Categories: Articles

Six Links Worthy Of Your Attention #374

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, HBS; chair of Strata, Startupfest, Pandemonio, and ResolveTO; Author of Lean Analytics and some other books), Hugh McGuire (PressBooks, LibriVox, iambik and co-author of Book: A Futurist’s Manifesto) 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:

How A Burning Man Camp Project Became A Multimillion-Dollar Business – Fast Company. “I’ve stayed in a Hexayurt at Burning Man, and they’re fragile but brilliant: A shelter that keeps out dust, heat and cold made from 12 sheets of reflective foam insulation and some tape. But they’re hard to put up and take down. A couple of years later, these tents started popping up; now, you can deploy an entire emergency village, with a central command, from a shipping container.” (Alistair for Hugh).
What it really means to ‘seize the day’ – BBC Culture. “Popularized by the Dead Poets Society, the phrase has interesting origins. Given that I’m headed to Burning Man — either the world’s biggest Carpe Diem, or Emergency Housing for Rich People, depending on your point of view — I figured this was appropriate.” (Alistair for Mitch).
Grace Hopper on Letterman – YouTube. “Grace Hopper, born in 1906, was one of the first computer programmers in the USA, and Navy admiral. Here she is on David Letterman from… the 1980s?” (Hugh for Alistair).
Here’s a Crazy Idea: Let’s Agree on the Facts – Bloomberg. “Steve Ballmer just wishes we would all get along!” (Hugh for Mitch).
The Purpose of Life is to Be a Nobody – Zat Rana – Medium. “After all of these years, I still get jitters and anxiety when I have a presentation. It’s just the way that I am wired, I guess… or, I have to deal more directly with issues of self-esteem and stage fright (maybe?). Still, I was waiting to take the stage the other day in Colorado, and came across this post. Everything about my physical and psychological chemistry changed after reading this. Seriously. Who am I to think that I matter?… and that’s a good/real thing. So, here’s to the nobodys out there like you and me!” (Mitch for Alistair).
Did This Book Buy Its Way Onto The New York Times Bestseller List? – Pajiba. “People who write books really need their creations to hit the bestseller lists. It matters. It’s credibility. It’s social proofing. It sells more books. It can even score you a major movie or TV deal. Over the years, there have been countless services and ways to ‘game’ the system. Like any loopholes, the publishers and retailers have worked diligently to keep adapting to those who are trying to work outside of the system. Still, some things get through. Like this incredible story. The other side of this story is: journalism. We’re inundated with problems in the world of journalism (fake news much?). Take a read and spend some time reflecting on what this world might look like if this journalist didn’t have the budget or resources to scratch, dig and uncover a story as fascinating as this one.” (Mitch for Hugh).

Feel free to share these links and add your picks on Twitter, Facebook, in the comments below or wherever you play.

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.