sari

Patience, I believe, is a core competency of a healthy civilization. I propose that it is useful and realistic to think of a civilization as operating at a number of different paces at the same time. Fashion and commerce change quickly, as they should. Nature and culture change slowly, as they should. Infrastructure and governance move along at... See more

Think of a fintech company with a debit card. Square’s Cash App. Chime. Robinhood. Stripe Issuing, and users like Ramp and Bench. All of them, virtually without exemption, are brought to you courtesy of a small financial institution that you are unlikely to have heard of (unless you work in fintech or read Terms and Conditions for fun). Durbin... See more

I’m guessing you’ve given or received a great token of appreciation, so you know how powerfully human they are. When you spend all day moving someone into their new home, and then they bake you your very favorite type of cookies, they aren’t saying “now we’re even,” they’re saying “I appreciate what you did for me.” These kinds of tokens are... See more

3. Expansion revenue

We should want exceptional people to believe they can do exceptional things on their own if they work hard enough at it. If everyone internalizes the myth of the lone genius to such a degree that they no longer even try to become lone geniuses then the myth will become a reality.

A blog post is a search query. You write to find your tribe; you write so they will know what kind of fascinating things they should route to your inbox. If you follow common wisdom, you will cut exactly the things that will help you find these people.

If you asked me what the true danger about social media is, I’d say it’s much more subtle. It’s the problem of time—and becoming stuck in the present. It’s the relentless pressure of reverse chron.