Happy Saturday all!
I hope you’re having a great start to your weekend.
What I’ve been up to:
I returned back to Canada last weekend, and have been able to see family and friends. Generally, I've found the adjustment process from changing time zones, countries, and routines harder than I expected.
Here's a recap of the coolest things I've explored this week.
✍️ Quote I’m pondering:
Maya Angelou, American memoirist, poet, and civil rights activist, on the importance of courage:
“Without courage we cannot practice any other virtue with consistency. We can’t be kind, true, merciful, generous, or honest.”
📚 Book passage I loved:
IBM is what it is today for three special reasons.
The first reason is that, at the very beginning, I had a very clear picture of what the company would look like when it was finally done. You might say I had a model in my mind of what it would look like when the dream-my vision-was in place.
The second reason was that once I had that picture, I then asked myself how a company which looked like that would have to act. I then created a picture of how IBM would act when it was finally done.
The third reason IBM has been so successful was that once I had a picture of how IBM would look when the dream was in place and how such a company would have to act, I then realized that, unless we began to act that way from the very beginning, we would never get there. In other words, I realized that for IBM to become a great company it would have to act like a great company long before it ever became one.
From the very outset, IBM was fashioned after the template of my vision. And each and every day we attempted to model the company after that template. At the end of each day, we asked ourselves how well we did, discovered the disparity between where we were and where we had committed ourselves to be, and, at the start of the following day, set out to make up for the difference.
Every day at IBM was a day devoted to business development, not doing business.
— Father, Son & Co.: My Life at IBM and Beyond by Thomas Watson
💡 Idea from me: Book Diet
Earlier this year, I had a harsh realization.
When I looked at my reading habits, I realized they were mostly reactive, not proactive. If an interesting link flashed across my screen on Twitter or email, then I would read it as a reaction. I would follow article hyperlinks down rabbit holes, at each level becoming more overwhelmed.
Author Austin Kleon uses the analogy of "a pig at a trough" to describe the trend in modern information consumption. Opening up the internet or scrolling your feed, consuming whatever is thrown at you.
I wasn't proactively seeking out the information I wanted to learn. I was simply reading interesting ideas that were pushed in front of me. And in our world, there's an infinite supply of seemingly "interesting" ideas.
As a result, I've decided the main way I consume information will be through books.
(1) Better Quality of Information
The quality of the information in books is about as good as anything you can find.
Books typically have better writing (more tightly edited) and higher quality information (better fact-checking and more extensive research).
Books are tied to an author’s name and legacy. As such, they typically take a full swing at bat. Good authors can take 2-5 years to write a book, with multiple edits and entire sections cut out. They make sure every word earns its keep. It's a much more rigorous process compared to other forms of information. The high-information density in books saves you time and declutters your mind.
Books are often a culmination of an author's lifetime of experience and learning. As Tony Robbins says, "reading is the process of taking a decade of an author's life and compressing it down to a day".
In nearly any area imaginable you can find a high-quality book written by an expert. Earlier this week I was reading about sleep from Matthew Walker, a Stanford Ph.D. that spent 30 years studying the subject, and this morning I was reading about business strategy from Richard Rumelt, who's taught strategy for +50 years and consulted massive companies around the world since the '80s.
As a reader, you're able to filter books by looking at reviews, which isn't possible for most other mediums. I consistently check GoodReads before reading anything.
Further, the quality of ideas is filtered by time. As Naval wrote, "there is ancient wisdom in books. Any book that survived for two thousand years has been filtered through many people. The general principles are more likely to be correct."
In contrast, articles, podcasts, and tweets are usually relevant for a week.
(2) Better Consumption Experience
Even assuming the quality of the information in books is on par with other mediums, I find the consumption experience to be much better. Precisely, the lack of distraction and time required.
Books provide us with much-needed separation from screens. In a world of information speed, they offer a slower pace. There aren't any hyperlinks or threads to click into. You're not overwhelmed with information nor feel pulled in a million different directions, all vying for your attention. It's simply written words on the page. I find it to be a peaceful, near meditative, experience to sit down in a comfy spot with a good book.
Further, the time it takes to read an entire book allows the ideas to simmer in your mind. I barely remember an article I've read (and definitely not a single tweet). The slower pace and the friction of books provide you the time you need to digest the information.
Wrapping Up
After setting my mind on books, I realized I had to figure out a strategy that would allow me to read more books without letting typical distractions get in the way.
There's old wisdom that if you want to get something done, do it in the morning. Now, I try to go to bed a bit earlier, wake up a bit earlier, and read for ~30 minutes in the morning. Instead of compulsively scrolling Twitter or clicking through articles during the day, I try to remind myself to pause. (Note the word “try”).
It's a work in progress, but the simplicity and clarity provided by focusing on books have been a breath of fresh air. It may also be for you.
❓ Question for You:
Eckhart Tolle on finding peace in the present moment:
What problem do you have right now?
Not next year, tomorrow or five minutes from now. What is wrong with this moment?
📸 Photo of the week:
This is one of my favorite book covers I've seen.
One, it’s beautiful. I love 'The Great Wave off Kanagawa' print. In fact, I wrote about it in the very first edition of this newsletter and got a full-sized version last Christmas.
Two, 'This Too Shall Pass' constantly serves as a helpful reminder. I can hear my Dad saying it to me whenever I hit a rough patch.
If you have any feedback or just want to be friends, feel free to reach out.
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Have a fantastic weekend.
Much love to you and yours,
Tommy
Thanks for the shout-out, my son! So proud of your ruminations. For a 21 year old, you have the thoughtful reflections of an wise 80 year old. Love you lots!!!