Thought provoking

I liked Wendell Berry’s standards for technological innovation. Hard to follow but good to measure any new technology against:

1. The new tool should be cheaper than the one it replaces.

2. It should be at least as small in scale as the one it replaces.

3. It should do work that is clearly and demonstrably better than the one it replaces.

4. It should ... See more

According to Ken Chenault, the legendary former CEO of American Express and current chairman of venture firm General Catalyst, the job of a leader is to deliver on two sometimes conflicting mandates: creating hope, and defining reality.

“Above all, don’t lie to yourself. The man who listens to his own lie comes to a point that he cannot distinguish the truth within him, or around him, and so loses all respect for himself and for others. And having no respect he ceases to love.”

― Fyodor Dostoevsky

Like the technium itself — our values are continually going through an evolution. This is why when viral tweets about the founding father’s misdeeds circle about, it doesn’t change my opinion about the Constitution. If their acted values were the exact same as ours, it would for me to question us , not them!

So as we think about what we manifest in... See more

A PM I once worked with was struggling to persuade somebody of something. I told him to ask them the question, “What data would I have to show you to get you to change your mind?” If they didn’t have a clear answer, then he would know this was an idea they held on faith, a bit like a religious belief. No amount of data can sway a person from their ... See more

Happiness is not the belief that we don’t need to change; it is the realization that we can.