exploring the inner workings and dynamics of companies building products engineered to hook us, addict us, and hijack our attention to sell more ad inventory
It used to be that we design for the best possible experience. But then “free” came around. Nothing is really free, however – you may not pay for it but you do with your data to improve ad targeting.
As a result, the incentives for the creators of these products is not to create a better experience for you. It’s to... See more
Being fine with periods of solitude, working alone, pushing things forward without others cheering you on...that's a superpower.
The ability to run your own race, despite what the world is doing, initially looks behind - but puts you out front.
“Specificially, pursuit of novelty creates “luck”, and curiosity is the emotional manifestation of novelty. If we’re more open to what attracts our attention, we’ll get a lot luckier.”
Gaining a following on social media is a measure of people’s attention. It is not a measure of benefit to others, nor knowledge, nor sincerity, nor wisdom, nor leadership capability - yet these are some of things that are needed to minimize the harm from having a following.