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 Cube Rule. “Sometimes, the Internet finds a hero so capable, so clear, that it serves as an example of jurisprudence. An Occam’s Razor that cleaves the world into manageable parts with clarity and parsimony. And yes, Lasagna is Pasta Cake.” (Alistair for Hugh).
- Shein – The TikTok of Ecommerce – Not Boring by Packy McCormick. “I hadn’t heard of Shein before this, which means I’m (a) male and (b) old. But if you want to understand the shifting tides of online buying, this article does a good job of breaking down the rise of insanely-fast-fashion. I’m reading Matthew Brennan‘s The Attention Factory at the moment, part of the research I’m doing for Just Evil Enough, and he co-wrote this piece on Shein. It’s worth the time.” (Alistair for Mitch).
- David Bowie on the Internet in 1999 – BBC – Twitter. “‘The Internet is an alien life-form and it has just landed here.’ Incredibly prescient analisis from Ziggy Stardust on what the Internet would do to us.” (Hugh for Alistair).
- Hudson’s Bay point blanket – Wikipedia. “It’s funny the weird things that we take for granted, like the notion that the iconic Hudson Bay stripes and points (black lines) were markers used to measure the number of beaver pelts for trading purposes. In fact, the stripes were just decoration, and the points just let you know the size of the blanket when it was folded. My little bit of revised Canadiana history.” (Hugh for Mitch).
- The thriving business of ‘Ikea hacking’ – The Hustle. “It’s not just individuals that are figuring out ways to make Ikea furniture work in their homes without the product’s intended purpose. There are now companies (real companies, with lots of revenue) that are working in this design meets furniture space. Personally, I love these kinds of brand extensions (even if the brand doesn’t). If you were Ikea would be on board with these kinds of businesses or would you want it all to stop? ‘Tinker away,’ is what I say.” (Mitch for Alistair).
- Buddy Rich’s Incredible Tonight Show Drum Solos – Geshmake – YouTube. “Drum solos are that special time during a concert when everyone, collectively, goes to the washroom or refreshes their beverages. Apologies to drummers everywhere. When I was a kid, my father (who had a passion for music) loved watching drummer, Buddy Rich. Whether you like jazz, drum solos or otherwise, it’s hard not to see the brilliance and the art that Buddy brought into the world. Drums are not boring to watch when Buddy played. Watch and marvel…” (Mitch for Hugh).
Feel free to share these links and add your picks on Twitter, Facebook, in the comments below or wherever you play.
Are you interested in what’s next? How to decode the future? I publish between 2-3 times per week and then the Six Pixels of Separation Podcast comes out every Sunday. Feel free to subscribe (and tell your friends):
Mitch Joel Mitch Joel lives at the intersection of technology, business transformation and consumer culture. He is the Executive Director of Next Era Institute, a strategic intelligence platform helping leaders understand the forces reshaping business, technology, culture and society. The Institute identifies which shifts matter, explores their wider significance and translates them into strategic direction and momentum. Mitch is also a globally recognized keynote speaker. He has delivered thousands of presentations across both B2B and B2C industries to organizations including Google, Walmart, LEGO, Shopify, Microsoft, Procter & Gamble and Unilever. Strategy Magazine has called him “one of North America’s leading visionaries.” Mitch built his career by working directly inside the waves of change that reshaped modern business. He founded and built a digital marketing agency that worked with some of the world’s largest brands and was later acquired by WPP, where he served as President of a firm operating in 25 countries with almost 3,000 employees. Mitch is the bestselling author of Six Pixels of Separation and CTRL ALT Delete, and the host of Thinking With Mitch Joel, one of the longest-running business podcasts in the world. His writing and commentary appear in outlets including Harvard Business Review, Fast Company and Inc. Magazine. He is a member of Dr. Marshall Goldsmith’s 100 Coaches and was named to the Thinkers50 Radar. Mitch also hosts Groove – The No Treble Podcast, documenting the oral history of electric bass players. Mitch is also Co-Founder of ThinkersOne, a platform that enables companies to bring personalized thought leadership from world-class experts into meetings, events and off-sites in focused 15-minute bursts.