Weekly Listen #2

Posted on by Brendan

This was one of my favorite podcasts I listened to this week. I actually rolled it back a second time to understand more about the power supply points they made connected to AI supply and pricing. I also found it helpful how they think in first principles by talking about the demand for human-like intelligence.

It got me thinking outside of work, do I have demand for human-like intelligence or any AI use cases I’d use daily for personal reasons? Outside of reading on the web and maybe looking at personal finances, I really try to put technology down on the weekends so I found it hard to think of true recurring examples of using AI daily for personal reasons, unless chatting with personal AI assistants takes off. I suppose then it comes down to AI in existing products for me personally that help me do those things better (reading on the web, understanding monthly spend, etc.).

I want to be fairly selective on new technology especially for personal use to avoid adding technology I don’t need or might be harmful to my values and creating positive habits.

The pod also does a great job bringing it back to traditional business principles of differentiation. These guys have been around the web a while so it was cool to hear them talk about the internet in the 90’s. For example, there were 20 search companies trying to break through before Google won the market. That reminds me of one of my favorite HBS cases about search in the early days here and here.

Website Blocker

Posted on by Brendan

I finally took action to eliminate social media usage on my desktop during the workday. I downloaded the Cold Turkey software and Chrome Extension. I was getting tired of how much I was doing quick checks on these sites in between meetings or before starting something.

Self control alone was not enough cause I created some bad habits.

A few months ago, I successfully kicked these habits on my mobile device so I am now trying to do the same on desktop but need some help with this website blocker. I am one day in so still early but excited for the sense of focus and joy that should come as I kick this bad habits. I am also reminding myself these platforms are good for learning from others and getting ideas. They just need to be controlled in earned, scheduled sessions. Still tinkering with how I plan time for this in my day.

I’ll leave it at this but plant a quick seed that I’ve been thinking about and conversing with my wife about phone usage for our kids which is a few years away but relates to this habit I need to kick. That was partly why I kicked the mobile habits so that I was setting a good example.

Fostering Psychological Safety

Posted on by Brendan

I was part of an internal leadership round table where part of the prep was this video and the discussion was around psychological safety. I first learned about this topic about 8 years ago at Wayfair where someone at the company took initiative to shepherd the philosophy throughout the department. 

I remember being really excited and interested in the idea of it. Which I believe in part because I related to both sides. The feelings when physiological safety is or isn’t present. I’ve felt both in my career. I was also part of both strong and weak sports growing up. I am always thinking of how to foster strong teams. 

The round table was awesome because I got a ton of tactical ideas that other leaders do to help foster psychological safety. One thing that stuck out to me is you need to try many things to help foster this and get feedback on what you try. Once you hit a healthy working state physiological safety balanced with accountability, it will feel like magic because it builds the trust needed for strong, fluid working relationships. Feedback will flow back and forth smoothly.

Chisel Away at a Deadline

Posted on by Brendan

I have a deadline this week. I am trying to approach it with a different perspective this time around. Deadlines are generally a good thing. The deadline is helpful to force the creation of what needs to get done. The process from start to finish can be a lot of fun filled with growth and learning. 

Yesterday, I was outlining the deliverable and getting comfortable with the structure. It is a mix of writing and data pulling. Today, I plan to do a little of both to chisel away at this deadline. Each day, I’ll list out a few things to tackle in order to get closer to completion, do those things, and then do it over again the next day. A little chiseling each day and the final product is created.

Lessons from Creating an Exercise Habit

Posted on by Brendan

In 2023, I successfully created an exercise habit that is now ingrained in me. I believe some of the lessons I learned from this experience are applicable to building good habits for anyone trying to reach their goals whether it be fitness or something else. 

At the end of 2022, I got a Fitbit for Christmas and programmed a goal of 5 days of exercise per week. I ended up hitting 7 days most of the 52 weeks. I only didn’t exercise 26/365 days. I didn’t miss a workout day in June, August, and December. I did this on top of having my second kid during the month of April. 

I really surprised myself with this. I have always loved exercise but have never been this consistent in my life until now. A few changes in mindset or actions really helped achieve this:

  • I kept the bar low with the aim of 10 to 20 minutes a day. I sometimes did more but as long as I hit 10 mins, that was enough. 10 min jog, 10 min bike, 10 min foam roll, etc. The bar was low and still is. 
  • Keeping the bar low also simplified the activity in my mind so it wasn’t such an ordeal. When I was crossfitting a lot, I made workouts an ordeal. I needed at least 1.5 hours to get the workout done. Now, I just started moving my body if I only have 15 minutes which lessened the mental burden of making it happen. 
  • Lastly, I removed friction by laying workout clothes out the night before or just wearing whatever I had on. I made it really easy to change into workout clothes. 

That’s pretty much it. I never read the book but this experience made me think of Atomic Habits which I’ve talked about with a lot of people over the years. 

I am applying these lessons to 3 things so far in 2024 (1) nutrition (2) writing on this blog (3) personal finances. We’ll see how it goes!