What I Will Remember from What I Read in 2018

Drawing inspiration from Matt Clifford's annual reading list, I've decided to take a small step towards my 2019 goals by focusing more on compounding my learning rather than just absorbing new ways of thinking alone.

So, in no particular order, here is what I will remember from what I read in 2018:

It Doesn't Have to be Crazy at Work by Jason Fried

I will remember to experiment with the way we work. When we think of a company as an iterative product, the way we work becomes malleable and open to experimentation. Thinking of yourself not as a cultural fit but a cultural addition to the team where everyone is responsible for forwarding the mission will help you see behaviour as an open model ripe for experimentation.

Blitzscaling by Reid Hoffman

You have to be as good at getting users as building a product. A good product with great distribution will almost always beat a great product with poor distribution.
The five categories of network effects: direct, indirect, two-sided, local and compatibility/standards.
Not all revenue is created equal: unicorns have incredible gross margins of 60%+.
Maslovian hierarchy of fires: 1) distribution, 2) product, 3) revenue model, 4) operations, 5) competition, 6) what's next.

The Art of Gathering by Priya Parker

As a person who facilitates 100 extraordinary humans through a mind expanding experience every 6 months there are so many opportunities to intentionally design moments that matter.
Hosting an event requires servant leadership: you are there for the experience of your guests.
For every gathering, start with why, the true root why, no bullshit as to why you're gathering together.
Magic numbers for group sizes: 6, 12–15, 30 and 150.
"Your opening needs to be a kind of pleasant shock therapy. It should grab people."

Dear Founder by Maynard Webb

When I want to improve execution, make sure that everyone understands that identifying problems is a good thing.
When thinking about culture, don't pick another prominent case study and adopt it as your own; you need to find authenticity in your culture and identity.

High Growth Handbook by Elad Gil

The definition of a moat is the ability to charge more. People often talk about data and network effects but it's rarely truly valuable.
Most successful, high-growth companies are an environment of smart people who are all trying to optimise and do the right thing.
The universal job of a CEO is to make sure the company wins. 5% is deciding what to do and 95% is making sure it gets done.
If you are growing fast, you have a different company every 6–12 months.

Notes on a Nervous Planet by Matt Haig

Don't compare yourself to other people, or at least try your best not to.
Learn how to enjoy being alone more, and cherish that time with yourself.
"Reading isn't important because it helps to get you a job. It's important because it gives you room to exist beyond the reality you're given."

Bad Blood by John Carreyrou

The most powerful thing I'll remember is the power of a story, how embedded you can become in believing one's narrative and how powerful it can be in rallying others to a cause. Healthcare problems are rarely rooted in a technology barrier, but more-so an incredibly tangled and layered puzzle that can only be solved if all stakeholders rally around the patient.

Factfulness by Hans Rosling

The world has never been less violent or more safe, despite the news being propagated daily.
"There's no room for facts when our minds are occupied by fear."
Be careful of the gap between "us" and "them".
The only method proven to curb population growth is to remove extreme poverty.
North Americans and Europeans need to understand that most of the world population lives in Asia.

Make Time by Jake Knapp

Be ruthless in blocking out time on your schedule and sticking to it.
Use the same MVP approach in product development as tasks: highlight a priority, have focus on building/doing, and collect data but learn from it and reflect.

My Product Management Toolkit by Marc Abraham

Four key attributes of a good product manager: customer focused, value driven, curious and the ability to learn and iterate.
To understand customers: use customer segmentation, persona development, empathy mapping and JTBD.
Marty Cagan's product opportunity assessment: value proposition, target market, market size, competitors, differentiator, market window, GTM, metrics, business model, solution requirements.

Your Best Year Ever by Michael Hyatt

Just in time or modular learning is more effective than trying to learn the entire system in one go.
Split up large goals into small bite sized moments where you can build a habit around them.

Into the Magic Shop by James Doty

There is scientific evidence to meditation and visualisation but if we aren't careful, it can lead to self-absorption. The journey inward is meant to lead you to go outward and connect with others.
The heart sends far more signals to the brain than the brain sends to the heart. The mind and the heart are part of one unified intelligence.
CDEFGHIJKL: Compassion, Dignity, Equanimity, Forgiveness, Gratitude, Humility, Integrity, Justice, Kindness, Love.

The Coaching Habit by Michael Bungay Stanier

To coach is to create a safe space for others to have their learning moments. Your job is to hold a mirror up against them.
The questions: What is on your mind? And what else? What is the real challenge here for you? What do you want? How can I help? If you're saying yes to this, what are you saying no to? What was most useful about this conversation?

Anything You Want by Derek Sivers

If you're not saying "Hell Yeah" to a hire, don't hire the person.
As a founder, as a manager, you're working towards making yourself redundant.
"Ideas are just the multiplier of execution".

The Harvard Business Review Manager's Handbook

Within 1 month of a new role, have 3–4 simple well defined problems that can serve as high impact quick wins.
When managing upwards: empathise with their situation, discuss expectations, adapt to their working style, work on busting silos.
When developing talent: discover their purpose, identify their work values, help them understand priorities, improve their skills, expand competencies, challenge with new experiences, help them acquire mentors.

Doing Good Better by William MacAskill

Our moral compass in trying to make the world better can be clouded by our inability to objectively quantify the impact of our dollar or time.
When deciding on which charity to donate to ask: what does it do, how cost effective is the program, what is the evidence, how well is it implemented, does it even need more money?

The Last Lecture by Randy Pausch

Experience is often the most valuable thing you have to offer.
Showing gratitude is one of the simplest yet most powerful things humans can do for each other.
"Find the best in everybody. Just keep waiting no matter how long it takes. No one is all evil. Everybody has a good side, just keep waiting, it will come out."

The Course of Love by Alain de Botton

"Marriage: a hopeful, generous, infinitely kind gamble taken by two people who don't know yet who they are or who the other might be."
"It is a wonderful thing to live in a world where so many people are nice to children. It would be even better if we lived in one where we were a little nicer to the childlike sides of one another."

Millennials Who Manage by Chip Espinoza

Be leadership centric, not leader centric: make sure leadership is distributed to the ends where the best person makes the best decision.
Express yourself instead of trying to prove yourself to others as a leader.
When leading millennials: think people first, keep your group in an underdog position, develop community, create time to breathe, value a relational approach, focus on career development, give frequent feedback.

Radical Candor by Kim Scott

Relationships do not scale but culture does.
Kickass bosses do not make decisions; they create an environment for clear decision-making that empowers people closest to the facts.
Have career conversations with your team at least once a month.
"Be as specific and thorough with praise as with criticism. Go deep into the details."

The Power of Moments by Chip Heath & Dan Heath

Life is just a series of moments, passing from one to another like a picture book.
What we remember are the peaks and pits, the lasting moments in the rollercoaster we call life.
There's nine times more to gain by elevating positive customers than by eliminating negative ones.
Cultivate the ability to see moments, to grasp moments, and to create moments that matter.

Full post originally published on Medium with complete details and book links.