Daily Reads

Experiment Day 111:

Using DOGE and Age of Empires as examples...

A conversation on leading through change with little systems that make work easier, and communicating change to establish the mindset you want.

This is for leading yourself just as much as a team.

(Mild language warning in the reads today, not the stream.)

Daily Reads

What started with little tools to make things easier turned into entire systems that changed everything for the better, with buy-in from everyone for more.

"Of everything that happened during my year at DOGE..."

Excellent example of how our messaging effects mindset. To ourselves or others. I bet if the grenadiers had been framed with messaging more like their "fixed" statement the developers came back with, the buy-in would've been better from the start.

"I balanced all of the Age of Empires series except the first (which I then re-balanced after Rise of Rome). What I learned is that the Goths or Ottomans aren't your real enemies - that's the spreadsheet."

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Experiment Day 110:

Daily reads for personal innovation.

A conversation on systematizing in context of what you love, not what you need to do (but still doing what you need to do), the deeper meaning in a system, how explaining “why” is a gift, and taking risks.

Daily Reads

This is an example of systematizing something you’ve got to do by turning it into something you get to do.

Love the context of focusing on something you love to do something you need to do.

"How to Become a Morning Person"

Her dad had a system—that dashboard was never going to be dusty. But there was also a deeper meaning to the system. And explaining the "why" behind it could help others do the same.

"My dad would clean the dash of his truck even when it wasn't dusty."

I love this story of taking risks and stepping outside of others’ boxed-in perceptions.

“Nothing from nothing is nothing” could’ve been the story of Adam’s business, but instead he turned nothing into something into everything.

"We had $1M to the company's name and bet every dollar of it on a single bid."

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Experiment Day 109:

“Daily reads for personal innovation. Your second cup of coffee.”

(Playing with the tag line.)

Discussing thinking while sleeping...

And a conversation on wanting for beauty in a world at war.

Articles Discussed

At first glance, of course we day dream when we’re awake.

But thinking when we’re asleep? I’m intrigued.

(Also, the parts on brain waves makes me think of hypnosis... As in adjusting your state of mind and how you think, not silly “Hollywood hypnosis.”)

“You can dream while you’re awake. The boundary between wakefulness and sleep is a lot blurrier than you’d think”

When you consider we are made in the image of a Creator, this last wish makes sense.

There is beauty in the world despite the war—we’ve been at world at war since the Fall of mankind.

"Can Beauty Exist in a World at War?"

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Experiment Day 108 on a momentum Monday:

Discussing our forgotten 6th sense—magnetoreception.

A conversation on the benefits of being uncomfortable—the outcomes on the other side.

And reading a new poem I wrote Friday—in honor of our nation’s 250th anniversary.

Articles Discussed

Makes me think we have this ability because we were created for an environment with magnetism. And, I wonder if we’ve forgotten about it, because much like generations of animals living in a cave will lose their sight, we haven’t had to use it?

“Human Magnetoreception!”

Be uncomfortable for something that matters. Keeping the perspective on why and what’s on the other side makes it worthwhile. (That’s what’s on the other side of the discomfort, and what’s on the other side of this life.)

“Uncomfortable”

A new poem I wrote on Friday. God bless America!

“America's Founding”

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Experiment Day 107 Complete!

A conversation on being proud of the privilege of being an American as we look at 250 years together, and the legacy of those who sacrificed before us.

Discussing the 3 F’s to help you write poetry—Feel, Flow, Function.

And reading 3 poems.

God bless America, and have a happy Independence Day!

3 F’s for Poetry

Feel: “Show, don’t tell.” People need to “see” it to “feel” it. Can you see it?

Flow: The poem needs to flow with rhythmic sound. Read it out loud to hear for yourself. Can you hear it?

Function: This is how you want the reader or listener to experience the poem, whether in a concept or emotion. Does it make sense?

Reading 3 Poems

“Concord Hymn”

By Ralph Waldo Emerson

“I Hear America Singing”

By Walt Whitman

“The Gift Outright”

By Robert Frost

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Experiment Day 106:

A conversation on creating the impossible, and creating in context of new opportunities.

People who didn’t listen to experts and made what couldn’t be made.

And the drop of opportunity cost—with you being the differentiator.

Articles Discussed

One of my favorite categories of news is, “Someone did the impossible.” (It’s tied with, “Someone discovered what shouldn’t exist.”)

“Scientists achieve the ‘impossible’ material that could boost future wireless technology”

The risk adverse may see this as a reason to be fearful...

The cautious may see this as intimidating...

But for those who want to make the most of every opportunity, the cost has never been lower.

“The Great Descent”

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Experiment Day 105 in the books!

A conversation on my Bible reading this morning (Leviticus 24:10–23) teaching lessons on fatherhood, influence, and self-leadership.

Then looking at 4 lessons on screentime from 100+ hours of parental conversations.

Articles Discussed

"Leviticus 24:10–23"

Much of the success in our parenting approach with screens boils down to our influence in our kids’ lives, the values we teach them, and the self-leadership we model.

"The Best Approach to Screens, According to 100+ Hours of Parent Interviews"

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Experiment Day 104:

Starting off with a Dilbert comic that seems to predict the future we’re in now.

Then asking questions on how the spirit and the physical body interact with memories and thoughts.

Finishing with a conversation on agency and sovereignty.

Articles Discussed

I saw this comic right before seeing the latest news from Meta on their brain-to-text decoder... If you think your apps are listening to you to feed you advertisements now, just wait...

"2010 Dilbert Classics Week"

And this feels like something from the future Dilbert predicted.

"We’re sharing the next major milestone in our non-invasive brain-to-text decoder research: Brain2Qwerty v2."

For all the silliness around this topic, I do believe there’s something to it. Have to discern the nonsense from the directionally possible. Brings up interesting questions on how our brain/memories interact, in context of we’re more than just flesh.

"The Mystery of Transplanted Consciousness: When Organs Transfer More Than Function"

Interesting article that presents agency as a skill to develop. "Agency is the capacity to act."

"Everyone Is Talking About Agency"

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Experiment Day 103:

Discussing a creek splitting on the continental divide towards two opposite oceans, marketing ideas that work for leading yourself or others, and how having a vision before it’s cool is an opportunity for success.

Plus, new mic being adjusted.

Articles Discussed

This means it’s possible to travel across the entire continental United States without ever leaving the water. Fun to consider the unconventional as possible.

"In the state of Wyoming, USA, lies a real hydrological oddity."

This excellent list is also great for leading yourself or others. Marketing personal development to you, vision to a team, and more.

"Dan Kennedy is an industry legend."

I don’t know anyone who has started a business for this reason. And the vision was excellent—even though it didn’t quite work as intended. Sometimes we have to pivot to make the most of an opportunity.

"I started my painting business 10 years ago in 2016. It wasn't "cool" to be in home service back then."

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Experiment Day 102:

Discussing God-given intrinsic motivations—I believe this is the biggest miss in team building.

And, how to run a company effectively, with a story of the opposite of effective leadership.

Bonus: I killed a spider on-stream.

Articles Discussed

Found one of my old posts on the topic of innate/intrinsic motivations.

"“You were created with God-given talents and God-designed motivations.”

Reframes are the key to your success with number 3.

“How to Run a Company Effectively”

Fascinating story of how the wrong incentives create ineffective leadership.

(Obligatory mild language warning.)

“How Microsoft murdered Ensemble.”

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