Hi friends,

Greetings from Austin!

I've interviewed more job candidates in the past two months than my entire life combined. A key lesson: beware of charismatic people who only speak in lofty abstractions. Great people speak specifics. Yes, they can talk big picture, but they also put their boots to the ground and speak practically about the work.

If you love details and are passionate about writing education, we'd love to work with you. Here are all our open job listings.

Here's what I want to share this week:

1. ​Adulting Fast and Slow: I’ve long been struck by the idea that we live in a society of adult-like children and childish adults. This essay is my attempt to explain why. First, by exploring how we’ve lost childhood innocence and second, why growing up can feel so scary.
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2. Good Faith Effort Podcast: Rabbi Ari Lamm came to interview me about information superabundance, but the conversation moved to religion when he realized I was one of my fascinations. We spoke about coping with information overload, orality vs. literacy, informational monotheism vs. informational paganism, why Westerners should read the Bible, and the Cain and Abel story. (Listen here: Apple | Audible | Spotify)​
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3. Jim O'Shaughnessy Podcast: Jim is unabashedly curious and supportive, and hands down one of the best people I know. He interviewed me about applying the lessons of Disneyland to a writing course, and my mission to build an Internet-native education system. (Listen here: Apple | Spotify | YouTube)
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   ​4. Founding Director of Product: We're looking for a de facto "Product CEO" to run our new online writing program for high schoolers. It will be nothing like what you'd find in a traditional classroom. We want kids to love it and meet their best friends — and we'll filter for kids who are ambitious, obsessive, and want to be pushed. If you love writing and want to overhaul the education system, this is the job for you.

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Today's Finds

​Smart People Read: "David, why do you recommend writing so much? Isn't the world moving to video?" Yes, ordinary people certainly watch more videos, but successful people disproportionately read. When Forbes asked a bunch of wealthy people how much time they read each day, the most common response was two hours. For the average person, that number plummets to 20 minutes per day. Writing is no longer the best way to reach the masses, but if you want to reach the world's smartest people, hone your writing chops. Here's Byrne Hobart's excellent take on the subject.

​How Shelby Foote Wrote so Well: The historian Shelby Foote was admired for his Civil War expertise, but beloved for his storytelling. He credits Marcel Proust’s novel, In Search of Lost Time, as a key inspiration. Even though Proust’s ideas have nothing to do with Foote's area of study (The Civil War), Proust's fingerprints are all over Shelby Foote's writing, which is why the details are so vivid. Throughout Foote's career, he re-read the 3,000 pages of Proust nine times. Shelby Foote made space to read the greats in six months cycles: Homer, Chaucer, and Dante were three of his favorites. Reading wasn't just a way to pass the time. It was a way to make the most of life. Foote says: "The written word is what defines us as superior creatures. Man is characterized by many things, and among them is that they're the only ones who know they're going to die some day. They have an obligation to make the most of their time on Earth, which is made easier by reading." To learn about Foote's writing process, I recommend this short C-Span interview, his Paris Review interview, or this long video interview.

​How Narratives Drive Prices: The public markets increasingly resemble private ones in the way that revenue multiples continue to spread. Founders who can articulate their company’s vision and persuade the public markets that they have a bright future have cheap access to capital. Elon Musk and Tesla is the perfect example. The author writes: “Thus Tesla’s PE ratio is in many ways self-fulfilling. If Tesla could get people to extend the access to capital it needs for long enough, it will be successful. If it could not, then it would have collapsed. Ironically, this means that far from Elon’s antics being distracting, his ability to maintain these high PE ratios might be the most important driver of the company’s ability to succeed.” The better a company can tell its narrative, the cheaper it can access capital and the higher its price-to-earnings ratio can become.

The Keith Rabois Executive Series: A window into the mind of one of the world's most successful company builders (who led companies like PayPal, Square, OpenDoor, and LinkedIn). This series was written by Delian Asparouhov, his former Chief of Staff. It covers topics like How to Interview an Executive, How to be an Effective Executive, and How to Become a Magnet for Talent. I'll tell you right now. If you want to become a magnet for talent, share your ideas on the Internet. Documenting your knowledge attracts curious learners to work for you and peers to partner with you. A few other things stuck out. When hiring an executive, ask if the role is value creating or value protecting. If it's a value-creating role, hire an ambitious risk taker. If it's a value-protecting one, hire somebody with experience. When you're running a company, you should also be leading, not managing. Be proactive, not reactive. Set a clear vision, hire quality people, and then step in only when necessary. Make your team's objectives simple and clear. The more defined the north star, the more aligned everyone becomes. As an executive, it's not your job to be in every conversation. It's your job to make a few quality decisions every year. So invest as much time as you can into understanding your business and the market well enough to nail them.

​Mary Oliver Interview with Krista Tippett: Mary Oliver passed away, but her memory lives on through this rare interview with Krista Tippett. I recommend it as a starting point for the entire On Being podcast. She explores the spiritual life of writers, entrepreneurs, and religious figures with an emotional tenderness you won’t find on any other show. When you listen to one of Krista’s podcasts, you know you’re going to investigate the choir of the soul and the mystery of the universe. The environment she creates is as contemplative as a meditation retreat and as homey as the stuffed animal you used to hug as a kid.