Hi friend,

Happy Saturday, fam! The SVB receivership has impacted many of our readers - we wish all affected the best possible resolution.

In a similar vein (but unrelated to SVB), the economic tsunami hit us. Hard. Despite having our best year in 2022, the trend-lines collapsed and we had to make some tough decisions which I detail in this 3,000 word essay.

I’ll be hosting a free Q&A on navigating a bear market as a business owner/entrepreneur on Thursday at 2 p.m. ET.

BTW, are you following us on Twitter?

The $645,099 business pivot

Life can come atcha pretty quickly. (At least according to Ernest Hemingway.)

No, RadReads is far from bankrupt and I ain’t broke.

But in January of 2023 our business got hit by a quadruple-whammy.

Yes, a mere 55 days after my proudest moment as an entrepreneur – offering our employees healthcare – I did the unthinkable.

Marian Knopp, Productivity Coach @workflowwonder In 2022, while other creators are laying off their team, @khemaridh is dishing out 401(k)s and healthcare. And he made my direct report full-time! If this what Rad life is like when the economy is bad, I can't wait to see when it gets better. So grateful for Rad benefits! 💖 twitter.com/khemaridh/stat… Khe Hy @khemaridh A big win for RadReads. We now offer healthcare to our full-time US employees. Thankful that we can eliminate one source of stress for our team. Our goal is to offer zero-deductible healthcare at $0 to the employee. Not there yet, but that's our True North. December 15th 2022 1 Retweets 7 Likes

I let half of our team go. Our team went from six to three.

Our online course industry had cratered.

The usual suspects were to blame - a worsening economy (a “rich-cession”), Zoom fatigue and the return to the office. But upon closer examination, there was a Hemingway gradualness to it all. The warning bells had been rung long before.

Some of these mistakes were tactical. My fair share of rookie mistakes as a first-time CEO. Yet many of them were my own faulty mindsets that I’ve long chronicled. Scarcity thinking, the fear of losing it all, envy and greed and borrowing other people’s goals.

One thing is clear though, I own them all.

And I’m excited to share them with you. I hope that these learnings will help you:

• Give yourself grace during an economic downturn
• Shed some light on career pivots and the “creator economy”
• Encourage you to play multi-decade games
• Help you avoid the mistakes I made
• Provide tools for improving your CEO Mindset

So let’s dig in.

Here are this week's top reads:

// one

The Status Game, by Will Storr

8 minutes | Darwinian Business
​

If you think you’re not playing a status game — think again. Maybe you’re not chasing Bobby Axelrod sums of money — but the NPR tote, your latest book club selection and your Tesla all are symbols of status. Is status necessary? Are high-status people healthier? (Yes.) I’m devouring Will Storr’s latest book, The Status Game and the advice “diversify your status games.”

→ Read the post​

// two

How to get out of your own way at work

10 minutes | Expanding Awareness
​

Some days there is no one but yourself to blame for your own blocked productivity. While creating dedicated time for $10K Work can be a great way to add awareness to your routine, Michael demonstrates how you can use awareness throughout the day so that you can rediscover flow. Check out more of Michael's work at Expanding Awareness.

→ Read the post​

// three

Leading with compassion has research-backed benefits

8 minutes | Harvard Business Review
​

What if kindness and compassion were not just admirable traits - but also a competitive advantage in the workplace? Studies have shown that being a caring boss can transform your leadership and improve your relationships.

→ Read the article​

​

// four

The art and science of spending money

12 minutes | Collab Fund
​

You’ve probably read a lot of advice on how you should save and invest money - but how often do they teach you how to spend it? The author of one of my favorite books on money shares 13 incredible lessons that will change the way you think about purchases. My favorites: under-appreciating long-term costs, trying “strange” forms of spending and frugality inertia.

→ Read the post​

// five

Hurry up, get more done, and die

5 minutes | SF Gate
​

Are you an over-optimizer? It’s tempting to squeeze more into every blank moment and become a micro-tasker of sorts. While it may be efficient, it’s surely exhausting. And when we reflect back on our lives — will we really cherish all the things we were able to “squeeze in?”

→ Read the article​

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Below the Fold
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LAST WEEK'S MOST READ

• ​You’re missing this key friendship (RadReads, 656 clicks)
• ​A guide to effective delegation (Janel Loi, 363 clicks)

​

And finally, asking a random New Yorker are you rich?​

With gratitude,

Khe

PS The LifeOS is your home base for personal productivity — one app to rule them all. It’s a 100% turnkey system to help you get on top of things and in control of your life.

PPS Want to receive our Weekly Review Checklist? Use your personal link to refer RadReads to 2 friends and we'll send it right away. https://sparklp.co/9ac1b50d

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