Hi friend,

I hope your long holiday weekend is off to a rad start and Merry Christmas!

Question for you: have you ever experienced a serendipity explosion?

It’s when you get dropped into a room full of kind, ambitious and introspective people.

And we’re hosting one of those rooms in NYC on January 4th — it’s going to be a fantastic kick-off to the new year.

🎧 In this week's podcast, we ask: How's business (in a terrible economy)?​

Our favorite articles, podcasts, and videos of 2023

As we head into the quiet stretch of the holidays, I love catching up on the year's best posts, videos and podcasts.

We've curated a mix of external (i.e. non-RadReads) and internal (i.e. yours truly) based on what YOU read and recommended.

I hope you enjoy and happy holidays.

(PS Y'all love "Top 30" lists!)

Here are this week's top reads:

// one

Trading derivatives and the shame-based fear of being ordinary

11 minutes | Upbuild
​

“Ordinary was perhaps the biggest insult you could have thrown at me.” Ditto (and we even recorded an entire podcast episode on it). A successful former trader at Goldman Sachs reflects on his need for validation and the ensuing shame. I can deeply relate.

→ Read the post​

// two

Overcoming your need for constant validation at work

2 minutes | Harvard Business Review
​

Social validation is a hard-wired survival instinct - but needing too much of it can hurt you, your team and your organization. Is your need for external approval (aka being a Sensitive Striver) holding you back?

→ Read the article​

// three

Life lessons from a 44 year old

2 minutes | Annie Macmanus
​

Annie Macmanus beautifully shares both the good and bad of reaching her mid-40s (me in July, yikes). My favorite takeaways were: relationships as weighing scales, embracing small joys and kids as the greatest source of curiosity.

→ Read the post​

Below the Fold
​

LAST WEEK'S MOST READ

• ​When the juice ain’t worth the squeeze (RadReads, 511 clicks)
• ​52 things I learned in 2023 (Magnetic Notes, 492 clicks)

And finally, Blackstone’s 2023 Holiday video — real or fake?

With gratitude,

Khe

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