantage that determines which game you get to play. ([View Highlight](https://read.readwise.io/read/01jnz198b88w2z214s266e33n9))