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A Thread - What to read in 2021?

Wisdom via @EricJorgenson via @naval via @illacertus... from @Navalmanack a book I’ll be rereading in 2021.

Here’s why.

“I don’t want to read everything. I just want to read the 100 great books over and over again.” - @illacertus

 “I think there’s a lot to that idea. It’s really more about identifying the great books for you because different books speak to different people. Then, you can really absorb those.” - @naval
It was a few years back I started thinking about the idea of rereading books vs trying to “keep up” with the constant consumption of new material rolling off the book publisher’s assembly lines.
I believe the consept first landed on my radar from that very @farnamstreet podcast where @naval shared the quote referenced above.

It immediately made sense to me.
It’s crazy to think about how much the world has evolved in just the last decade.

Technology is creating shorter attention spans with the constant bombardment of bite-sized “click bait” headlines and iPhone notifications.
For those who haven’t watched the Netflix doc The Social Dilemma, look no further than the algorithms designed to constantly keep our eyes glued to our phones and in turn the ad dollars being spent there.

Which leads me to a thesis I believe to be more and more true.
I believe the ability to focus...

to absorb...

to go deep...

is becoming a true super power.
Which brings me back to the idea of compiling a short list of books that you want to truly absorb and reading them over and over until you understand them to the level you’ve acquired all they have to offer.

With that in mind...
Today marks my third time reading through @RyanHoliday & @SteveHanselman’s @dailystoic.

Pictured is my copy below, which I grabbed back in 2016 when it came out.

As you can see, it’s got some miles on it as it’s literally traveled with me mostly wherever I’ve gone since.
All cliches aside, this book has made me a better version of myself.

More patient.

More accepting.

Less anxious.

A better listener.

I can honestly say this year’s reading was by far the most impactful.

Yes, maybe some of that was due to the year that was 2020.

However...
Looking back, I simply wasn’t ready for many of the passages my first few times through.

“When the student is ready the teacher will appear.” - Tao Te Ching
Also, with multiple readings, I’ve benefited from the “compound effect” of absorbing, putting into action, and building upon that which I’ve read before.

So...
Here’s to distilling your list of books/ideas/goals down to what is essential this year.

Go deep.

Absorb.

Make those “words become works” in 2021.
If you could choose only 1 book to reread this year, which one would it be?

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1/ Forget the elevator pitch

Be able to describe what your business does and how it does it in one sentence.

VC's have short attention spans. Explaining what you do quickly means you understand your business and the value it offers.

2/ Tell a story

Every good story has a beginning, a middle, and an end - the same way a good pitch does.

Beginning: What is the problem?
Middle: What did you do about it?
End: Where is it going?

3/ Explicitly define the problem

Explain in detail what the issue is your customer has and WHY they have that problem.

Just because you have sales doesn't mean you're solving a problem.

Good businesses with exponential potential solve problems.

4/ Understand why you're different

If you're a first-mover in a good business, you will have competitors.
If you're not a first-mover, you already have competitors.

Know what value you bring that others do not. Why did customers choose you and why will they continue to?
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1/ Sign 1: A sudden inflection in organic growth

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3/ Sign 3: Users flip from excited to upset

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A Thread 🧵👇


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3/ After the success of pilot events in 2014, the team official launched Josh Talks on 14 January 2015.

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1/ Pro Tip: Best way to find a job at a startup…

Hint: it doesn’t start with a job board…

a thread

2/ Go to @crunchbase and set up a filter for the following:

1. Amount raised: $5M - $10M
2. Announced on: today - 3 days ago
3. Headquarters location: your preference
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It should look something like this.


3/ When a company raises money… they are going to use the capital to build out their team.

It isn’t rocket science!

4/ When successful venture firms with track records like, @Accel, @Greycroftvc, @Sequoia, @a16z sink money into a startup. Their chance of success increases astronomically.

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One thing I'm always most excited about as an investor:

Watching CEO interviews.

Over the years, I’ve watched over 100s of them.

