Hi All,
I’m starting to feel a little bit like Matt Damon in The Martian. The good thing is that I actually have a few spare minutes to watch TV shows on this really cool thing called Netflix :)
In this week’s hot water is Zoom, whose product let me say I LOVE. While I don’t disagree that they need to fix some of their security issues (and they have committed to doing so) the fact of the matter is that quite honestly I’m not sure if I really care if anyone is listening in. If you are a company that cares so much then you should be using a more secure product. On that note I had a couple of Zoom happy hours and a Zoom hangout with a bunch of high school classmates. Was definitely a lot of fun and thankfully no one zoom-bombed
Yesterday I saw this written in front on my neighbors front door on the floor; I think it was a nice gesture and needless to say we should all be thankful for their services. Once again, this week, I am blessed for 2 things 1) To still have a job that I enjoy and 2) To be able to WFH. Stay safe y’all.
COVID-19 Articles/Notes
Interesting tweet (Originally seen on David Perell’s newsletter) on why it is that the most vital workers are the lowest paid? I mean if you really consider it can they afford to take a break? The answer is (most likely) no and if they had a choice to (take a break or WFH), they would definitely choose that. But they cant. When I think about it a little bit more; did such wages get set decades ago on purpose to create this situation? The way I look at it is that might be true and sadly there are more people than there is work (and this applies all the more in countries such as India) else we’d see a situation where the Uber’s, Doordash’s, Instacart’s of the world would pay a bit more (out of demand rather than public pressure)
Is COVID-19 really a black swan event? (TL/DR it isn't) Definition of a Black Swan and Why the virus isn't a black swan event but unemployment claims ARE from Alex Danco : Black Swan Events
For those folks who have lost jobs feel free to reach out and i’ll do what I can to help. This website was cool : [LIVE] Who's freezing hiring from coronavirus
And definitely one of the best data backed reads of the week from Tomas Pueyo : Coronavirus: The Hammer and the Dance - Tomas Pueyo
How to avoid isolation and not feel like Matt Damon in the Martian : Opinion | I Spent a Year in Space, and I Have Tips on Isolation to Share
And on accidental hoarders - Reflects my shopping habit recently (more frequent and 1-2 additional items) I definitely don’t consider myself a hoarder and definitely don’t want to be one! Accidental stockpilers driving shelf shortages - Global site
And lastly why it's important to Social Distance. 1 min well spent watching this video : Spring Break vs. COVID19: The Real Impact of Ignoring Social Distancing
This weeks chart(s)
And finally this week’s dozen:
A good read on the loneliness epidemic and more true now than ever given the situation : Alone: The decline of the family has unleashed an epidemic of loneliness.
For the most part, this studied cultural silence about marriage, children, and kinship hasn’t damaged the prospects for my peers’ kids to create and sustain bonds so essential to individual and social well-being. They see these relationships all around them; they’re part of the air they breathe. That’s far from the case in less advantaged communities, where the most elemental bonds are fraying like a piece of 100-year-old muslin. Most policy discussions about the troubles of the American working class and poor center on vocational and technical education, higher-paying and reliable jobs, and benefits. These are necessary efforts, but they are not enough to counter the loneliness, kinlessness, and despair crushing so many spirits. There also must be what Tom Wolfe called a “Great Re-learning” about how to satisfy the human longing for continuity and connection.
The Feynman technique for learning: Explain it to a kid : The Feynman Technique: The Best Way to Learn Anything
Panera coffee sub : loss leader strategy. Loss leader strategy might work but I’m honestly quite skeptical. This is *almost* like MoviePass all over again. I fail to see how this could be profitable : We Have Officially Hit Peak Subscription
Maybe you’d rather have a coffee subscription from Starbucks, or subscribe to salads at Sweetgreen, or get a burrito subscription from Chipotle.
8 life skills in 8 hours each; 8 Timeless Skills to Learn Now in Under 8 Hours to Change your Life Forever
The list, though I think one thing is missing; cooking!
Learning to learn
Writing
Public speaking
Meditation
Forming good habits
Negotiation
Mathematical thinking
Coordination and flexibility
Everyone should do research; Engineers as well : Why Product Trios Should Interview Customers Together
Too often good research gets ignored because the people who are responsible for making the decision weren’t involved in conducting the research. The easiest way around this is to have the product team conduct their own research. If they find a flaw in their own research, instead of ignoring the research, they are responsible for improving their research methods.
A Cool simulation of prisoner's dilemma and a good read on why people cooperate in society. The Evolution of Trust. Also a good read from David Perell on this : Why People Cooperate
More on anti-fragile growth from shock in the same way as your muscles. This was a brilliant conceptual read. Nassim Nicholas Taleb is indeed one of the greatest thinkers of our time
Nassim Taleb: A Definition of Antifragile and its Implications
Crucially, if antifragility is the property of all those natural (and complex) systems that have survived, depriving these systems of volatility, randomness, and stressors will harm them. They will weaken, die, or blow up. We have been fragilizing the economy, our health, political life, education, almost everything … by suppressing randomness and volatility. … stressors. Much of our modern, structured, world has been harming us with top-down policies and contraptions (dubbed “Soviet-Harvard delusions” in the book) which do precisely this: an insult to the antifragility of systems. This is the tragedy of modernity: as with neurotically overprotective parents, those trying to help are often hurting us the most (see iatrogenics)
Margin of safety. This is an amazing concept that can be applied to all areas of your life. Relationships, work and stress (how stressed are you? How much more can you go on), eating (and drinking or smoking habits) though this obviously has more irreversible effect (the last drink or fry might be the straw that breaks the camel's back) How do you measure?
Savings is probably the easiest and the hardest. It's easiest because it's easily applied, it is hardest because obviously you can't create a margin of safety if you don't earn enough. In fact this would in such cases go in the opposite direction - outside the margin of safety (you can't escape it since you owe money) Margin of Safety: An Introduction to the Mental Model
Looking for a unicorn? Look no further : List of Unicorn Startups & Markets
Cause and effect; the 5 Whys Proximate vs Root Causes: Why You Should Keep Digging to Find the Answer
Creative ways to build communities online; a good read for the time we are in : Bailey Richardson on creative ways to move user communities online | Inside Intercom
Preserving Optionality: Preparing for the Unknown
After gaining experience coaching in several sports, Turley realized that strength was not the most important factor for athletic success. What mattered for any type of athlete was staying free of injuries and good nutrition. Why? Because that gave athletes greater optionality.
An uninjured, healthy player could stay in each game for longer and miss fewer training sessions. It also meant less chance of requiring surgery, which many of his students faced, or of being forced to retire from competitive sports at a young age.