Natalie Audelo

The new look aims to encourage browsing, which Mr. Daunt believes improves customer satisfaction. “If you just want to buy a book, the guys in Seattle will sell you a book,” Mr. Daunt said. “The enjoyment and the social experience of that engagement with books in a bookstore? That’s our game.”

The cost of convenience is vitality. You can have a lot of things done for you in the modern world — and many of them are great time savers! — but the feeling of being alive comes from being fully engaged in the right task, not free from all tasks.

Sure, you can automate and delegate all sorts of things, but the more interesting question is, "What ... See more

There are no certainties in life, in pregnancy, in parenting, or in advice columns, dear Mama-To-Be. There’s seldom a way to know which direction, which choice, which yes or which no will be the right one, but there’s always a way to do the best you can with generosity and loving kindness. And more than anything, that’s what I hope you and your par... See more

I could sense the difference between authentic effortless (actually not giving a damn and being comfortable in my skin) and this manufactured effortless I had known before (aka people with a whole lot of money and a whole lot of time who get to look like they rolled out of bed) It really begs the question: who actually gets to be cool anyway?

The system rewards companies that keep their users highly engaged with their app and unless we dramatically change incentive and regulatory structures, there really isn’t much society can do about it beyond individual restraint and choice.

I also think a lot about the old, iconic structures around the world that have stood the test of time and, in many cases, where we aren’t quite sure of all the details of how they were constructed. Marvels like the Colosseum, Roman aqueducts, or the Great Wall. Incredible architectural feats that were, by necessity, built to last and built slowly –... See more