Laws for the Navigation of Life

Peter Josef Safar (1924-2003) had a remarkable life.

His work earned him recognition as the “father of modern resuscitation” and “founder of critical care medicine.” He was the driving force behind mouth-to-mouth ventilation, the development of cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR), and the establishment of intensive care units. His career embodied both scientific rigour and humanitarian commitment, spanning anaesthesiology, resuscitation science, emergency medicine, and disaster preparedness.

Beyond CPR, Safar pioneered the first multidisciplinary intensive care units, trained the world’s first paramedics through Pittsburgh’s Freedom House Ambulance Service, and championed therapeutic hypothermia and suspended animation as strategies to protect the brain after cardiac arrest and trauma. He combined clinical innovation with advocacy, producing global guidelines, writing extensively, and inspiring generations of physicians. Through science, teaching, and vision, Safar transformed resuscitation from improvisation into a discipline, saving countless lives worldwide.

In 1994, on the occasion of his 70th birthday he was presented with a framed set of laws by his friends and colleagues. These laws were derived from the sayings of Peter Safar himself. They were titled ‘Peter’s Laws for the Navigation of Life‘ with the instructive subtitle ‘The Creed of the Sociopathic Obsessive Compulsive‘.

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Peter’s Laws and the Attribution Debate

“Peter’s Laws” are often cited as belonging either to Peter Safar, the “father of modern resuscitation,” or to Peter H. Diamandis, the space entrepreneur. In truth, both men are associated with lists of aphorisms that overlap in many ways.

In Safar’s autobiography (1994), a list titled Peter’s Laws for the Navigation of Life was presented to Safar as part of his 70th birthday celebration with the subtitle “The Creed of the Sociopathic Obsessive Compulsive.” Laws #1–19 were not his own: they were a compilation “discovered by Åke Grenvik,” with additions by James Snyder (#20) Peter Winter (#21) and Safar (#22) “It is up to us to save the world.”

Diamandis, meanwhile, has explained that his version of Peter’s Laws grew organically in the early 1990s. Annoyed by Murphy’s Law while sharing an office at the International Space University, he countered with: “If anything can go wrong, fix it! (To hell with Murphy!).” Over the following years he added new “laws,” sometimes original, sometimes borrowed or adapted.

A side-by-side comparison shows why the confusion persists. Eleven of Safar’s birthday “laws” are identical to Diamandis’ laws (e.g. If anything can go wrong, Fix it!; Start at the top then work your way up; If you can’t win, change the rules; Multiple projects lead to multiple successes; Do it by the book, but be the author; and When forced to compromise, ask for more…). Safar’s list also contains aphorisms with a more ironic, existential flavour (Death is not the enemy, but occasionally needs help with timing; When on thin ice, dance). Conversely, Diamandis’ emphasize futurism and entrepreneurship (The world’s biggest problems = biggest opportunities; The world’s most precious resource is the persistent and passionate human mind; If it were easy, it would have been done already.).

In summary, Safar’s Peter’s Laws were a tribute, not a manifesto. Diamandis’ Peter’s Laws were a personal creed, built over decades. Their overlap reflects a common pool of “maxims” circulating in academic and entrepreneurial culture in the late 20th century explaining why both lists have been repeatedly conflated.

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References

• Safar PJ. Careers In Anesthesiology: An Autobiographical Memoir. 1994 (Volume 5)
• Diamandis PH. The Laws I Live By. 2023
• Diamandis PH. Peter’s Laws: The creed of the persistent and passionate mind. 2023