Is there one link, story, picture or thought that you saw online this week that you think somebody you know must see?
My friends: Alistair Croll (Solve for Interesting, Tilt the Windmill, Interesting Bits, HBS, chair of Strata, Startupfest, FWD50, and Scaletechconf; author of Lean Analytics and some other books), Hugh McGuire (Rebus Foundation, PressBooks, LibriVox) and I decided that every week the three of us are going to share one link for one another (for a total of six links) that each individual feels the other person “must see.”
Check out these six links that we’re recommending to one another:
- The Perils of Audience Capture – The Prism. “In 2008, the Internet changed in a fundamental way: We got feedback. Likes, upvotes, subscribes and retweets became the currency of the realm. As soon as that loop was in place, creators started adapting their content to the things which gave them what they craved the most — the adulation of their audiences. Algorithms don’t just radicalize an audience, they tug at the moral fibers of the speakers, too. Once upon a time, some of today’s most reviled (or cultishly elevated) thinkers were reasonable, compromising, curious intellectuals. The idea that influencers become brainwashed by their audiences has been rattling around in my brain for a while, and this post offers some clear — and really, truly disturbing — examples of the ouroboros of social media.” (Alistair for Hugh).
- The Apple Store Time Machine. “Michael Steeber is a bit obsessed with Apple‘s retail. In addition to a weekly newsletter and a glossary, he has tours of their stores… and a time machine. It’s a way to travel back in time and see the layout of Apple’s stores, which have shifted how other major brands think about retail. Did you know Apple once had a checkout in their stores? Here’s proof! The app, which is freely downloadable and runs on (of course) Apple, ‘recreates memorable moments in Apple history with painstaking detail and historical accuracy.’ No kidding.” (Alistair for Mitch).
- Stalin’s Architect: The Remarkable Life of Boris Iofan – The MIT Press Reader. “The interplay between fear and ambition must be intense for those near dictators who regularly kill those who displease them. A tightrope walk for the people with grand visions.” (Hugh for Alistair).
- How effective altruism went from a niche movement to a billion-dollar force – Vox. “What could be wrong with rich people focusing their charitable giving on the most effective charities? Maybe nothing, maybe the same worries about wealth and power?” (Hugh for Mitch).
- WTF is quiet quitting (and why is Gen Z doing it)? – WorkLife. ”I still believe that they jury is not out on what full time work looks like in a post-Covid world. I half-jokingly define ‘hybrid work’ as something management says when they simple don’t know what to do with so many people who want to work from home or partly come to the office… but can’t decide on if it it should be on specific days or when there’s a reason, etc. If everybody wants the economy to be where it was, this will require some effort (on everyone’s part). But – maybe – this is not what work is for? So, what is quiet quitting? According to this article: ‘Going above and beyond simply meeting the bare minimum requirements of a job has long been the working norm. This supercharged work ethic — dubbed hustle culture — has been a way workers have made themselves stand out to their employers, and over time has become standard.’ Do you have quiet quitters on your team? Are they to be embraced? Removed? A great idea as a ‘better norm’ or are we truly doing away with work as we have known it to be?” (Mitch for Alistair).
- Malcolm Gladwell: Working From Home Is Destroying Us! – Episode #162 – The Diary of a CEO. “While we’re on the topic of what is work and what are we ‘going back to’? Famed author, journalist, professional speaker and all around power thinker, Malcolm Gladwell, got some heat this past week for his comments on ‘back to work’ during this podcast. I’d love to know what you think? Are we making a huge mistake in staying home (see above)? Or do Malcolm’s passionate words about the power of office space and work teams resonate with you?” (Mitch for Hugh).
Feel free to share these links and add your picks on Twitter, Facebook, in the comments below or wherever you play.