Here’s 25 traits I’ve seen in the very best leaders.

You can swipe these into your own framework to evaluate management teams:

1. They don’t rely on external motivation

Not status or money.

Instead, they seem to be driven an inner fire.

Sometimes it’s to make the world a better place.

Other times, it’s to prove themselves right.

And that's why they can keep going even after they're already rich AF.

2. They're not human

They don't see the world like 99% of us

Whether it’s creating a culture that’s a sports team vs a family...

Or thinking of everything from first principles…

They have a different modus operandi.

This helps them see solutions that 99% of us muggles miss.

3. They enjoy founder-company fit

The great leaders are great because:

They’re in a company that plays to their unique personality.

The stars have to align for a great leader to be made.

The product + business model + personality of the leader must match.

4. They give lots of freedom and autonomy

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They know how to paint an exciting vision…

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They understand that people flourish when you give them room to explore and experiment.
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Trump is a Russian asset, a mob money launderer installed by his mob whoremasters to sow chaos and weaken the US & our allies.

EVERY SINGLE THING HE’S DONE since taking office is to achieve those purposes—that and to enrich himself personally.

[THREAD]


1/ His entire family is part of this. Melania is a fucking crook. Ivanka is a fucking crook. Junior and Gums are fucking crooks. They will all die in prison, except for Kushner, who, if he really *did* trade US intel for money, should be executed for espionage.

2/ Why do you think Trump installs uniquely corrupt & awful people to Cabinet positions? Pruitt, Zinke, Betsy, Rex/Pompeo, Wilbur "Melting Nazi Face" Ross. They are not there to serve us. They are not there to drain the swamp. They are there to BURN THE REPUBLIC DOWN.

3/ Trump steals. He takes taxpayer money—your money and mine—and lines his pockets with it. He exploits his office to make himself richer. This is all he cares about. Why are Republican citizens, you “fiscal conservatives,” not more angry about this? Riddle me THAT, #MAGA.

4/ Matt Whitaker, the human dildo and “acting AG,” was illegally installed to throw a monkey wrench in the Mueller investigation. That’s why they won’t release his financials. He’s fucking bought and sold. He’s going to prison for obstruction.
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Anu Satheesh 🇮🇳...
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Samayapuram Mariamman Temple
#Trichy
#Tamilnadutemples 🚩

Samayapuram Mariamman Temple is located in Samayapuram of
 Tiruchirappalli district.  Mariyamman here is worshipped as Samayapurathal a form of Parashakti.
Amman vigraham here is made of sand and clay so


no abhishekam done to the main vigraham. Samayapuram Mariamman Temple is one of the famous Shakthi Sthal of Tamilnadu.

Story says that paramashiva created Kali, out of the poison that he drank during samudra mathanam.  As Devi originated from the Kaalakoota/ halahala poison,


thus the name Kaali. Mariamman is believed to be a form of Kaali, and is also known as Mahamayi. It is also believed that Maharaja Dasharatha offered his prayers here.

Mariamman is Parashakti herself who blesses with prosperity and she is believed to cure all diseases.


Paramashiva, Mahavishnu and Brahma Deva are believed to have taken blessings of Mariamman here.

Om Shakti Para Shakti
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For technical founders it is irrationally, obscenely hard to reverse years of programming (ba dum bum) that sales is a value-destroying activity. Sales is CLEARLY a value-creating activity, contingent on you have a value-creating product.

The world will not drop what they are doing to adopt your work. This is particularly true in B2B, where simply building a better mousetrap won't overcome the activation energy required to get people with additional non-mice problems to prioritize changing mousetraps today.

This is very non-obvious for founders because founders are not often people who *want* to be sold to. We often come from a background where trying out tools is a bit of a fun hobby. We like looking at all the options, making charts, and ripping out partially complete tests.

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@z3nblack
1/ Thread: "A Silicon Valley Ponzi Scheme"

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I've always appreciated his outspokenness.

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