Zero

So the word of the week is zero-sum game.

Zero-sum game.

And you'll see why this is important in just a minute, but I think what's really interesting, Lisa, is that in a lot of the work that I've read or heard, it's referred to, but again, this is one of those that is rarely defined or even, uh, we don't look at the etymology of it at all.

And so I thought this would be really good, because when I started digging around, it was some interesting stuff here.

And so zero-sum or zero-sum game is a situation where one party's gain is exactly equal to another person or party's loss.

So the total net change in value is zero.

So if Lisa has an apple and she gives me the apple, that means I have one, but she has none.

Zero.

And so it comes from game theory, which I think is interesting, because most people enjoy some level of games, whether it's a board game or a card game or now video games, so forth.

And so it's meant [laughs] inherently to be competitive because games are competitive, right? And so in game theory, this means that the sum of all gains minus all losses equals zero.

So if one player wins, another one has to lose the same amount.

And I think this is so key critical to understanding this in other places and spaces because I'd heard of zero-sum, but I did not hear the other alternatives until I started digging around and found positive-sum, which means win-win.

So why can't Lisa and I both have an apple? Hello.

Um, so we could both have.

Um, or negative-sum if both Lisa and I lose our apple.

Okay, then no one wins at this point.

And so I find it interesting that zero-sum, once again, is a very binary way of thinking where it has to be all or nothing.

It, you know, puts com- competition in, but it takes nuance out.

I just thought it was very interesting.

Um, but Lisa, I know you've heard zero-sum before, but-

Yeah, yeah

...

I didn't know this other stuff behind it, right? And I'm, I'm not sure if you did either.

I had no idea it came from game theory.

I think about it as budgetary because you've got like zero-based budgeting.

So the word of the week is zero-sum game.

Zero-sum game.

And you'll see why this is important in just a minute, but I think what's really interesting, Lisa, is that in a lot of the work that I've read or heard, it's referred to, but again, this is one of those that is rarely defined or even, uh, we don't look at the etymology of it at all.

And so I thought this would be really good, because when I started digging around, it was some interesting stuff here.

And so zero-sum or zero-sum game is a situation where one party's gain is exactly equal to another person or party's loss.

So the total net change in value is zero.

So if Lisa has an apple and she gives me the apple, that means I have one, but she has none.

Zero.

And so it comes from game theory, which I think is interesting, because most people enjoy some level of games, whether it's a board game or a card game or now video games, so forth.

And so it's meant [laughs] inherently to be competitive because games are competitive, right? And so in game theory, this means that the sum of all gains minus all losses equals zero.

So if one player wins, another one has to lose the same amount.

And I think this is so key critical to understanding this in other places and spaces because I'd heard of zero-sum, but I did not hear the other alternatives until I started digging around and found positive-sum, which means win-win.

So why can't Lisa and I both have an apple? Hello.

Um, so we could both have.

Um, or negative-sum if both Lisa and I lose our apple.

Okay, then no one wins at this point.

And so I find it interesting that zero-sum, once again, is a very binary way of thinking where it has to be all or nothing.

It, you know, puts com- competition in, but it takes nuance out.

I just thought it was very interesting.

Um, but Lisa, I know you've heard zero-sum before, but-

Yeah, yeah

...

I didn't know this other stuff behind it, right? And I'm, I'm not sure if you did either.

I had no idea it came from game theory.

I think about it as budgetary because you've got like zero-based budgeting.